ChromeBooks: Buy Google Chrome OS Samsung and Acer Laptops

Google annouced its first brand new Chromebooks, the Google Chrome OS Laptops to be avialable worldwide, after two years of development. Unlike most laptops, the Chromebook is optimised for web and internet usage.

Samsung and Acer will be the first harware manufactures to build and launch Google Chrome OS based Laptops. Samsung is set to introduce a 12.1-inch screen with an 8-hour battery life, 3G and Wi-Fi for $499. Acer is going to offer a 11.6-inch display with 6.5-hour battery life for a starting price of $349 and up.

Google Chromebooks with Google Chrome OS will be available for sale from June 15, 2011 in U.S, U.K, France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy and Spain. United States users can Buy ChromeBooks Online from Amazon and Best Buy.

Samsung Series 5 Chromebook with Google Chrome OS

The Samsung laptop will be called the Series 5 Chromebook and it will sit on a 12.1in chassis and have a 1280x800 WXGA resolution Superbright 300 nit display.

For punters' money, Samsung is going to bundle in 2GB of RAM, 16GB of SSD storage and Intel's dual-core N570 Atom chip running at 1.66Ghz. It will weigh only 3.2 pounds and Samsung claimed you will get 8.5 hours of battery life for standard use but up to five hours on video playback without the need to recharge.

Ports are relatively minimal with 2 USB, a SIM card slot, a multi-format card reader and a VGA dongle. Samsung will release only two flavours in June, a 3G WiFi model at £399 and WiFi only model for £349.

Acer INQUIRER with Google Chrome OS

Acer has been less forthcoming with information but The INQUIRER has spotted a WiFi and 3G Chrome model on Amazon's US store. Basic specifications of the Acer Chromebook are exactly the same as Samsung's Series 5 but it's on a smaller 11.6in chassis and has a slightly lower screen resolution at 1366x768. Acer will also bundle in an HDMI port and a 6-cell lithium battery but hasn't listed any prices.

How will Chrome do with big vendors? It obviously helps having top tier vendors backing your product but its an untested market for Google. Chromebooks also have Jailbreak as a standard feature so tinkerers can install whatever they want on them. That means Google has at least stuck to its open rhetoric and it will please the modders, but straight-laced vendors and mobile carriers might not be so happy.

Google Chrome OS Launch: When and Why

At Google I/O Developers Conference yesterday, Google teased the world with a few details revealing that its untested Chrome operating system will appear on Samsung and Acer laptops this Summer. Now Samsung has chipped in with a confirmed release date and hardware details.

Google has been testing Chrome OS in the wild through the CR-48 notebook, but those devices sport unstable developer versions of Google web-centric OS. Since then, Google has fixed most of Chrome’s bugs and made it compatible with Intel’s dual-core processors.

Chrome OS is the search giant’s attempt to create a cloud-based operating system. Unlike traditional desktop operating systems like Windows and Mac OS X, Chrome OS only runs web-based applications through a modified version of the Chrome browser. As a result, Chrome OS can start up in a matter of seconds and has a longer battery life.

Originally designed for netbooks, the rise of tablets has forced Chrome OS to evolve into a notebook OS and could even make its way onto tablets and other form factors.