At CES this afternoon, Lenovo have announced a number of new multimode and convertible devices to supplement their exiting range.
There will be new Miix, Yoga and Flex models added to the lineup which makes Lenovo the leader in Multimode and Convertible form computing.
Lenovo’s full press release follows but we hope to get our hands on these devices soon!
Chromebooks are the next big thing by the looks of it and some hardware manufacturers are committed to making it work. We all have been asking, what next for Samsung ARM Chromebook. And today, there is a rumour from businesskorea.co.kr.
Business Korea reports that Samsung is preparing the upgraded ARM Chromebook for 2014. Well, they just have the year, not a quarter or a month, which is unfortunate. But they have put together some specs, which is convincing, but obvious.
Chomebooks make a lot of sense to me and I am liking the progressive hardware stride. New models are not yet knocking the ball out of the park however they are packing just enough over the previous generation to make you consider an upgrade,very much like Smartphones, without the lengthy contracts or hefty price tags.
It’s nice to see another well know hardware manufacturer dipping their toe into the Chrome ecosystem. Toshiba are joining the ranks of HP, Dell, Samsung and Asus by putting out their own version featuring Google’s Operating System. Things look quite similar aside from one particular design aspect: the screen.
So far we have seen Chromebooks currently feature either 11-inch, 12-inch or 14-inch. Toshiba have opted for a 13.3-inch screen. The back of the screen has a textured feel. Running at a resolution of 1366×768 is fairly standard. There is no touch-support or super hi pixel density.
As with the recent HP, Acer and Dell devices, the Toshiba uses an Intel Celeron 2955U CPU. This dual-core Haswell chip is clocked at 1.4Ghz and, for the most part, is more than up to the job of powering Chrome OS and Chrome Apps. Also on-board are 2GB of RAM, while there is also the now-standard 16GB SSD.
As an energy-efficient chip Toshiba estimate that their Toshiba Chromebook can run for 9 hours before needing a charge. Elsewhere there’s a smattering of USB 3.0 ports, built-in WiFi and Bluetooth, a Kensington lock, SD card reader and full-size HDMI out.
At less than 1-inch thick and weighing in at 3Ibs, the Toshiba device is more than matched with Chromebooks on offer from Samsung and Acer.
Finally, price. PC Mag say that the device will retail in the US at $279. This is the same price as the HP Chromebook 11, and $20 cheaper than the larger (if similarly spec’d) HP Chromebook 14.
Looks like Dell is planning to release a Chrome OS devices. We have hard this before as they had considered it back in 2009, but then nothing came of it. Dell has now announced the Chromebook 11 and it is looking like a great option for those looking to get a Chromebook soon. The Dell Chromebook 11 has fairly typical specifications and comes with a large focus on education.
Dell’s Chrome OS computer comes with some powerful specs, so it will definitely be one of the top options in your lists. The promise of 10-hour battery life is certainly exciting, and paired with those specs this computer should run very smoothly!
Price and Availability
The laptop will be released in Q1, 2014 Stateside. Dell state it will cost you “under $300″. Which probably means it will cost $299 or so, for the higher-end model. Whether that is dollar for pound is anyone’s guess at the moment! My guess is probably.
Looks like Acer are more in touch with the consumer than ever before. Their latest Chromebook nabs one of the features of the Chromebook, namely a touch screen, whips it into place and flogs it for almost £1,000 less than the Pixel.
Combined with the handsome features of the current Acer C720 Acer could really steal the crown of best all rounder when it comes to a Chromebook. Press release to follow:
London, 27th November 2013 – Acer today announced the availability of its first touchscreen Chromebook, the new Acer C720P, a new model in the Acer C720 Chromebook line that was introduced last month. The new C720P provides the many benefits of touch on the device’s 11.6-inch HD LED back-lit display to take advantage of the Chrome interface.
“Our new touchscreen C720P gives customers an intuitive way to browse sites online, enjoy apps, and do more with the Chromebook,” said John Miedema, director, business product unit for Acer EMEA. “The Acer C720 Chromebook line has been praised for its performance and battery life, and this new touchscreen model allows us to address the needs of an even wider range of customers with exciting new capabilities. We’re certain many holiday shoppers will jump at the chance to get a touchscreen Chromebook for just €299.99.”
The new Acer C720P touchscreen Chromebook is being introduced after the launch of Acer’s new “A Touch More” marketing campaign that highlights the company’s growing range of innovative products with touch capabilities.
The Acer C720P’s touch capabilities are enjoyed on its vibrant 11.6-inch ComfyView™ HD display that has a 1366×768 resolution to keep websites, images and video crisp and clear. The multi-touch display allows customers to use gestures such as swipe, tap and pinch to zoom to interact in a natural way with the Chromebook so they can better enjoy educational apps, browse websites, scroll through Google Docs, play games and more.
Like the rest of the new C720 line, the new C720P touchscreen model is powered by an Intel Celeron 2955U processor based on the Intel Haswell micro-architecture, so it delivers fast performance and excellent multi-tasking such as running multiple tabs and apps. The processor also enhances battery life; it keeps customers going for up to 7.5 hours for extra productivity and fun.
The C720P gets customers working and connecting quickly with its 32GB SSD that provides a fast boot time of less than 7 seconds and quick resuming from sleep. The large SSD also provides ample storage capacity for saving video, photos and other files. In addition, the touchscreen C720P features 2GB of DDR3 memory. Plus, the Acer C720 quickly connects to hotspots and wireless networks via 802.11a/b/g/n WiFi.
Thin and Lightweight Design Includes all the Extras
The Acer C720P Chromebook measures only 2 cm and weighs only 1.3 kg pounds, making it easy to carry to meetings, classes, and anywhere life takes today’s busy consumers. The C720P’s compact chassis houses everything needed to stay productive, connected and entertained on the go. It features an integrated HD webcam for video chats as well as capturing video and photos to share online. The new Chromebook features a dual speaker design that delivers crisp and clear stereo audio during online chats as well as for enjoying music and movies. Connecting to popular consumer electronics devices such as camcorders, digital cameras and smart phones is easy and convenient with the Chromebook’s USB 3.0 and USB 2.0 ports. Its HDMI port can be used to provide video and content to external displays and HDTVs.Security for Multiple Users, Collaboration
Customers will appreciate that the Chrome OS is updated automatically, so it always has the latest features. Multiple layers of security features including data encryption and verified boot defend the Acer C720P Chromebook against online threats, malware and viruses. The Acer C720P Chromebook keeps data safe when the device is used by multiple users, such as for collaboration in the classroom and for projects for home, school or work. Users can have separate accounts to ensure their project, Gmail and other information is kept safe if the Chromebook is lost, stolen, or lent to a friend.Chromebooks Are Ready to Work and Play
Acer Chromebook customers are provided several extras to make use of their new C720P touchscreen Chromebook right out of the box. They can access up to 100GB of free Google Drive storage for the first two years after purchase, so files, documents, photos and more are stored safely in the cloud.Acer Chromebooks are easy to start enjoying, as they come with popular Google products built in including Search, Gmail, YouTube, and Hangouts.Pricing, Availability and Warranty
The Acer C720 Chromebook will be available early December in Switzerland, Germany, UK, France, Netherlands, Sweden and Finland with a starting price of €299.99.
Microsft’s “Scroogled” campaign has become become one of the biggest, embarrassing jokes in the industry. Again screaming nothing but desperation and unprofessional competition.
The ad shows a young actress walking into a famous “Gold and Silver Pawn Shop” in Vegas, with her Samsung Chromebook. She tries to sell it for a ticket to Hollywood but instead gets mocked and told she could probably get to Reno. The Pawn Stars crew highlights that it’s not a real laptop, doesn’t work offline and doesn’t have Office.
We won’t even mention the long list of inferior Windows computers and the company’s history. If Microsoft is really willing to pay TV show Pawn Stars a fortune to make this advert it must mean they are feeling the pressure. Chromebooks are on the rise, and that means no good for a company who is used to ruling the PC market.
You can trust in Microsoft not to be up with the times, the Chromebook is developing at a faster rate than they could ever wish their platform develop. I wonder now is Google will accept the insult like a Gentleman from an petulant child of if they might pick one the many, many flaws in Windows retaliate! And besides have Windows not road-mapped Windows 10 to be a Cloud OS?
Written on a Chromebook (offline)
Having a go at doing an SSD face-off with three lower priced SSDs in a typical PC setup. All three SSDs are tested on the same platform in an IDE set up. From the expensive Kingston SSDnow 100 V, to the considerably cheaper Toshiba Q Series Pro and including the OCZ Vertex Plus R2 for good measure we see that money isn’t everything when it comes to picking up an SSD.
In a conference call to investors, Asustek CEO Jerry Shen announced that two new Chromebook products will ship worldwide towards the end of Q1 (spanning January through March) next year. Rumours and industry reports have long hinted that the Taiwanese PC maker would expand into more computing areas, such as Chromebooks and smartphones, as a way to offset a sharp decline in its traditional Windows-based PC business.
According to The Taipei Times, the company’s first set of Chromebooks will consist of a 11.6″ model priced at US$199 and a larger 13.3″ version set to retail for US$249. Recently developers have unearthed mysterious Tegra 4 and Baytrail-powered device references buried deep within the Chromium code. Could these be linked?
There was no mention of the Asus Chromebox that had some interest earlier this year. Perhaps, if Asus manage some success with their Chromebook we will see more happening.
Early speculation was that a touchscreen version of the company’s Chromebook C720 range was on the way. Recently, Amazon France listed the anticipated device in their listings. Before it gets pulled, those qui pouvait parler un peu français can see some specs here.
This is the first entry-level Chromebook to feature a touchscreen, with Google’s developer-orientated premium-grade Chromebook Pixel having the honour of being the first and only Chromebook to feature touch capabilities to date.
Two major differences from both the $199 C720-2848 and fractionally more expensive C720 are listed:
Amazon France have the laptop priced at €299 (roughly £250 or $400).
The online stores of Amazon, Best Buy, Google and HP are no longer listing the HP Chromebook 11 as available for sale. The former pair have also removed all information about the device from their websites. In addition to halting online sales, Best Buy has also gone a step further by issuing a Memo to its retail store managers instructing them to “stop selling” the device “effective immediately”. The issue appears to be that the charger overheats. Customers are being advise they “should not use the original charger provided…”HP and Google are recommending HP Chromebook 11 owners to not use the charger provided with their devices. Luckily for those who have already purchased on they can use the micro-USB for charging, owners should at least have plenty of phone chargers around to keep their Chromebooks chugging along safely.
Connect
Connect with us on the following social media platforms.