Google has been naughty. Very naughty.
Many companies struggle to dominate their chosen market, let alone others, and would never consider trying to replicate their success elsewhere, particularly given the stiff competition. Google on the other hand love to break the mould, and following a flurry of experiments, outside the realm of the search engine that started it all, they’ve now set their sights on something completely new.
For those who are unaware, following a fuddled launched, Google recently introduced a laptop/netbook alternative, dubbed the ‘ChromeBook’. Featuring Google’s new operating system, Google Chrome, the ChromeBook hopes to revitalise the ageing portable laptop concept, boasting initially impressive features, including near-instant boot times and cloud storage for your files.
Notable, attention grabbing features aside, then, is the ChromeBook worth your money? Google enthusiasts are quick to defend both the hardware and operating system, but I’m not so sure – there are a whole host of issues that many individuals (and websites) appear keen to gloss over, which will affect not only the feasibility of the ChromeBook, but also the likelihood of purchase, for many.
And so, without further ado, here’s the list of six fundamental reasons for the potential failure of Google’s new flagship device.
Storage on the Cloud
A bright concept, but its brilliance is undermined by substantial flaws – the Google ChromeBook requires a persistent internet connection to operate, as your files are stored online, alongside the ‘Google Apps suite’; word, excel, calendar etc.
Practicality issues aside for a moment, i.e. what if you find yourself in a location without internet access, this also raises security concerns. Certain files, such as sensitive banking data, simply should not be stored online, particularly given the wealth of recent hacking threats by organised groups, such as Anonymous or LulzSec.
Furthermore, the ‘always online’ principle contradicts the benefit of a laptop; there’s no guarantee that you’ll be able to work from anywhere, due to the feasible dilemma of an intermittent internet connection – without which, many of Google’s web applications will fail to run.
In Google’s defence, there is some support for offline working, but it’s restricted to a handful of apps; a far cry from a traditional laptop. Logging in with a Google ID, as opposed to a localised account (as you would do for Windows 7) is also a neat idea but, again, a potential security issue.
Full screen woes
There are concerns flitting around the internet about the persistently full-screen nature of the ChromeBook. With the Chrome browser the primary platform through which to perform tasks, it’s always in full screen, rendering users unable to carve up their on-screen real estate between different applications. This is a likely to hit Windows power users the hardest, but also those make full use of multiple screens on a daily basis.
The issue of cost
Just like tablets, the ChromeBook is available in two offerings, either Wi-Fi or 3G.
This goes to further demonstrate the middling nature of the hardware; it’s not quite a tablet, but it’s certainly not a fully fledged laptop, either. The Wi-Fi version is also unpractical, as the purpose, and lure, of a netbook is that you can work from anywhere. However, due to the online nature of the ChromeBook, you’ll require an internet connection at all times, making the 3G version more of a necessity instead of merely an option.
With 3G, you’ll then have to pay a subscription fee to access the internet, further bumping up the cost. Considering a standard netbook is available for around £200-£250, around a hundred pounds cheaper than the ChromeBook, with which you could perform simple working tasks such as editing a word document, and without an internet connection, the financial practicality of the ChromeBook also comes under fire.
Back in May, Pocket-Lint reported the following monthly costs: “Chromebookers will get 3GB of 3G data to use in the first three months of their Chromebook’s life for nada, then they’ll have to pay either £2.99 for a 500MB day pass (valid until midnight) or go for a monthly bolt on of 1GB (£10), 3GB (£15) or 7GB (£25).”
They then go on to say this is “very reasonable”, but I would have to disagree. It’s little more than a glamorised money grabbing attempt, and one that offers very little in return for the considerably high cost.
Productivity concerns
The ability to compete with Windows, Mac and even Linux is also a major cause for concern. To counter the problem of a restrictive operating system, Google Chrome have introduced their own App Store, but as for how practical this is, from a productivity perspective, only time will tell. There’s further cost associated with the app store too, as many of the best applications retail for up to £5.
That said, due to the persistent online state of your Chrome account, your applications and web settings, along with your files, will always be accessible. The benefit that this provides cannot be ignored, but at the same time a Windows or Mac user could achieve something similar with a DropBox account, and thus you cannot argue this feature to be entirely fresh or innovative, and certainly not unique to Chrome OS.
Chrome browser use
Most websites render well in the Google Chrome browser, granted, but unfortunately not all. Mozilla Firefox and Internet Explorer have their own fair share of incompatible websites, granted, but for an operating system that’s built solely around the Chrome browser, compatibility becomes a matter of great importance. Windows or Mac users can flick between browsers as they deem fit, whereas ChromeBook users will be forced to endure the Chrome browser through the good and the bad.
The practicalities
Realistically, you could just buy a netbook or laptop – the features provided by the ChromeBook, at present, are simply not innovative enough to warrant the extra cost. Adopting a new operating system also has pitfalls for long-term users of Windows or Mac; for example, there’s not a native Skype application at present.
Drivers equally pose an issue, as it’s easy to forget the background tasks that Windows or Mac OSX perform for us. Despite sporting USB ports, you cannot simply plug a printer into your ChromeBook and expect it to work as intended. As with the rest of the operating system, you’ll need a printer that’s capable of talking to the internet, and even then you’ll be forced to use Google Cloud Print – a major hindrance.
For those few users who live online, though, requiring only email, social networking and office applications to function, then the ChromeBook is a real practical alternative. However, for the majority of us who also require video editing tools, access to coding platforms, and a platform that’s supportive of mainstream gaming, Google’s offering simply won’t cut the mustard.
You’ve really helped me udenstrand the issues. Thanks.
Posted by Jaylene | December 14, 2011, 1:13 AM