skip to main |
skip to sidebar
I have been evaluating the $279* "Made With Google" HP Chromebook 11 (Model 11-1101). Available just since last Fall, HP is apparently now replacing it with another 11-inch Chromebook lacking Google's touches and styled to resemble HP's larger Chromebooks.
Light-weight and svelte, the Chromebook 11 looks like its mother was frightened by a MacBook Air. The white plastic is broken up by colored accents on the base and a matching colored band around the keyboard. The colors can be Google blue, Google red, Google yellow, or Google green. Because this was "Made With Google", get it? There is also a Google-colored strip of light on the top, which glows when the device is turned on. I guess this could have been something of a "Nexus Chromebook."
A more substantive added feature is the IPS HD LED-backlit display. Although still the standard 1366 x 768 resolution, the display is sharp and bright and a more than few steps above the competition.
The mobile-phone class Samsung Exynos 5 SoC (also used in the Series 3 Samsung Chromebook I reviewed in 2012) provides decent (and fanless) processing power. It's still good enough for web surfing and light office work, but clearly raw power has been traded for affordability and fanless operation (and possibly to help pay for that display). You have to watch what you're asking this little Chromebook to do.
The keys are fine for typing, with good spacing and travel. No complaints about the trackpad, either.
At 2.26 pounds, it's lighter than the 2.43 pound Samsung (and also lighter than the new HP model, which weighs in at 2.69 pounds).
Cheerful, cheap and even a little stylish, this shiny, plastic-y Chromebook 11 looks like it might get scratched or scuffed-up in typical library use (although in our adults-only evaluation it held up well). But it looks well-suited to being handed out for casual use by patrons (as opposed to being attached to desks for lab use). It's light and cool enough for lap use.
Perhaps not "institutional" enough for lab or classroom use, it makes a fine personal device.
Note that (at least today), the "Made With Google" Chromebook 11 is still widely available, and though the new model is on HP's website, clicking on the "Buy Now" button links to this older model.
*As of this posting, HP is selling them for $229 after a $50 "instant discount".
I've been evaluating the new $249 Chromebook from Google and
Samsung. This is Google's latest attempt to bring a web-centric model
of computing device to the masses. The device is small (with an 11 1/2
inch screen) and lightweight (about 2 1/2 pounds), and the Linux-based
Chrome operating system boots quickly and cleanly. Applications are
web-based, and can be loaded from Google's Chrome Web Store. The
criticism is that many apps are little more than glorified bookmarks for
the Chrome browser, but it all works well enough.
Unlike
previous generations (which used laptop-like Intel Atom or Celeron
CPUs), this Chromebook uses a mobile phone-class Exynos processor. It's
easy to load too many tabs and apps at first, but the system quickly
slows down to remind you that this is a simple device, intended to be
used simply. The payoff for this processor is improved battery life-- I
have been getting more than 7 hours per charge.
With
it's limits in mind, the device works well for browsing the web, writing
emails, and using web apps. Patrons can sign on to the devices with
their Google accounts (bringing up their Gmail, and Google apps, docs,
and calendars), or can "browse as guests" anonymously.
The
chicklet-type keys have good play and are easy to type with. Keys for
controlling screen brightness and speaker volume are placed similarly
with the same keys on the OLPC XO! They even use similar symbols. In
fact, you might place the XO and the Chromebook on the same evolutionary
line of Linux laptops, all using lightweight power saving hardware and
simplified user experiences and designed for specific users (students,
web surfers). The touchpad works without any drama, and the camera is
good enough for video chats. The Chromebook looks inexpensive, but not
cheap. It does not seem to be as durable as the rugged little XO, which
was designed to be dropped by little
hands, but everything worked out of the box and nothing has broken so
far, although I'm not planning any drop tests!
The
device works well as an ebook reader for purchased (or free) ebooks
(using web-based apps like
Google Play, Nook for Web and Kindle Cloud). Ironically, the most
closed-in system for checking out ebooks from libraries is the one that
works best with the Chromebook: Kindle ebooks
checked out from libraries through Overdrive are readable with Kindle
Cloud Reader since all the DRM is handled through Amazon. There is no
Overdrive Media Console for Chrome. I plan on further testing of other
systems for a later post
For years I've hoped that
thin client technology would improve to the point where libraries could
swap out our usual array of MS Windows-based PCs for something far
cheaper to buy and maintain. The "Personal Computer" was always way too
personalizable for efficient use in libraries. Tremendous, and
tremendously expensive effort has gone into locking down these things
for use by library patrons.
Thin clients, which pull
user profiles and programs from servers, have always made more sense to
me for patron use. But the user experience has always been lacking, and
patrons were too wedded to Microsoft Office for it to be feasible. This
newest Chromebook, however, could meet the needs of a lot of
patrons for a simple web device, and online apps are a lot more
acceptable. The price is right, and I know many libraries are
evaluating Chromebooks. With luck, we may be moving into the "post public PC" era in libraries.
