NO CAPS LOCKS FOR CHROME(also CR-48 info)

[Ragnell]

How long ago did you sign up for this?

[Ohemgee]

As soon as they said the chrome os url during the conference on tuesday

[Ohemgee]

So having the Cr-48 for a few days I can give an anecdote of my experience with it.


Overview


Get this in the back of your head that it IS a netbook. The purpose of Chrome OS isn't something that you log on, and expect it to keep up with resource heavy (flash 10.1 and below) applications/websites etc, as of 12/11/10. I say that tentatively because flash and storage are the only two draw backs that can be easily addressed when this is ready to ship out next year. I enjoyed my time with Chrome OS so far, as it was everything I expected it to be. I wasn't expecting it to replace my Dell XPS with Ubuntu or my Desktop PC with Windows 7, or even my iphone 4 since what you can do on Chrome OS is basically what you can do on iOS, but a lot cleaner.

Hardware
I absolutely love the Cr-48 for what its worth (I would price it to be around $100). The solid state drive houses pretty much just the OS and drivers for the netbook. It felt fast, responsive and I think its absolutely perfect for Chrome OS. Get it to boot up and ready to go, no bullshit extras needed

The google keyboard on the other hand is a step forward in serving its purpose. I love the convenience of the search key replacing the caps key (real men shift lock to sound angry on the internet). The removal of the function keys makes it feel exactly what you need to do for google chrome and the netbook itself.

The enlarged trackpad (I would't call it giant but it is larger than normal without a physical left/right key) to me needs the most work. Some times when I found myself wanting to copy and paste pictures from a facebook album, I found it extremely difficult to right click (two finger click) on it. I had to take the tap to click off because I absolutely hate that shit. Scrolling did feel natural going down pages, but kind of clunky going up, which over time I got over and learned how to do it.

The body of it does feel very nice to touch. A black matte finish with a giant trackpad automatically pisses off Mac book users (whom of which are faggots for caring) feels great, it looks simple, minimalistic, and sophisticated. I won't say more about it other than I think that it feels and looks sophisticated, like tea time and crumpets kind of shit.

I haven't got a chance to really test out the camera, still waiting for a skype app and google video chat. The speakers sound great for such a small size. And btw, 12.1-13 inches is probably the best size for a netbook. 10.1 inches feels so small and underwhelming after playing around with this. I might consider buying a stock macbook air for 1000, but I'll wait and see on that.


Chrome OS

First things first. ADOBE FLASH NEEDS TO HURRY THE FUCK UP WITH 10.2. Nothing is more frustrating then knowing you spend a lot of time on youtube and have it work like you’re on AOL 7.0 with a 56k connection. It isn’t really that slow, but its unbearable to watch, and you’re only streaming in 480p (which honestly I don’t even care that much about). HTML5 videos work like a dream. I watch a lot of videos on Revision3 and twit.tv and I really can’t watch it on this netbook. Other than that, HTML5 is the shit.

I will say this now, this OS heavily depends on community driven content over google giving you more than what it introduces. Yes apps lead to websites, which you think makes the Chrome Store a stupid idea, but it makes absolute sense for Chrome OS. Its a great place to find web sites that are highly rated in a centralized organized location. I would of never used Tweetdeck without seeing it in the Chrome store, and I love it. A lot of the apps are a work in progress, and in a sense (like the personalized New Tab extension, where it puts your bookmarked tabs in a pretty background and all of you apps in a separate location) you’re beta testing apps along side the OS. So far I haven’t seen anything really wrong non-developer side outside of Flash crash and aww snap puzzle pieces. I think once its established, the chrome store will house everything you need and want for on the go web browsing.

One drawback that Google needs to consider with having no physical storage is that we need a download location TO a cloud storage link. Kind of like how Box.net / Dropbox works on your machine, you can direct it to save to that preset storage application and be able to save small files on the go. I personally think with Chrome OS users, you should get that “local” user storage. Making it exclusive to Chrome users would make more sense than anyone with a Gmail account.

Conclusion

I really like this thing. And if the price point in summer 2011 is right, I might consider upgrading to an acer or samsung model. Everything from flash to the way things are stored will be sorted out by that time and I’m positive that I’ll be using this more than my Dell or Windows PCs. I’m still stoked that I received a Cr-48 (<3333 google for that) and I’m really excited for it to make a positive impact in the future. As a consumer, I think its a great product for anyone that uses google. To me it makes a lot of sense to use Chrome OS even with its limitations. As far as corporations are concerned, yeah, this shit is ace for small businesses. But really there needs to be a lot more focus (and probably future announcements) for network management in the future.

[miokomioko]

I'd imagine the fact that it's a netbook would counter most arguments for needing a caps-lock for coding.

It sounds nice (not feeling the design)... if only I had any real use for a net book. ;/ The idea of an iPad with a retina display has me waiting for that inevitability... it would just be too perfect for a portable digital portfolio which is the only thing I'm pining for, gadget-wise.

[Ohemgee]

Oh for sure I'm getting the new ipad when it comes out. I have an iphone 4, and I have all of my books loaded on to it. Besides being an expensive as fuck ereader, I can definitely see myself using it around the house for everything. The one thing I REALLY enjoyed about the netbook is its portability. I failed to mention the Verizon 3G allowance and I really really really hope that in the future, if Chrome OS takes off, that more OEMs will have Wi-Fi/3G models. The idea of having this away from your home network and having the ability to connect via Verizon's already great network.

But I totally agree with the iPad statement, its a lot more accessible as far as games, cool shit, and aesthetics are concerned. But it lacks the punch of being able to pop this bitch open, do work, save it to your documents, and go about like a boss. I'm really looking forward to the google tablet with honeycomb and how that plays out. If I can get Rage HD or Infinity blade on to a honeycomb tablet, then fuck me blind I'll get that shit