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Chromebooks

496 'Chromebooks' stories May 2011 - November 2016
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Acer’s aluminum Chromebook 14 is one of the year’s best laptop values, especially at $230

Avatar for Stephen Hall Nov 25 2016 - 12:35 pm PT
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Update: The laptop is no longer available for $230 at Amazon.

It’s been a couple years since I used a Chromebook on a full-time basis. Before I owned the MacBook Pro that I use today, I had one of the earlier Samsung-made Chromebooks. I loved it a lot. But in terms of raw capabilities and build quality, I knew I needed something more. So here I am today.

For the last week or so, however, I’ve been diving back into Chromebooks — specifically using the Acer Chromebook 14. Given this is my first real experience trying to use a Chromebook on a daily basis since one of the platform’s first generation laptops, it’s an understatement to say I’m impressed…


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Review: Acer’s Chromebook R13 w/ apps is a temptingly nice 13-inch 1080P convertible

Avatar for Seth Weintraub Nov 16 2016 - 1:26 pm PT
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I was as pleasantly shocked as many people at Google I/O earlier this year when the company announced that Chromebooks would begin to offer Android apps via software update. In my mind, this is a real game changer, bringing Chrome OS into the mainstream desktop OS market with macOS and Windows.

The future became now as earlier this month, the already impressive Acer R13 Dev channel got the Google Play store. But let me back up a second. First you really need to hear about the hardware specs of the Acer Chromebook R13 which make it seem almost like a Pixel-type of device, if not better…
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Acer launches $199 15-inch Chromebook with claimed 12-hour battery life

Avatar for Ben Lovejoy Oct 17 2016 - 6:02 am PT
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If you’ve been trying to choose between a cheap Chromebook and one with a larger screen, Acer may have solved your dilemma. The new Acer Chromebook 15 CB3-532-C47C provides a 15.6-inch display for just $199.

The catch is that the resolution is just 1366×768 (you get what you pay for), so don’t expect to have too many windows on-screen at any one time. But if you just want a larger screen to better see what you’re doing, view movies and create room for a larger keyboard, it may well be all you need …


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How to get Android apps running on (almost) any Chromebook right now [Video]

Avatar for Ben Schoon Oct 6 2016 - 10:35 am PT
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The addition of Android apps to Chrome OS is a big deal, but sadly it’s also taking a while for Google to push that functionality to all models. So far only three Chromebooks can officially run Android apps, and while more are on the way, there are still plenty of Chromebook users who will be waiting for quite a while.

Luckily, there’s a trick to get early access. Thanks to some savvy Chromebook users over on Google+ (via Chrome Story) we’ve been able to find a way to install the Play Store on any current Chromebook which will at some point officially support Android apps. Please do note that this won’t work with many older models. If your Chromebook is listed here, odds are this will work.


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Samsung forgets about Chrome OS, advertises Chromebooks ‘Powered by Android’

Avatar for Ben Schoon Sep 17 2016 - 12:19 pm PT
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Since Chromebooks first hit the scene, Samsung has had options available. The Samsung Series 3 Chromebook was one of the most popular Chromebooks ever, but in the time since Samsung’s Chromebooks have faded into the background a bit with the focus shifted to options from HP, ASUS, Acer, and many others. With Android apps on the horizon, it seems that Samsung is finally pushing its Chromebook lineup yet again, but it might be doing that in the wrong way…


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Google announces Cast for Education, Creative Apps for Chrome OS, public Expeditions availability, more

Avatar for Abner Li Jun 27 2016 - 10:40 am PT
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Coinciding with the announcement of Project Bloks, Google today introduced new updates and improvements to a slew of classroom tools at the ISTE education technology conference. Announcements include public availability of Cardboard Expeditions, Google Cast for Education, quiz support with automatic grading in Google Forms, and new creative apps for Chromebooks.


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HP launches the Chromebook 11-inch G5 w/ 12.5 hours of battery life, optional touchscreen

Avatar for Stephen Hall Jun 27 2016 - 8:25 am PT
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HP has today launched the latest version of its lower-end Chromebook, the HP Chromebook 11-inch G5. At first glance there might not appear to be anything special about this laptop, but there are a couple of standout features: the laptop offers more than 12 hours of battery life, and there’s also a model that includes a touchscreen (essential for those planning to take advantage of recently-announced Android app support coming to more Chrome OS devices later this year)…


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Chrome OS will finally get a storage manager in an upcoming update

Avatar for Ben Schoon Jun 24 2016 - 7:13 pm PT
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Chrome OS has always been pretty bare bones, but as an avid user and fan of the OS, even I have to admit it’s missing features it really shouldn’t be. With the limited storage available on most Chromebooks, you’d think a storage manager would be available, but you would be wrong. Thankfully, that will be changing very soon.


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9to5Toys Lunch Break: Acer Chromebook 15 $229, BlackBerry PRIV (unlocked) $300, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Jun 20 2016 - 10:21 am PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

Acer’s huge Chromebook 15, 1080p display, 9 hour battery life – just $229 ($70 off)

Unlocked AT&T BlackBerry PRIV down to $300 shipped (Reg. $649) | eBay

Pebble Steel Smartwatch for iOS and Android $80 shipped, Apple Watches up to $200 off, more

Amazon Gold Box saves tons upgrading your Mac/PC/Network setup: Dell 24″ display: $115, more

LG’s 27-inch 4K FreeSync Monitor brings massive work space to your battlestation: $400 shipped (Reg. $500)

Daily Deals: Blue Yeti USB Microphone in Silver $100, Logitech G302 Daedalus Prime Optical Mouse $25, more

Apple’s latest 13-inch MacBook Air 1.6GHz/8GB/128GB drops to $830 shipped (Reg. $999)

How-to: Put a USB Charging port just about anywhere, without AC power for as little as $50 (Solar+Battery) 

Giotto’s $10 Rocket Air Blaster is the best way to keep your Mac clean for the money

Review: At just $24, this Leather Loop Band for Apple Watch looks great and won’t break the bank [Gallery]

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

Smartphone Accessories: OLALA 6000mAh Power Bank with Built-in Lightning Cable $24 Prime shipped (Reg. $30), more

MORE DEALS STILL ALIVE:

This flash drive adds another 32GB to your iPhone or iPad thanks to Lightning + USB 3.0 connectivity: $36 (Reg. $50)

Ditch that ugly plastic flash drive for an all-metal USB 3.0 Samsung from $7 Prime shipped (up to 60% off)


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At Apple CEO Tim Cook’s old high school, they are selling their MacBooks to buy Chromebooks

Avatar for Edoardo Maggio Jun 20 2016 - 3:57 am PT
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Despite having been mocked because of its browser-only OS limitation, Chromebooks have seen an astonishing degree of success in certain sectors including education, mostly due to the combination of high efficiency and low costs.

But when MacBook enclaves Apple CEO Tim Cook‘s old high school start making “the switch” to Chromebooks from MacBooks, we take notice…


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Android apps arrive on Chromebooks with Chrome OS Dev 53, Play Store live on ASUS Flip

Avatar for Abner Li Jun 17 2016 - 12:00 am PT
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Announced at Google I/O 2016, Androids apps and the Play Store are now officially on Chromebooks. Chrome OS 53 is rolling out now to all devices in the developer channel, but the Play Store is only showing up on the ASUS Chromebook Flip. Early users are reporting bugs, but reactions are generally positive with performance improvements over Android apps installed via ARC Welder.


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9to5Toys Lunch Break: ASUS Chromebook 16GB $180, Google Nexus 5X 32GB $275, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Jun 7 2016 - 12:57 pm PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

This ASUS Chromebook w/ a 16GB SSD will have you surfing the web for just $180 (Orig. $220)

Google Nexus 5X 32GB $275 shipped or $300 shipped w/ $30 GC (Reg. $399)

TYLT VU 3 Coil Qi Wireless Charger for Galaxy S6/Nexus 6/Droid Turbo: $30 Prime shipped (Reg. $70) | Amazon

Upgrade to Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Pro 2.2GHz/16GB/256GB for $1,600 shipped (Reg. $1,999)

Amazon’s best-selling high-power, super-thin 50-mile amplified HDTV Antenna is somehow just $17 shipped

Indoor HDTV 25-mile Antenna w/17-ft cable: $8 Prime shipped (24″ Vizio HDTV for $90)

Hook Dad up with Automatic’s smartphone-connected car diagnostic system: $70 shipped (Reg. $100)

Here are our favorite Father’s Day gifts for the outdoorsman, chef and car aficionado in your life

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

Use Siri voice commands to control any of your electronics w/ the iDevices smart switch: $35 Prime shipped (Orig. $50)

MORE DEALS STILL ALIVE:

Two UE BOOM 2 Bluetooth speakers: $300 shipped ($150/ea, save $100)

Cover your iPhone 6/s Plus with OtterBox’s Alpha screen protector for $11.50 (Orig. $40)

Review: Pelican’s impressive Elite Luggage is built like a tank, but is it worth the price tag?

NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:

The Super 73 Electric Bike has an old-school design and hits speeds up to 30mph

Acer’s new Chromebook 11 and Chromebook 14 go up for sale on the Google Store

Avatar for Ben Schoon Jun 3 2016 - 2:07 pm PT
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Acer has been in the Chromebook world for a while and today their latest offerings have just gone up for sale on the Google Store. The first is another refresh to their popular line of 11.6-inch Chromebooks, the Acer Chromebook 11 (2016), and the second is the Acer Chromebook 14 which sports an all-aluminum build…


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Google Play Store is coming to Chrome OS in mid-June to 3 Chromebooks, more to follow

Avatar for Stephen Hall May 19 2016 - 11:09 am PT
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We spotted the event description yesterday, but Google today finally took the wraps off its plan to bring the Google Play Store to Chrome OS. While the event is just now starting, we’ve spotted a support page on Google’s site that says the feature is coming to three Chromebooks in mid-June, with dozens more devices to follow…


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It’s official: Android apps and the Play Store are coming to Chrome

Avatar for Stephen Hall May 18 2016 - 12:36 pm PT
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It looks like there’s a little tidbit of information that might have been originally planned for the keynote (pulled because of time restraints, maybe?). According to a session description now on the Google I/O website, Google “announced” today that the Google Play Store is coming to Chrome…

Today we announced that we’re adding the best mobile app experiences in the world, Android apps and the Google Play store, to the best browser in the world, Chrome! Come to this session and test your Android apps for Chrome OS. You will get hands on help from our friendly engineers on how to optimize your Android app for Chromebooks. Oh, and we will also be giving the first 50 developers to show up a free Chromebook so they can get a head start bringing their apps to Chrome!

This isn’t exactly surprising as we saw evidence that this was in the cards all the way back in April, but it’s cool nonetheless to see it become official. It looks like this session is going to involve Google showing devs how to test their Android apps on the desktop platform. Also worth noting: the first 50 devs to show up will get a free Chromebook.

We’re on the ground at the event now, so stay tuned as we learn more.

This week’s top stories: Galaxy Note 6 leaks, Huawei P9, HP Chromebook 13 & hands-on w/new Android phones

Avatar for Jordan Kahn Apr 30 2016 - 9:37 am PT
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In this week’s top Google stories: new Android device news surrounding the Galaxy Note 6, the death of the Nexus 9, Huawei’s upcoming P9 flagship, and more. And we went hands-on with LeEco’s new Snapdragon 820-powered Le Max2 w/ 6GB of RAM, the BlackBerry PRIV running Android Marshmallow, and the Oppo F1 Plus in this week’s top videos.

In addition, HP and Google launched the impressive new Chromebook 13, and a handful of notable Google and Android app updates arrived as well as news of a completely overhauled design for Instagram in testing.

Head below for all of the quick links to this weeks top stories, videos and more. 


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HP’s new Chromebook 13 vs. 12-inch MacBook specs compared – Which is the best value? [Poll]

Avatar for Cam Bunton Apr 28 2016 - 9:04 am PT
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A short while ago, Google and HP announced a brand new metal-clad Chromebook which boasted some impressive specs, including the powerful, efficient Core M chips from Intel, high resolution screens, generous RAM and more than one Type-C port. In a lot of ways, this is the more affordable laptop the Pixel should have been, and will give the Dell Chromebook 13 a run for its money. But how does it compare to the other Core M laptop; Apple’s latest 12-inch MacBook?


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HP Chromebook 13, built w/Google is thinner than MacBook, with 3 USB C/A ports, retina display, starts at $499

Avatar for Edoardo Maggio Apr 28 2016 - 7:24 am PT
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Albeit not being full-fledged PCs, Chromebooks are becoming increasingly interesting machines for a lot of people, given that the extremely simple and lightweight Chrome OS generally leads in reliability, ease of use and usually highly affordable prices.

However, a few of these computers have stood out for things like higher-end specs and interesting industrial designs — namely Google‘s own Pixels — and it looks like HP may have found a really sweet spot with today’s announcement. Partnering with the Mountain View company, the two are today unveiling the Chromebook 13, an all-metal machine with truly impressive specs and price…


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9to5Toys Lunch Break: Acer Aspire One Cloudbook $100, Pebble Time $98, more

Avatar for Stephen Hall Apr 26 2016 - 10:35 am PT
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Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: Twitter, RSS Feed, Facebook, Google+ and Safari push notifications.

TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

Acer Aspire One Cloudbook 11.6″ Notebook (Refurb) $100 shipped (Orig. $190)

Pebble Time $98 shipped w/ code START20 (Reg. $150) | Monoprice

Apple 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro 2.7GHz/8GB/256GB $1,200 or $1,150 w/ .edu (Reg. $1,499), more

Apple 13-inch MacBook Air 1.6GHz/4GB/128GB (early 2015) from $700 shipped w/ .edu (Orig. $999)

Apple 21-inch Retina 4K iMac 3.1GHz/8GB/1TB (newest version): from $1,150 shipped w/ .edu (Reg. $1,499)

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

Home Theater: Yamaha 7.2-Ch. A/V Receiver w/ AirPlay + Bluetooth $479 shipped (Reg. $700), more

MORE DEALS STILL ALIVE:

Onkyo 5.1-Channel 4K Receiver/Speaker Package w/ Bluetooth $300 shipped (Reg. $400)

NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:

PICTAR’s vintage-inspired SLR camera accessory for iPhone looks to add affordable functionality