Even with the
current low market penetration predictions for laptops and desktops in the
coming years, Google has introduced a Google-branded high-resolution Chrome OS
portable computer with a touchscreen, a shift that blurs the boundaries between
keyboard-oriented laptops and touch-oriented tablets and between the company's
mobile Android operating system and its Web-centric Chrome OS.
Fulfilling a
prediction made late last year, Sundar Pichai, SVP of Chrome and apps,
demonstrated the Chromebook Pixel, the first Chrome OS device aimed at power
users, at a media event in San Francisco.
Pichai
described the Pixel as both as a fully engineered product and a reference
device to show Google's hardware partners how a Chrome OS touchscreen device
can work. The Pixel is by far the most premium Chromebook that we've seen to
date: it has a Retina-like high resolution touchscreen display, a powerful Core
i5 processor, and an upscale metal chassis. It also has a similarly upscale
price of $1,299.
But hardware
and price aren't the only unique aspects of the Pixel — where earlier
Chromebooks have been made by a variety of manufacturers, including Samsung,
Lenovo, Acer, and even HP, the Pixel is the first model to be designed entirely
in-house by Google and carry just a Google logoPichai said the screen was
"the highest resolution screen that's ever been shipped on a laptop."
For the sake of comparison, the Apple MacBook Pro with Retina display has a
pixel density of 220 ppi.
The Pixel is
different, however. The Chromebook's $1,299 price is more than Apple asks for a
13-inch MacBook Air, and significantly more than what you pay for your average
Windows 8 Ultrabook, even when considering a model with a touchscreen. Apart
from the high resolution display, the Chromebook doesn't really do anything
more than those computers — and many would argue that since it's little more
than a juiced-up web browser, it can do significantly less. Additionally, it
doesn't offer a significantly faster processor, it isn't thinner or lighter
than other laptops, and its five hours of expected battery life is little more
than average for an ultraportable laptop.
Pichai also
highlighted the device's speed. "It's an incredibly fast experience,"
he said. "In my personal experience, this is the fastest laptop I've
used." At 3.35 pounds, the Chromebook Pixel is about a pound heavier than
Apple's MacBook Air, which appears to be the Pixel's primary competition, at
least in terms of price. Despite its heft, the Pixel is a beautifully designed
device, one that includes several custom-designed components. Pichai insists
the Pixel compares favorably with Apple's ultraportable notebook.
"I think
it will stand up very, very well against a Macbook Air," said Pichai.
"... What you're getting from our hardware is in many ways far
superior."
Google has
partnered with Verizon to provide an LTE wireless connectivity option. It is
providing Pixel buyers with 1 TB of Google Drive storage at no cost for three
years. That much storage normally would cost about $600 annually.
The Wi-Fi
version (32 GB) of the Chromebook Pixel is available for $1,299. It can be
ordered through the Google Play store, with shipping scheduled in about one
week. The LTE version (64 GB) costs $1,499. It is also available for order
through Google Play, with shipping planned for April. On Friday, Best Buy will
begin taking Chromebook Pixel orders.
To make the
prospect of living in the cloud more appealing, Google is planning in three
months to integrate Quickoffice (acquired by Google last year) into a future
version of its Chrome browser and Chrome OS using its Native Client technology.
This will allow Word and Excel documents to be opened and edited natively in
Google Apps rather than converted to the Google Apps format. As a result, the
Pixel should appeal to businesses that rely on Microsoft Office.
Google is also
planning to release in its Chrome Web Store a Google+ Photos app that supports
automatic photo uploading from SD cards. Armed with a touchscreen, Chromebooks
may be ready to transition from the role of understudy to star.
In October,
Pichai described Chromebooks as a complement to existing PCs. And Google
supported that sidekick role through its Chrome Remote Desktop software, a
Chrome browser extension that lets Chrome OS users access and administer OS X
or Windows computers from afar.
But the
touch-oriented Pixel presents a challenge to personal computers running OS X,
Linux or Windows, as well as tablets running Android. It aspires to be a
primary computing device for those who want to "live in the cloud,"
as Pichai puts it.
Google first
launched Chrome OS laptops with partners Acer and Samsung in mid-2011. Rather
than trying to offer devices that were more powerful than leading PCs at the
time, Google and its partners offered devices that were more affordable, more
manageable and more secure. Initially, Chromebooks sold poorly, but following
the launch of second-generation devices in May 2012 and third-generation
devices in October 2012, including an ARM-based Chromebook from Samsung, demand
appeared to rise. Pichai noted that Samsung's recent model Chromebook has
remained atop Amazon.com's laptop bestseller list for the entire 125-day period
it has been available.
Some of the
credit for rising Chromebook demand should go to Google for expanding the
number of Chromebook kiosks at Best Buy stores. But Acer and Samsung played a
part too by making Chromebook laptops more appealing.
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