Chrome OS - Six years later
Google Chrome was first released in 2008 as a web browser. Since then, it has grown to take over 51.72% of all internet traffic on Desktops in 2015 (StatCounter Global Stats).
In 2009, Google announced Chrome OS as an operating system. It was at the beginning just an overhauled web browser with elaborative bookmarks. But now it is maturing to a full featured OS.
The Panel includes four of your apps - The ones you use more often - and a fifth icon that shows you the rest of your apps. You can pin down apps in your shelf and they line up next to the search icon. It’s all straight forward, no menus, no hassle.
For the purpose of this review, I used a Toshiba Chromebook 2 with an Intel Processor, 4GB RAM, and full HD screen. All my performance-related remarks are from my experience with this Chromebook.
I also like voice search, after spending some time with it, I find myself using it more often. It feels natural and intuitive, as the rest of the OS.
All this makes it fun to work in Chrome OS, and Google constantly pushes updates that improve the experience. In fact, half-way through this review, I received the update with the redesigned search panel.
When using a Chromebook, the cloud is the centre of everything you do. Your files are stored on the cloud, not synced like with iCloud. Which means that your Chromebook and android devices become a window that you peak through to work on your files. I like it. Not only can you start working on a document on your Chromebook at home and continue on the subway on your phone, but anything you do on your Chromebook is instantly accessible on your phone (assuming you have internet). You can use more powerful apps on your Chromebook to edit images and then post them on Instagram from your phone, immediately.
You also get the option to work on some files offline and let them sync to your Google Drive when you’re back online. I, personally, am not a fan of syncing.
You can also play some basic games like “Cut the Rope” or “Angry Birds” in addition to all web-based and social media games.
With your Chromebook, you get 1TB of Google Drive storage, which is a lot. In addition, you get unlimited online storage of Google+ Photos (as long as you save photos in a certain resolution). There’s also Google Play, so that’s your movies, music, and books. Not to mention Netflix and other third-party entertainment and content apps and services. It’s good my Chromebook has a FHD screen.
Google Now is a big part of the ecosystem and it’s on Chromebooks and Android Wear. It gathers information about you and uses it to make your life easier. It gathers traffic information and reminds me just in time to leave for my next meeting so I am not late. It also brings out suggested places based on where I have been, in addition to pulling up transportation options for my work in the morning and home when I am back, and many other little cool things.
There are a number of 3rd-party apps that mirrors your Android notifications on your Chromebook (calls, messages, etc...) like Pushbullet. I wish that was a native feature from Google.
The Google suite also includes Google Maps, which is superior to Apple’s and Nokia’s, Google Calendar, and many others. They all sync to your phone, watch and soon your car.
Then there is power. My unit has an Intel Celeron processor, if I open more than 8 windows - when I do research for example -, it starts to suffer - same with apps. I also faced connection problems with my Chromecast, if I open another browser window on my Chromebook while one is connected, the connection either stutters or stops all together.
Even when the new Chromebooks come in with Core i5 processors as it has been mentioned on the news, there is just no professional-level apps. Chromebooks are hard to justify as a main - or only - laptop.
More importantly, almost all the features and benefits mentioned are available on the Mac or PC versions of Chrome, so why invest in a Chromebook when you can get all of that and more on a laptop?
In 2009, Google announced Chrome OS as an operating system. It was at the beginning just an overhauled web browser with elaborative bookmarks. But now it is maturing to a full featured OS.
The Interface:
The interface is clean and simple, at the bottom of the screen you can see the shelf and the search icon, this takes you to the redesigned search panel. Once you pull that, you can activate voice search by saying “OK Google”, like you would on an Android Device.
The Panel includes four of your apps - The ones you use more often - and a fifth icon that shows you the rest of your apps. You can pin down apps in your shelf and they line up next to the search icon. It’s all straight forward, no menus, no hassle.
For the purpose of this review, I used a Toshiba Chromebook 2 with an Intel Processor, 4GB RAM, and full HD screen. All my performance-related remarks are from my experience with this Chromebook.
The Experience:
My Chromebook boots in seconds and wakes up immediately. Browsing the web is fast as long as you don’t open more than seven or eight webpages, or run multiple apps, at the same time. Finger gestures are intuitive and easy to get. I particularly like swiping three fingers left or right to change tabs and swiping four fingers down to get a dashboard of all opened apps and windows.
I also like voice search, after spending some time with it, I find myself using it more often. It feels natural and intuitive, as the rest of the OS.
All this makes it fun to work in Chrome OS, and Google constantly pushes updates that improve the experience. In fact, half-way through this review, I received the update with the redesigned search panel.
When using a Chromebook, the cloud is the centre of everything you do. Your files are stored on the cloud, not synced like with iCloud. Which means that your Chromebook and android devices become a window that you peak through to work on your files. I like it. Not only can you start working on a document on your Chromebook at home and continue on the subway on your phone, but anything you do on your Chromebook is instantly accessible on your phone (assuming you have internet). You can use more powerful apps on your Chromebook to edit images and then post them on Instagram from your phone, immediately.
You also get the option to work on some files offline and let them sync to your Google Drive when you’re back online. I, personally, am not a fan of syncing.
The Apps:
Chrome OS is now a fully functional operating system. You get the productivity suite of apps like Gmail, Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides (similar to MS Word/Excel/PowerPoint), in addition to video and photo editing apps (Like WeVideo Next and Pixlr Touch Up). All of the above run offline. Android apps are also available now on Chrome OS (like Evernote) and There are plenty of web-apps/web-based services that help you get much more out of your Chromebook when you are connected to the internet, like Microsoft Office Online and Canva.You can also play some basic games like “Cut the Rope” or “Angry Birds” in addition to all web-based and social media games.
EcoSystem:
In this day and age, you don’t just buy a laptop or a smartphone, you buy into a complete ecosystem. Google is an internet giant, so is their suite of internet services.With your Chromebook, you get 1TB of Google Drive storage, which is a lot. In addition, you get unlimited online storage of Google+ Photos (as long as you save photos in a certain resolution). There’s also Google Play, so that’s your movies, music, and books. Not to mention Netflix and other third-party entertainment and content apps and services. It’s good my Chromebook has a FHD screen.
Google Now is a big part of the ecosystem and it’s on Chromebooks and Android Wear. It gathers information about you and uses it to make your life easier. It gathers traffic information and reminds me just in time to leave for my next meeting so I am not late. It also brings out suggested places based on where I have been, in addition to pulling up transportation options for my work in the morning and home when I am back, and many other little cool things.
There are a number of 3rd-party apps that mirrors your Android notifications on your Chromebook (calls, messages, etc...) like Pushbullet. I wish that was a native feature from Google.
The Google suite also includes Google Maps, which is superior to Apple’s and Nokia’s, Google Calendar, and many others. They all sync to your phone, watch and soon your car.
The Issues:
With all of the progress Chrome OS has achieved, and it is a massive leap, it is still a little rough around the edges. First, without an internet connection, you can only run a handful of apps and the internal storage is limited to 16GB.Then there is power. My unit has an Intel Celeron processor, if I open more than 8 windows - when I do research for example -, it starts to suffer - same with apps. I also faced connection problems with my Chromecast, if I open another browser window on my Chromebook while one is connected, the connection either stutters or stops all together.
Even when the new Chromebooks come in with Core i5 processors as it has been mentioned on the news, there is just no professional-level apps. Chromebooks are hard to justify as a main - or only - laptop.
More importantly, almost all the features and benefits mentioned are available on the Mac or PC versions of Chrome, so why invest in a Chromebook when you can get all of that and more on a laptop?
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