Chrome Book

[OnMyWay]

Anyone have any opinions on a Chromebook laptop vs. a regular Windows 10 laptop?  I think I recall some of you saying you use Chromebooks???  In particular, this will be for my 11th grade daughter for online school.  They use Google Classroom and some other Google tools.  The principal told us either one is fine.

I briefly looked at them online at Amazon, just for reference.  I still had in my head that Chromebooks were small like notebook sized, but now they just about regular sized laptops, and I guess the OS has come a long way too.  And, Chromebooks are generally cheaper.

I went in a computer store last week just for a glance, and it appeared they had around 40 models of laptops, with the cheapest being around 18k.  I did not think at the time to see if any were Chromebooks.  Do they sell Chromebooks here?

 

[manofthecoldland]

I, like many, use Google Chrome as my web portal... but I can switch to Firefox or Microsoft Razor (I believe) if I wish.  I do not think you have that option with a Chromebook. When they first came out I, like other older users of limited tech update, was under the impression  that they were cheaper because they used the Cloud for storage, etc, which allowed them to use less  components.... thus cheaper to manufacture.

I just bought a new P 18.5K HP computer here in Capiz since our 4 yr old lockdown guest spilled water on my 3 year old HP which had inferior memory, keys that were sticking, etc.  I'm happy with the upgrade.  

If you can buy a full spectrum laptop for what you'd pay for an economy Chrome only, I don't see the advantage.  Hope you will let us know what your researching the issue with experts on-line will pulls up. Best wishes.

[manofthecoldland]

Google "chrome book versus laptop"  for FAQs.

 

[OnMyWay]

3 hours ago, manofthecoldland said:

I just bought a new P 18.5K HP computer here in Capiz since our 4 yr old lockdown guest spilled water on my 3 year old HP which had inferior memory, keys that were sticking, etc.  I'm happy with the upgrade.  

If you can buy a full spectrum laptop for what you'd pay for an economy Chrome only, I don't see the advantage.  Hope you will let us know what your researching the issue with experts on-line will pulls up. Best wishes.

 

2 hours ago, manofthecoldland said:

Google "chrome book versus laptop"  for FAQs.

Yes, I did look at one side by side comparison of 10 items, and Windows won 7 of 10.  Overall value, at tie.

If you don't mind, can you share the specs on your 18.5 k hp?

The store I stopped in was Silicon Valley.  They have a big selection but I am not sure their prices are good.  They have online sales too.

[Mike J]

One big advantage of chrome books is security, especially for users who tend to visit social sites and like to download videos, quizzes, games, etc.  I brought two of them over for the nieces and nephews when I arrived six years ago.  Security was never a problem, but one ended up being stolen and the other was dropped and the screen was broken.  I was able to buy the two chromes for the price of a single laptop but that was six years ago and things may have changed.

https://www.howtogeek.com/356474/8-things-you-may-not-know-about-chromebooks/

<snip>

Security is one of the biggest selling points of most Chromebooks. They are very secure and aren’t susceptible to any known viruses. This is because each web page and Chrome app runs inside its own virtual “sandbox,” meaning other aspects of the computer can’t be compromised by a single infected page. And as soon as the problem page is closed, the threat is destroyed.

<end snip>

Edited June 15, 2020 by Mike J

[manofthecoldland]

9 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

 

Yes, I did look at one side by side comparison of 10 items, and Windows won 7 of 10.  Overall value, at tie.

If you don't mind, can you share the specs on your 18.5 k hp?

The store I stopped in was Silicon Valley.  They have a big selection but I am not sure their prices are good.  They have online sales too.

https://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c06175855

Specs listed here.

[GeoffH]

I have used Chrome Books in the past and my daughters school list them as an option but she and her friends do not like them, they prefer both Apple and Windows laptops over the Chrome Books.  

One reason I shifted away (and the same reason my daughter and her friends don't like them) is Google Docs formatting isn't the same as Microsoft Office formatting so if you create a document in Microsof Office (which has most of the market share) and then import it into your Chrome book then sometimes the fonts and layout change.  And vice versa, if you create a document on your Chrome Book and then open in it Microsoft Office then sometimes fonts and layout alter and it just doesn't look right.  And it's random... unless you've got access to both types of devices and can check it (and alter if necessary) you won't know when the problem will hit you.

This happens more with Microsoft Office 365 than with earlier versions presumably because Google have fixed incompatabilities with the earlier versions.

Another issue with Chromebooks is that you really don't have a  'computer', you've just got a Web Browser box.  File storage and retrieval has to be online (device storage is generally very limited and the 'file system' hardly justifies the name) which means you need a reliable internet connection for good performance.

The third issue probably only effects 'power users' but if you're someone who uses a lot of different types of programs then you might find that there is no alternative available in Chrome for the function of one or more of your programs (I had this issue and it's why I swapped back to Windows).

But if you've got good internet and aren't a power user and you're on a budget then they're going to feel like they're more responsive to use than cheap windows laptops with spinning hard disks.

 

[OnMyWay]

1 hour ago, GeoffH said:

Another issue with Chromebooks is that you really don't have a  'computer', you've just got a Web Browser box.  File storage and retrieval has to be online (device storage is generally very limited and the 'file system' hardly justifies the name) which means you need a reliable internet connection for good performance.

I'm heavily leaning towards Windows now.  Now the challenge is to find a decent price on one with touch screen and a decent sized SSD.  I don't know if that is possible in the Philippines.

[hk blues]

2 hours ago, OnMyWay said:

I'm heavily leaning towards Windows now.  Now the challenge is to find a decent price on one with touch screen and a decent sized SSD.  I don't know if that is possible in the Philippines.

I'm also looking at this now - my son's school have confirmed return mid July with online classes only.  

I have looked on Lazada but prices are similar to instore and I'm wary as reading the reviews shows that sometimes the units are not actually new.  Sometimes. 

[OnMyWay]

12 minutes ago, hk blues said:

I'm also looking at this now - my son's school have confirmed return mid July with online classes only.  

I have looked on Lazada but prices are similar to instore and I'm wary as reading the reviews shows that sometimes the units are not actually new.  Sometimes. 

I prefer in store, but a few places have both instore and online, so you might be able to pick it up at the store and make sure all is well before accepting it.  If need be.

This Silicon Valley has a big selection but I think their prices are a bit high.  Not sure.

Here are their laptops, sorted lowest price first.  The 4th one, and Acer, is out of stock, for 18990, but seems to have decent specs.  Having the OS on an SSD really speeds things up, so I think an SSD big enough for the OS is a must for me.  They have an Acer store at our mall.

https://www.siliconvalley.com.ph/product-category/laptops-desktops/laptops/?orderby=price

Abenson has some as low as $13,999

https://www.abenson.com/computers-gadget/notebook.html?cat=157&computer_hardware_type=732&product_list_order=price