Google launches HP, Acer Chromebooks in India
The lightweight laptops will come to India on 17 October, for around `25,000
New Delhi: Google is most famous for its Web services and mobile devices, but ever since June 2011, the company has also been working on Chromebooks. These are conceptually similar to the category known as net-books—low-powered laptops that were meant mostly for Web browsing.
The main difference is that while net-books were usually full Windows machines, Chromebooks are built around the Chrome browser. This allows the machines to perform faster without using high-end hardware.
On Thursday, Google announced two new Chromebooks for India—Acer C720, which will be available for ₹ 22,999, and HP Chromebook 14, which will cost ₹ 26,990. Both machines will be available from 17 October.
The two machines are fairly similar, but the HP (Hewlett-Packard Co.) device has a 14-inch screen and 32GB of storage, while the Acer laptop has an 11.6-inch screen and 16GB of storage. The HP machine also has more USB ports and a card reader, and claims nearly 10 hours of battery life.
Caesar Sengupta, vice-president of product management on Chrome OS (operating system) for Google, in a videochat said the company was able to build steam behind the Chromebook project only last year, with launches from multiple partners such as Samsung and Acer.
“In the last one year, we have done really well, and Chromebooks have consistently been top-selling laptops in Amazon UK and US. The HP Chromebook 11, which we announced in the US yesterday, is already the number 2 top seller on Amazon as well," he said.
“Chromebooks aren’t net-books; those were mini PCs (personal computers)," he said, “and people are online much more now. They want something that will switch on the moment they pick it up. They don’t want to spend time managing files, we have a file manager on Chrome OS if you need it, but really, you spend your time on websites and apps, and the apps manage the files for you. It’s the natural evolution of the PC in a mobile era."
In a sense, Chromebooks actually have more in common with tablets like Apple Inc.’s iPad, than with the laptops that they are usually compared with. “Most people do have desktops or laptops, but for those people, a Chromebook can be a highly portable second machine with a tremendous battery. When you just want to check your mail, or post a status update, then a machine where you don’t have to make backups, or worry about viruses, it’s ideal, right?" Sengupta said.
“At the same time, while tablets are great, they aren’t ideal for working. If you want to send a letter or type a short document, then the keyboard suddenly becomes much more important," he added.
Users familiar with Google’s Chrome Web browser will feel familiar with the Chromebook interface, which uses the Web apps that are available for the browser. While the numbers are still pretty small compared to Apple’s iOS App Store, or Google’s own Play Store, Chrome OS has an advantage because people are already used to visiting websites instead of apps when using laptops. But Sengupta says a user doesn’t need to be online at all times either.
“The Internet infrastructure is definitely a problem, and not just in India but internationally too. In fact, in many ways things are looking good for India as we see technology get leapfrogged, and the adoption of 4G globally has been very positive too. But important things like image editing, editing Word documents, even games, are all available as apps you download once, and you can use offline."
This does not mean that every piece of software that you might be used to on a Windows PC or a Mac will be available on Chrome OS. However, Sengupta feels that a majority of the buyers will be people who spend most of their time on computers online anyway.
At the same time, he also believes that network infrastructure is going to improve at an increasing pace. “Earlier, people weren’t interested in going online. People didn’t watch much video, but today if there’s a problem in loading a YouTube video, people call up their ISP and want to know what’s happening. As consumer demand from networks grows, the networks will also have to improve to keep pace," he said.
Sengupta said the net-books, which are launching next week, are just the first step in new hardware. “We want to see Chrome OS available at multiple prices, from multiple partners, so users get the most choice," he added.
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