Chromebook

Both the feisty Fiesta Red and Mercury Gray color options are now much cheaper than what they were when they launched a year ago. The model comes with a 10th gen Core i5-10210U CPU, metal chassis, and 4K touchscreen to be better equipped than most other Chromebooks.

Lenovo has introduced two laptops aimed at the education market — the 14e Gen 2 Chromebook and the 14w Gen 2 running Windows 10 for Education. Both the 14e Gen 2 and the 14w Gen 2 feature largely identical specs, including MIL-810H compliance for durability, but differ with respect to the APU and storage options.

Lenovo announced three new Chromebooks for the education market today. The Lenovo 100e Chromebook Gen 3 and 300e Chromebook Gen 3 both run on AMD's latest CPU for Chromebooks, while the 500e Chromebook Gen 3 is powered by a Jasper Lake Celeron N5100 or Pentium N6000 from Intel.

CTL's latest Chromebook is powered by the Intel Celeron N4020 and has 4GB of RAM, as many of the OEM's devices do. However, the NL71CT-LTE also has standalone mobile data, so it need not be reliant on Wi-Fi for its often educational use-cases. This spec has helped win it one of Tech & Learning's Excellence Awards for Best Remote & Blended Learning Tools.

NVIDIA's game-streaming service GeForce NOW has announced the end of one membership type and the beginning of another. At US$9.99, the new Priority subscription costs more, but is also slated to add more benefits such as RTX ON and DLSS support in compatible titles. However, those with the original Founder's membership have their pricing locked in.

Renowned leaker Even Blass has posted Samsung's product release schedule for 2021. It says that new Chromebooks and Galaxybooks are slated to be launched in April, followed by the Galaxy Tab S7 Lite in June, the Galaxy A82 in July and finally, the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE in August.

Today (March 11, 2021) is a Thursday, which means it's time for new games in. the GeForce NOW library. This week, the streaming service has added 4 The Witcher-series games, which are, moreover, those of the GOG variety. Pascal's Wager (Definitive Edition) is another new entry on the cloud-gaming platform.

Google SVP Hiroshi Lockheimer has tweeted his excitement at the Chrome OS and Chromebook pipeline for 2021. It comes in the context of an IDC report showing that Chrome OS device sales surpassed macOS device sales in 2020 for the first time.

The latest full-year analysis of the PC market show that devices that run ChromeOS gained more and more market share during 2020 compared to those running macOS. Windows remained the market leader, although its share did fall compared to 2019. These changes might be related to the overwhelming demand for home-learning and -working solutions that marked the year just gone.

The Samsung online store will begin accepting pre-orders for the rest of the month where users can get an $80 credit towards the purchase of Samsung accessories. After March 1, the credit will be reduced to just $30.

Google has effectively given up on making first-party games for its streaming service Stadia. However, it has committed to bringing more titles from external studios to the platform in the course of 2021. They are slated to include Far Cry 6, FIFA 21 and Hello Engineer, although not all of those will form part of the first wave of these new games.

Acer has released its latest consolidated financial report, which covers January 2021. It includes revenues that are its highest "for the same period" since 2013. This performance is based on solid year-on-year (YoY) growth for the OEM's gaming, creator-PC and Chromebook sectors.

With the Chromebook Flip CM3000, ASUS will soon introduce a Chrome OS-based 2-in-1 that looks an awful lot like a Microsoft Surface Go. The ASUS Chromebook Flip CM3000 features a 10.5-inch display, 4 GB of RAM, a detachable keyboard and pen support.

The latest market research report from Canalys shows that the PC market enjoyed success not seen in years during 2020. It posted shipment volumes not seen since 2015, hitting 143.7 million units (a 35% year-on-year (YoY) increase) in the last quarter (4Q2020). Tablet and Chromebook shipments also saw record increases, with the latter doubling in number compared to 2019.

The latest 11.6-inch HP Chromebooks will have both Intel and MediaTek options. Users who favor battery life will prefer the latter while the former will excel in performance and ports.

Acer has used the BETT education show to debut four new Chromebooks. Headlining the new models is the Chromebook 511 which includes LTE support and is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c, compute optimized chipset.

The new ChromeBook CX9 and Flip CX5 models from Asus powered by the latest Intel Tiger Lake-U CPUs show that the Chrome OS laptops can easily match the performance of the traditionally more powerful Windows-based systems. The new premium-grade CX9 business laptop comes with enhanced security features and two Thunderbolt 4 connectors, while the Flip CX5 focuses on an expanded cloud-connected gaming experience.

The new Asus Chromebook Flip CM5 brings together a daring minimalist design and the AMD Ryzen platform (up to Ryzen 5 3500C) to deliver an excellent 15.6-inch tool for creativity. The list of specs and features includes Wi-Fi 6, up to 10 hours of battery life, as well as support for both GeForce NOW and Stadia.

Acer has introduced the Chromebook Spin 514 — the first Chromebook to be powered by AMD Ryzen 3000C series of Chromebook APUs. The Chromebook Spin 14 is offered in both consumer and Enterprise variants and sports a durable chassis, adequate port selection, and support for Android apps from the Play Store. The Enterprise version can also be availed as part of Acer's Device-as-a-Service program.

The high-end aluminum convertible Chromebook will launch before the end of the quarter for $549 USD in both Gray and Red color options. Samsung has yet to outsource its QLED panels to other OEMs.

Fans of high-end Chromebooks will be pleased to learn Samsung is following up its first Galaxy Chromebook with a sequel. The Galaxy Chromebook2 has been leaked by Evan Blass and with Samsung giving the eye-catching design a subtle makeover but we don’t know anything specific about its internals yet.

Google has confirmed that it has acquired Neverware, a company that specializes in turning old laptops and desktop computers into Chromebook-like devices. The acquisition follows a previous investment by Google into the company’s operations and offers Google a strategic opportunity in both enterprise and education.

Acer's 15.6-inch Chromebook offers a touchscreen display (FHD, IPS), silent operation, and very good battery life. The integration of Google's Play Store enables the use of numerous Android apps.

Google has announced an update for Chrome OS to version 87. This upgrade allows users to see how much battery their Bluetooth-connected peripherals have left for the first time. It also confers the ability to search through open tabs and makes the system more accessible to multilingual users.

Asus has released the sequel to its Chromebox 3 range, which were powered by Intel 8th gen silicon. The new Chromebox 4 range comes equipped with faster, more efficient Intel 10th gen chips and other improvements.

It has been almost a year since Google unveiled the Pixelbook Go, and the Google Play Console suggests that a successor may be on the cards. The machine is powered by an AMD Ryzen 3 3250C, 4 GB of RAM and would appear to be the long-awaited Google Zork.

Canalys is reporting a second quarter of growth in the international personal computing category during the third quarter of 2020. This growth was likely driven by an increase in people working or schooling from home with overall growth up 23% compared to the same period last year.

The Dell Latitude 7410 Chromebook Enterprise 2-in-1 is one of, if not the, best Chromebooks we have ever tested. However, for ~$1580 and up, it is far too expensive for a Chromebook.

MediaTek's new MT8195 and MT8192 chipsets are the company's newest Chromebook-centric chipsets. The former is powered by ARM's latest Cortex-A78 cores, while the latter uses previous-generation Cortex-A76 cores. Both chipsets use the same ARM Mali-G77 GPU, though. They are expected to hit the market in Q2 2021.

The Dell Latitude 7410 Chromebook Enterprise represents the absolute best hardware seen in a Chromebook to date. The Comet Lake Core i5 CPU and zippy NVMe SSD make this one of the most powerful Chrome OS devices on the market, but the operating system itself is still limited compared to Windows or macOS.

Acer has released the Acer Chromebook Spin 513, its first Chromebook using the new 8 nm Snapdragon 7c chipset. The 13.3-inch model is a middle of the road 1.2 kg and 15.6 mm thick, but the design is attractive and will be appreciated by home users as well as the enterprise model being suitable for the office.

A new software tool from Parallels, the Parallels Desktop for Chromebook Enterprise, allows certain Chromebooks to natively run Windows apps alongside Chrome OS apps, no Internet required. The software seamlessly integrates Windows into Chrome OS, allowing shared use of system functions like the clipboard, network connections, and more.

Intel's latest Celeron 6305 and 6305E processors have a number of up-to-date features and specs that may make devices based on them particularly worthy of consideration. There may have a lower base clock here compared to its immediate forebear, but it also supports double the cache, as well as faster memory and graphics. And, of course, Thunderbolt 4 is here in these newer models.

A Microsoft Surface Book user reported that his convertible laptop saved his life after taking a stray bullet. While the Surface Book did not survive encounter, its magnesium alloy chassis delivered on the promise of high build quality.

Chromebooks with Google's ChromeOS have been enjoying some popularity in the education sector. It seems that Google is making inroads in the business sector as well now, as some companies transition to the simpler Google OS. Lenovo's answer to this development: The new ThinkPad C13 Chromebook Enterprise. This 13.3 inch convertible is also the first ThinkPad laptop with a blue chassis.

AMD has announced the expansion of its Chromebook-focused lineup to include 14 nm Zen-based Athlon and 12 nm Zen+-based Ryzen processors. The new APUs for Chromebooks allow Chrome OS users to run more capable apps natively or via Linux. These processors, which carry a "C" moniker in the branding, will cater to more than 14 upcoming Chromebook designs from HP, Asus, Lenovo, and other OEMs.

The HP Chromebox Enterprise G3 is a powerful Chrome OS desktop with 10th Gen Intel CPUs, up to 16 GB of RAM, and up to 128 GB of NVMe SSD storage. The machine is targeted at office professionals, educators, and others in need of a tiny but powerful computer that is easy to manage.

HP has announced an Athlon or Ryzen-based model to complement their Intel-based HP Pro C640 which released earlier in August. The new AMD Athlon C and Ryzen C options combine with up to 16 GB RAM and a 128 GB NVMe drive to create an impressive Chromebook.

MediaTek is looking to release fast 6 nm processors for the budget-oriented Chromebooks in 2021. The upcoming MT8195 processor will be similar to Apple's ARM-based proprietary processors that are scheduled to release with next year's MacBooks, and will include powerful AI features along with possible Wi-Fi 6 and 5G integration.

Jasper Lake is thought to be Gemini Lake's impending successor for low-end notebooks and mini PCs launching in early 2021. A website that focuses on the latter has listed what it claims as the product names for these possibly Tremont-based CPUs. Should they prove genuine, it seems the new mobile and desktop categories get one Pentium and two Celerons each.

As public school systems in the United States shift to online learning in response to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic, many districts face a massive shortage of laptops for students. The shortage compounds existing problems facing American students in the midst of COVID-19.

GeForce NOW is NVIDIA's cloud gaming solution that allows access to any titles a user may have acquired regardless of the power of their PC. These possibilities are now officially open to those with Chromebooks, thanks to a new beta. It may allow the app to launch even on these often ultra-light machines.

Dell is adding quite a few enterprise-grade features to the existing 14-inch Latitude 7410 Chromebook lineup, including low blue light 4K touchscreens, LTE and Wi-Fi 6 connectivity, extended battery life up to 21 hours and a premium carbon fiber finish that keeps the total weight just above 3 lbs.

Nearby Share is Google's long-awaited answer to AirDrop, and may formally debut as part of Android 11. However, XDA contributors have found evidence that it may work with other operating systems, so long as they run Chrome. This is because it may have a web UI, which could make it almost universal for file-sharing.

Google has updated its Chromebook perks page with a couple of nice Stadia gaming offers for new buyers of listed Chromebooks on the Google Store. One delivers three months worth of free Stadia Pro access while the other offers a US$20 discount off the Stadia Premiere Edition bundle.