Samsung Chromebook (Wi-Fi, 11.6-Inch) Reviews
I've had my chromebook for a couple months now, and I increasingly love it. I just pulled out my old laptop (heavy, slow MacBook) the other day, and I was really impressed by how much the Chromebook has spoiled me.
Sure, you can't load your own 3rd party programs, and the storage is minimal, and the screen is not industry-leading... but you knew that all before you bought it!
It's thin and super lightweight. The computer loads in seconds when powered on, and pages load faster that my old mac ever did. Not sure why everyone complains about the screen so much. Why is everyone looking at their screen from funny angles anyway? Looks just fine when it's sitting in front of me.
The Chrome web store has tons of add-ons which improve functionality. Memory hasn't been a problem for me at all; keep a flash drive around, and you'll be fine. Battery life has been at least 6-7 hours per charge, which is phenomenal. Completely silent while running, which is nice. Speakers are better than I expected. HDMI link to my 42" LCD TV has very nice picture. Keyboard has a very nice feel to it, and trackpad works well. 12 free GoGo in-flight passes almost pay for the machine itself.
Crashed on me twice shortly after I got it; probably had too many windows/tabs open (may have something to do with combination of having both incognito and regular windows open... not sure). Software has updated itself several times since I first started using it, and now no more crashes. Couldn't open my dropbox files at first; after upgrades, it's working perfectly. I do wish Google and/or Citrix could develop a better app than their current Citrix Receiver, which is really my only complaint. That would really help make this a dynamite cloud-friendly computer.
At $250, this is an incredible value. Really glad I stepped outside my Mac and PC comfort zone to make this purchase. Careful: if you lend it to your family and friends for a "minute," it may be hours or days before you see it again. :)
The Samsung Chromebook is the most ideal hardware you can take on the go at 2.4lbs, while only being .7" thick. While being limited to the browser and a few other apps, the chromebook is also technically limited to what the internet has to offer! Which is a shitload, fellas. It's as if you entered a beautiful life-supporting planet. Actually to more accurately put it, you can do most things an average user would need to use on the Chrome OS. However, the Chromebook should not be treated as a desktop replacement. A PC will always be much more better for high intensity tasks such as video editing and gaming. While the 3g edition is not available, tethering is still very possible on phones! FoxFi (tethering) worked flawlessly with the Chromebook.
In preparation of going to the Google Cloud, I've been using the Google Play Music Manager and Chrome already. The Google Play music player is quite impressive; you can easily edit song info, album photos, etc very easily. You're playing music that you've uploaded to the cloud with it too, and you're always welcome to download all your music from it from any PC. I'm pretty certain you can still listen to music off-line if you've downloaded it.
One of the things that impressed me was the sound quality. The sound really exceeded my expectations... it not being complete junk! The build quality also is very good and looks flawless. It has a fan-less design as well, so there's pretty much no noise being produced. The track pad is highly acclaimed by other reviewers, but I found myself struggling to use it. However I was already not a fan of track pads since I learned that you could not play Counter-Strike 1.6 on it years ago. Heh. There's also the SD expansion slot too fellas, but I've seen in a review that it doesn't fit flush into the laptop, but most laptops are like that. The keyboard is a pretty good size itself, but I was mistyping a few things but that's simply because I'm too used to a keyboard. The charger is very small, but what worries me is that the charging pin may break from being too thin. The performance feels very similar to my quad-core desktop, that is loaded with an SSD as well.
This series does have bluetooth support, and it was not mentioned much in many reviews. My BackBeat 903 bluetooth headset didn't seem to pair properly so I'm not too sure if bluetooth audio sets will work on the Chromebook, but BT Mice are definitely supported. USB storage devices work pretty well too, but I have yet to test playing videos or movies off of them. There are specific file formats that the Chromebook can play, so make sure you have files converted.
The only thing that I found to dislike was the matte screen. I'm simply used to glossy screens and find matte doesn't look very sophisticated on electronically devices. Taking a look at glossy and matte photos may change your view on it. Well actually, to add to the disliking, Google really needs to step up because they've been slacking their asses off with Netflix support for the past few weeks but I do believe it was functional at one point on other chrome books.
Ultimately, Google and Samsung deserve some high fives, and most general users should enjoy this notebook. Maybe you can brag about how fast your chromebook turns on to that chick you've been dying to talk to. See, the possibilities are limitless!
I wanted a computer that was fast and efficient, and didn't bother me with updates all the time. I wanted a device with a keyboard that I could use to surf the Internet, check email, type documents, create to-do lists, update my calendar, and complete quick calculations. I've found all of that and more with Chromebook.
Now, as other reviewers have mentioned, the learning curve might be just a bit steep for those unused to Google's products (besides their search engine, of course). But I'm telling you, once you get the hang of using Google Docs for typing documents, Google slides for creating presentations, Google Calendar for setting dates, etc., you will not want to go back. If you lose your Chromebook or find yourself without it, you can go onto any device that connects to the Internet and find your documents, presentation, calendar, etc.
Technically, you don't even need a Chromebook to use those products, just a Google account. But then you wouldn't have such an efficient, fast machine to use them on--and why would you ever want that?
what a machine !!! or is the Google Cloud ecosystem?
i have been using chromebooks, since the CR-48 prototype. For me this one is the third generation...and the home run.... though the Samsung 550 is a wonderful machine, too, but at near twice the price.
Warning: this not a standard PC laptop where you can use all of your own software. Instead you use free Google apps stored in the cloud, which can do most of what you want to do.
chromebooks are the future but there will be a learning curve involved before you're fully up to speed. Don't make assumptions --e.g.: that working in Chrome is always the same as working in Windows -- or you will experience frustration.
chromebook works best as a second computer until you're thru learning curve. Personally, now, i am ready to unload about 5 other computers lying around house unused since going Chromebook ..but i've been at it for a while.
But go for it because this is the one that can change every everything.
SECOND THOUGHTS (week later):
i have trouble reading the screen. It seems lighter and smaller than my Samsung 500 Chromebook. Part of my problem is old eyes but this may be a deal breaker for me.
other negative issues have to with less than optimal connectivity to wifi source, including hanging up and annoying unscheduled disconnects.
i previously tried the Samsung 5 550 Chromebook and greatly preferred it, other than its price.
(At one point i was leaning i'm leaning toward returning the new Samsung and trying the Acer C7 $199 hybrid Chromebook, leastwise but more i checked it out, the Acer C7 looks more and more like a cobbled together answer to misplaced objections about not enough physical storage on the machine)
THIRD THOUGHTS:
The glitchy connectivity seems to have resolved itself. I can live with the less than perfect screen and will stick with this Generation 3 machine.
The prior Samsung 5 550 model still works best but at twice the cost.
FOURTH THOUGHTS:
after remote updates, all of the Samsung Chromebooks are good and the new machines are not all that much better than earlier ones.
Conclusion: Maybe, it's the Google cloud computing ecosystem and not the new hardware that's the real home run?
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