Advice on buying Chromebook?

mrochester

steviebabes wrote: »

The OP just wants to use it for browsing & catchup TV so there isn't a familiarity issue. Chrome looks and feels just like Chrome on my windows laptop. I'm not sue you can get a new windows 8.1 laptop for a similar price. You would need to pay over £300 to get a similar performance to a Chromebook. There is also the freedom from malware/viruses to consider. It also runs cool and silent.

But it also has limited scope to be anything more than just an Internet and catch up tv machine. I wouldn't advise anyone to box themselves in like that.

http://m.ebuyer.com/665844

steviebabes

That's a very good price I must admit but I doubt it would be as fast as a chrome book for the things the OP wants to do.

Jivesinger

There's a couple of articles here that I thought were interesting. |They're from the US but I suspect they pretty much hold true here:
http://www.zdnet.com/article/how-to-decide-between-a-199-windows-notebook-and-a-chromebook/
http://www.zdnet.com/article/milestone-im-recommending-chromebooks-instead-of-windows-laptops-for-civilians/

I think it's great that Windows laptops have come down in price, and if I needed a new laptop, I'd probably get one.

But I'm not the OP and I'd probably use my computer in a different way to them.

I do think that while Chromebooks are limited to doing a few things, they do seem to do them well.

Also the idea of switching on a new computer and having it work in a few minutes without waiting for it to munch its way through lots of Windows Updates, and keep it maintained from month-to-month, is a rather tempting one.

ChrisJJ

Thanks everyone for taking the time to reply - all your responses have been really helpful. Just to reiterate: yes, all I'll be using it for is surfing and watching catch-up (and Netflix). I don't use my current laptop for much else.

Just going to read through replies again, but just wanted to say thank you! :beer:

[Deleted User]

The Chromebook is great for the kids because you know they can't download anything! And I think better than a tablet due to having a proper keyboard and the battery lasts ages ... But don't try and connect to a printer because you'll be tearing your hair out

ChrisJJ

Jivesinger wrote: »

There's a couple of articles here that I thought were interesting. |They're from the US but I suspect they pretty much hold true here:
http://www.zdnet.com/article/how-to-decide-between-a-199-windows-notebook-and-a-chromebook/
http://www.zdnet.com/article/milestone-im-recommending-chromebooks-instead-of-windows-laptops-for-civilians/

I think it's great that Windows laptops have come down in price, and if I needed a new laptop, I'd probably get one.

But I'm not the OP and I'd probably use my computer in a different way to them.

I do think that while Chromebooks are limited to doing a few things, they do seem to do them well.

Also the idea of switching on a new computer and having it work in a few minutes without waiting for it to munch its way through lots of Windows Updates, and keep it maintained from month-to-month, is a rather tempting one.

Thank you, Jivesinger, that was a very useful article. Really like the sound of how easy it is to 'wipe it clean' or restore the Chromebook to factory settings.

lulu_92

I bought an ASUS Chromebook in October and I love it. I think any netbook is good if you only want it for browsing, although I have Microsoft Office on mine, and the apps are pretty good too

ChrisJJ

steviebabes wrote: »

The OP just wants to use it for browsing & catchup TV so there isn't a familiarity issue. Chrome looks and feels just like Chrome on my windows laptop. I'm not sue you can get a new windows 8.1 laptop for a similar price. You would need to pay over £300 to get a similar performance to a Chromebook. There is also the freedom from malware/viruses to consider. It also runs cool and silent.

Thank you, steviebabes, you're right, no familiarity issue. And yes, I do nothing else except watch TV, Netflix and browsing, so it's looking increasingly like a Chromebook may be suitable.

You mentioned in a previous post that you had a HP Chromebook that you were very happy with, said it had a "brilliant" screen (that was one of my concerns about a CB) - do you mind me asking which one it was (if HP do more than one CB)?

[Deleted User]

Deleted_User wrote: »

The Chromebook is great for the kids because you know they can't download anything!

Your average 12yo kid is smart enough to set the Chromebook into developer mode and install his/her version of Linux and install what they want. Don't underestimate kids, they have a lot of time on their hands and they are very, very angry!

geri1965_2

I've had a Chromebook for about 18 months now and it's perfect for my needs.

Just a word of warning though, although you aren't supposed to be able to get viruses and malware on it, I somehow managed to some malware on it last week, so they are not immune.