Chromebook Question

[SWR]

I think this was only brought up once in the past. I believe a few of you are using one. If so, what is the considerations to ponder on brand and specs.

Just need for internet, email etc instead of using a tablet. Are most of the android apps now usable on a Chromebook , I know in the past they weren't ? If so any idea what generation Chromebook this came to be ?

Would a 4g ram and 16g hard drive be ok or do the apps used push one to consider an 8g ram and 32g hard drive

Thanks
Steve

 

[Cape Cod Terry]

We have both the Acer and Samsung models, no worry about viruses, cheap to buy. I find Chrome easier to use than windows. They are inexpensive so get the one with the most storage. The storage is in the cloud so you can buy more cheaply if you run out and there are many more apps availabile now that they are more popular. Look at the reviews on Amazon. Get a chromestick and you can put your screen on the tv to watch youtube videos or music or just use the laptop without using your glasses. I highly recommend them especially if you're not a real high tech guy.
Cape Cod Terry

 

[Pat-inCO]

Would a 4g ram and 16g hard drive be ok or do the apps used push
one to consider an 8g ram and 32g hard drive

I would go for the largest I can get without breaking the bank.

Larger amounts of RAM allow you to have more things going on at the
same time. For example: you get an E-mail and it has a link in it to some
site, that in turn links to another site. At 4G of ram you would be swapping
pages from the E-mail processor, and both links, where with the 8G you
. . . could . . . get by with minimal swap, and a 16G memory would most
likely not swap at all. TRANSLATION: It seems to run faster with minimal
swapping.

HD size: I had one computer that had 10MEG of HD (and original IBM
PC). At that time they could not envision needing more. Now you can
EASILY have files far in excess of 10M.

I have a ten year old system with 1TB and utilize 5%, BUT I have ALL
of my files under my direct control, with NO ONE able to access any
of my files I don't explicitly allow. Your choice. If you don't care who is
able to access your information, put it all on the cloud. (I . . . REALLY . . .
do NOT recommend that!)

In the long run, paying for extra storage capacity, out front, usually saves
time, hassle, and money.

Have fun.

 

[Tom W]

Shoot, I'm still trying to find out how to use the cloud. I got mine in March....

 

[redhawker]

I can't see how anybody can get by with less than at least a 1 TB HDD. But then again I do a LOT of digital photography so that's probably why.

 

[Colonialgirl]

I'm STILL using the Sony Vaio I bought back in 2009 just before we made a visit to England; 224 GB of hard drive;
Still got 94 GB unused. It works okay. I DID have to buy a new keyboard after I popped off a couple of keys trying to clean under them but that was about a year ago.
I like it; Nice hard Aluminum case. I did dump out the original watchmacallit crappy thingy and installed Win 7 Pro and I am STILL using it.

 

[wolfee]

I got a recent Samsung and it works great. They had a couple of models and I picked the one that had higher screen resolution, just for looking at my digital pics. Google gives me 15 gigs of free space on the cloud and I think I am only up to 2 or 3 after a year. I really appreciate the built in security this op system has and it's simplicity. I am an old guy who is digital dummy and I figured it all out pretty quick.

 

[wwb]

......
HD size: I had one computer that had 10MEG of HD (and original IBM
PC). At that time they could not envision needing more. Now you can
EASILY have files far in excess of 10M...........

Minor point, but if it had a hard drive, it wasn't the original PC..... it was a PC XT. The original PC was 5-1/4 floppies ONLY. I had an XT with the 20 Meg Hard drive..... no way would it ever be filled up :roll:

Then came the PC AT with the 80286 processor, then the 80386, then the 80486.....

 

[SWR]

Hey all, just to re-emphasize, I am talking about a Chromebook unit , not a laptop

Thanks

 

[Kevin]

A chrome book would probably do 95% of what you want. They are light weight and easily portable. I thought about getting one this summer but opted for a Samsung tablet instead. It has 4gb ram and a 32gb internal memory.

For basic internet use, 4gb of ram will be moderately ok. Pat is right however, anything beyond basic surfing and you will be wishing for 8 or 16.

In my opinion it would be better to Spend the few extra dollars upfront now and avoid having to upgrade to a faster machine sooner which would cost more in the long run.

 

[Pat-inCO]

Minor point, but if it had a hard drive, it wasn't the original PC..... it was a PC XT.

OH. I'm sorry.
I guess the employee discount got me something not advertised.
And it was NOT an XT.