Acer announces new 15.6 Chromebook

[Norsea]

http://us.acer.com/ac/en/US/press/2015/151290

 

2015-01-03

Acer Debuts Industry’s First Chromebook with 15.6-inch Display

LAS VEGAS

Acer today continues to lead the Chromebook space with the debut of the industry’s first Chromebook with a 15.6-inch display. The new Acer Chromebook 15 delivers the ideal balance of large screen size, outstanding Chrome performance and sleek, portable design, making it an excellent primary computing device.

The Acer Chromebook 15 is the company’s first Chromebook that uses 5th Generation Intel Core i3 and next generation Intel® Celeron™ processors1 based on Intel 5th Generation Core micro-architecture.

The new Acer Chromebook 15 will be on display at Pepcom’s Digital Experience! Event on Jan. 5th at The Mirage in Las Vegas.

“The Acer Chromebook 15 is a true powerhouse – it provides fast mobile performance and a large display to help customers accomplish more every day,” said Jerry Kao, president of Acer Notebook Business Group. “Acer has been a leader in the Chromebook market, from providing the latest in technology and trailblazing battery life to designing new form factors. We’re driving the category forward again with the world’s first 15.6-inch display Chromebook, the Acer Chromebook 15.”

Acer dominates the Chromebook segment with approximately 40 percent market share worldwide according to Gartner.2

Vibrant, large-screen display leads the industry

The Acer Chromebook 15 provides full immersive computing thanks to the stunning 15.6-inch display, which is 27 percent larger than 13.3-inch Chromebooks on the market. This large size increases productivity by giving customers more real estate to view multiple tabs and apps. The crisp and vibrant display comes in two options. The full HD display has a 1920x1080 resolution that ensures sharp and legible text as well as vivid, clear videos and photos. It also reveals more content on screen to reduce scrolling. In addition, it has wide viewing angles, so customers can comfortably share content such as movies, e-books and games. The second option is an HD 1366x768 resolution display that is ideal for budget-minded customers. Both options are Acer ComfyView displays, so they have anti-glare properties to minimize the amount of reflecting light for less eye strain.

The Chromebook has two full-sized upward facing speakers for greater volume and clarity, which complement the display and provide exciting and realistic multimedia. Customers will enjoy video chats on the HD web cam enhanced by the excellent audio and video capabilities.

Exceptional Performance and All-Day Battery Life

The Acer Chromebook 15 delivers the performance today’s consumers demand with several processor options based on Intel 5th Gen Core micro-architecture. The Chromebook 15 will be available with either a 5th Generation Intel Core i3 or next generation Intel Celeron processor to deliver fast performance and multi-tasking for apps and online games. The new state-of-the-art processor pairs with a solid state drive (SSD) for fast saving and accessing of data.

Customers will be able to enjoy all-day productivity, fun and enjoyment; the Acer Chromebook 15 provides impressive battery life.3

Sleek, reinforced design

The sleek design of the Acer Chromebook 15 features a white fabric-like surface that gives the case a sophisticated look that is comfortable and ensures a secure grip. The Chromebook 15 has been reinforced to handle more bumps and drops; the case can withstand up to 60kg of force, while the corners can tolerate up to 45cm drops without damage. Also, the new Chromebook can endure more twisting and stress on the case and hinges. To ensure a great user experience, the new Acer Chromebook 15 features the largest touchpad of any Chromebook today, so customers have greater freedom when navigating, zooming and scrolling.

Even with the large display, the Acer Chromebook 15 weighs only 2.2kg (4.85 pounds) and measures only 393w x 256d x 24.2h mm (15.4w x 10.08d x 0.95h inches).

Connectivity

The Acer Chromebook 15 keeps customers in touch with up to three times faster wireless connectivity via fast MIMO 2x2Wifi 802.11ac. Also, customers can connect other peripherals to it via Bluetooth 4.0, the USB 3.0 port, USB 2.0 port and HDMI port. The SD card reader enables a way to access and transfer files.

Fun to Share, Easy to Protect

The Acer Chromebook 15 is great for a range of customers who view, edit, create and collaborate both on-line and off-line in programs, such as Office documents and Gmail. Chromebooks are simple to use and ideal for sharing by multiple users, since users can log into their own account to access Docs, website bookmarks and other information. Storage on Google Drive4 protects files, documents, and photos safely in the cloud, and ensures that the most current version of the file or document is always available and safe, even if the Chromebook is lost or stolen.

Security is a key benefit of the Chrome OS, as it’s automatically updated to guard against ever-changing online threats. In addition, the Supervised Users feature helps get children online in a safe, controlled way.”

Models, Availability and Pricing

Several models in the Acer Chromebook 15 line (CB5-571) will be available with either a 16GB or 32GB SSD drive and either 2GB or 4GB or RAM.5 Exact specifications, prices and availability will vary by region. In the United States, prices start at $249.99.1

Acer Chromebook 13 Line Expands with Touchscreen Models

Acer is also expanding its highly-acclaimed Chromebook 13 line with new touchscreen models. The Acer Chromebook 13 was the industry’s first Chromebook powered by an NVIDIA Tegra K1 mobile processor and provides a vibrant 13.3-inch display and industry-leading battery life of up to 13 hours6. The Acer Chromebook 13 is now available with a touchscreen, so customers can seamlessly surf, play, edit and more with an intuitive finger swipe. In EMEA, new Acer Chromebook 13 touchscreen models will be available January starting at €329.

Edited January 4, 2015 by android

[GG14876]

So...?

 

No idea what a Chromebook is, but a quick Wiki look seems to indicate that they're essentially terminals for internet access. It also seems to indicate that LG released a 21.5" model... last year.

 

Is the progression of computer devices now:

"Dumb" Cellular Phone < Smart Phone < Tablet < Chromebook <= Netbook < Laptop < Desktop-replacement/gaming Laptop < "Small form" (Intel Pentium/i3) desktops < "Mid form" (Intel i3/i5) desktops < "Full"/gaming (Intel i5/i7) Desktops < Workstations (Intel i7/Xeon) < Servers (Intel Xeon) < "Mobile" supercomputers < "Immobile"/room-sized supercomputers

[Norsea]

I thought it would warrant a topic since it's the first Chromebook of it's kind, and it has quite a few differences.

[GG14876]

Well, what are the differences? It really just seems like a glorified tablet+keyboard. Barely any hard drive space (16~32GB), minimal ram (2~4GB), "weak" processor (Celeron/i3), starting at 250$... It seems to be marketed to those who want more power than a tablet/smartphone but don't know anything about laptops or don't do anything but use the internet.

[Whiskey]

Well, what are the differences? It really just seems like a glorified tablet+keyboard. Barely any hard drive space (16~32GB), minimal ram (2~4GB), "weak" processor (Celeron/i3), starting at 250$... It seems to be marketed to those who want more power than a tablet/smartphone but don't know anything about laptops or don't do anything but use the internet.

 

It's aimed at students and people who just want browse the internet. What would you expect from a laptop that costs $250? They are an attractive option for some people, because my friends and family just use their laptops for Facebook and Twitter. They're small and light, ideal for throwing into your bag and they also have excellent battery life.

 

I'd buy one. I never use my laptop when I don't have an internet connection and I have my desktop for college and other more intensive stuff. Sometimes I just need stuff to read presentations and power points (which is also possible on a Chromebook using Google Docs/Microsoft Word Online). I'd rather have a small SSD and use an external HDD.

Edited January 4, 2015 by Whiskey

[Furry_Monkey]

Well, what are the differences? It really just seems like a glorified tablet+keyboard. Barely any hard drive space (16~32GB), minimal ram (2~4GB), "weak" processor (Celeron/i3), starting at 250$... It seems to be marketed to those who want more power than a tablet/smartphone but don't know anything about laptops or don't do anything but use the internet.

 

I've been using Chromebooks for a couple of years now and whilst they obviously aren't the powerhouse that a PC is, they are definitely more than you give them credit for. Hardware comparisons aren't really relevant, either, since it's not running a bloated OS that's capable of doing a million things that most users will never even know about. It's straight to the point and simple. I recommend them mainly to people that aren't too computer savvy, as learning how to use Windows is a lot more involved than learning to use a Chromebook.

 

That being said, I do a lot of web development, and by that I mean web applications (not simple web sites or web design). I've been using it for that when not sat at my desk at work and it has performed flawlessly. I can develop fully-fledged client/server applications using my Chromebook, and even develop for mobile devices (using an online service to build the apps).

 

In short, it does a lot more than people would immediately think. I've only found how good they are by using one as my primary home laptop.

 

It's not a PC replacement. It's something different that will suit some and not suit others.

Edited January 5, 2015 by Furry_Monkey

[Norsea]

Chromebooks can be used for educational purposes, as well. Last year, I wrote a whole report using Google Docs. It was very fun to use the Samsung Chromebook and I think maybe I might purchase one in the future.

[Whiskey]

Chromebooks can be used for educational purposes, as well. Last year, I wrote a whole report using Google Docs. It was very fun to use the Samsung Chromebook and I think maybe I might purchase one in the future.

I use Google's apps for all of my academic writing and reporting. Last year I done my software project using a mixture of Git and Google apps. I'm using Google apps for this years project, especially for writing the material and documentation because multiple users can write, it makes merging material much easier. I can always just format it in doc/docx on one of the college machines anyway.

[GG14876]

 

 

Interesting, but they still seem a bit... odd. I guess I just prefer standard laptops over those and would like to see standard laptops naturally transition into that market segment through development/efficiency improvements than have some specialized laptop that would delay such developments...

 

Anyway, if they work for some people, I guess they'll be around for a while longer until we get some weird tablet/chromebook/netbook chimera. Still don't see what's so special about this one though.

[Man-Django]

A chromebook? Ain't that just a tablet in Laptop form... seems like a legit waste of money!?