Honestly, there's just too much more (say node.js dev) that I can get on a cheap Windows box that I can't on a Chromebook. I've purchased cheap Windows boxes to throw in the car in case I'm caught somewhere with an hour or two to burn, but ChromeOS doesn't do much for me.
Now if this hardware is easily broken and I could slap Ubuntu on it, I'm in...
@Beardmancer I have an Acer Chromebook (not sure if same model) and Linux was pretty easy to set up with crouton. A couple things: -16GB of storage kind of sucks if you want to run various programs (presumably why you're using Linux). Using an SD card makes everything super slow. -Install the latest version of Ubuntu - I was having tons of problems until I installed Trusty.
@Beardmancer You can use crouton to install a regular Linux desktop in a few minutes (depending on your internet connection). Put the device in developer mode first.
@Beardmancer I used to think this was a silly question - if you want a linux laptop, just spend the money and buy one. But then I found myself without my Macbook, and I used crouton, and it works well. If you can live with the command line only, it's a lot better - you pop open a terminal in a Chrome browser window, and you've got vim, or whatever other Linux tools you want! I've got a LAMP stack installed - mysql is a little screwy, but Apache works great for local development. X is slower and uglier than Chrome GUI, but if you like Linux, there you go. The SSD size is the only limitation.
@Beardmancer It's really easy. I'm running/posting this now from KDE on the toshiba they had awhile back. I can run steam on it and a few apps. It's also good for some web content that may require a more robust browser. I just went in on the acer too and will do the same thing.
@justfred Sorry if that wasn't clear, it's still the terminal (hterm), but in a standalone window which provides more configuration and handles hotkeys better.
@Tin_Foil After my Lenovo Yoga broke, I got a Chromebook, and it does nearly everything I've needed my Windows laptop to do. It was an amazing $250 well spent, and you're getting the deal of a lifetime with the sub-$100 price point.
@Tin_Foil I wouldn't bother, Chromebooks are extremely limited in what you can do. I looked into it last time one came up on here, none of my apps will work on it, you are forced to use Chrome as your browser, and to top it off, the specs are terrible. Chrome needs about 800MB of Ram per tab, you would only be able to open two tabs on this before you overload it.
You can get a Windows tablet for the low $100s that can do everything this can, plus because it is Windows it actually has plenty of apps you can run.
I switched over entirely to Chromebooks and they're really great for everyday use and work (as a software engineer).
Actual memory usage and not made up figures averages about 60MB per tab including extensions (use uBlock instead of ABP). With 2GB RAM it gets uncomfortable around 15-20 tabs.
If like me, you tend to leave dozens of tabs open, you might want to wait for the Toshiba Chromebook 2 to return (the next best thing is the Asus Chromebook Flip which has a 4GB model).
@Froggy I started using a Chromebook in late 2010 and within a few months my Windows machine was gathering dust. I may use Windows once a week but Chrome OS has been my daily driver for 5 years.
@copperx I use Vim for programming, and farm out compilation to remote servers (non-incremental builds can take hours). I spent most of the time working in a tmux or screen session over SSH, so very little changed when switching to Chrome OS.
And fortunately my company uses Hangouts rather than Skype, so I haven't had to fire up crouton much either.
@Froggy I've never had this issue and I've been using chromebooks for several years now. I can have tons of tabs open and it's never crashed. I also don't know why you would want to use any browser but Chrome. And so far as I can tell the Chrome webstore has an app for everything (although I don't know what you mean by "your" apps. It's not an Apple product you realize)
I bought a Chromebook for my mom - she needs email, facebook, web-browsing and the ability to not accidentally download lots and lots of viruses or have to update software.
It was fantastic until my niece and nephew got into a fight over it and decided to resolve it by standing on a chair and hurling it to the ground ... (Anybody want to buy a niece and nephew, cheap?).
So don't buy this if you have terrible small children?
I assume you have your retirement savings invested in Windows because your comment, although chock-full of words is missing stubborn things like "facts".
@nadroj Yes. :P Pressing Ctrl + Alt + T opens the built-in terminal emulator (which is, in fact, VT100 compatible). You'll want the Crosh Window extension for full functionality, though.
@ellett Same here, kind of. 2008 Macbook Pro was dying and got the first gen HP Chromebook to take to Europe for three months. The screen was shit quality but EVERYTHING else was sufficient with or without the Linux install (keep in mind though that i had a 4gb RAM model). 7-10 hours battery life is AMAZING for weekend trips. I actually left the charger behind on 3 day trips. Also, Minecraft for Linux worked really freaking well, and that was 2 years ago.
I highly recommend a Chromebook as a go-to device, just not as a full replacement if you like gaming, Adobe suite, or other specialized software.
You already got me on the 15" chromebook. I probably would have gotten this if it was up first. However, the larger ram/disk space was what drew me to the 15"
So....I guess you win for now Meh. For now... maybe.
@RedOx I think Meh. should sell both (or all three) Chromebooks at once and we aMeh.ricans can choose - I too may have opted for this one instead of the $200, I mean $155 version...
@hurtsdonut Good in that it's cheap. Maybe not so good in that it's internet based, not sure if you want to just cut your kids loose on the Internet. Although if Norton Online Family still exists, that will provide you with free web filtering that is platform independent (doesn't need any software on the computer itself to provide protection).
@hurtsdonut as long as >90% of what they do is on the net (which is likely with the facespace, that 'cloud' thingy and Altavista.... Relatively resistant to malware.
@hurtsdonut I would say so. It's not touch screen, so if your kid is 2 like mine and used to phones and tablets, learning the mouse cursor will be a challenge. Otherwise, good for web browsing and some games. They have a thing called "supervised user" which basically let's you see what they're doing on it and you can block sites.
It's too bad the SD card sticks out on this one. It goes completely in the slot in the Toshiba, so easy to keep it there for extra space, movies, music...
@justan79 My thoughts exactly! It might be nice to try out, but what will I do with it after 15 minutes? I have tablets for basic web browsing and a laptop with a real OS for real applications and games.
@justan79 It's great for replying to emails. For me (a touch typer) I can pull the chromebook out of my back pack, fire it up and attach it to my phone hotspot and reply to one of my dad's email faster than just trying to reply on my phone keyboard. ...but then as long as it's open, let me just see if there are any interesting forum posts on meh, ...and now 45 minutes are gone forever, so maybe just use your phone.
I have an Acer CB3-111-CBUB that's got the same specs and is likely the same thing. It's OK, though my advice is to spend the extra dough required and get a Chromebook with 4 GB of RAM.
Active TFT but not likely IPS. It could still be decent and I would have probably bitten if I hadn't got a ThinkPad Yoga 11e (128gb SSD) week before last from the other place. Caution to those thinking to Winify it...it says it has Intels 7260 same as my 11e and the Windows driver has bad antenna reception. Fedora (Linux) is fine with it.
I've had the Toshiba for a year now and I use it every damn day at school. My wife uses hers for Netflix and such. They're great for web stuff, very portable, and cheap enough that I can throw it around without stressing too hard.
Note: they mentioned Skype a few times in the description, but it's incredibly difficult to use Skype on a Chromebook. Anyone figured out an easy hack yet?
The regular Skype for Linux also runs with crouton, provided you have a Chromebook with an Intel processor (such as the Toshiba Chromebook 2 or this Acer).
Daaaaamn you meh. I just bought the Toshiba and I've been so happy with it. This will make a great "on the go" alternative as the 13.3" is great for livingroom/couch websurfing. Or it'll live in my garage as a controller for the 3d printer.
Is there a file manager type program for this? So that I could use it to copy or move files from one external USB 3 drive to another external USB 3 drive? I could buy it just to do that.
@sligett And really, for most purposes USB 2.0 isn't too bad either. If you're not moving more than a couple of hundred gigs of data, 2.0 speeds are bearable.
The only failing I see in these units is the N2840 processor. My Acer c720 has the old 2957U and even with 2GB RAM, runs much smoother than my Toshiba Chromebook 2 (4GB RAM) with the N2840. The N2840 is just sluggish loading pages and streaming HD video.
@KeinoDoggy Actually, there's quite a visible difference between the nicer IPS screen in the Toshiba Chromebook 2 and the TN screens found in this Acer and most other cheap laptops (and inexplicably some expensive ones too).
Also, you might want press Shift + Esc to check if something is pegging the CPU -- I haven't noticed any sluggishness in the Toshiba compared to another laptop with a (IVB) Core i5. Video playback is flawless.
@sja4411 You're talking about the newest HP Chromebook, probably but I can vouch for the first gen hp CB 14, it was very high quality aside from lackluster viewing angles.
There seems to be three attitudes towards Chromebooks: those who see ones only as hardware to be modified, those who call them "limited" because they don't run Office, etc., and those who find they do practically all they need. Get the right tool for the job.
@narfcake Yes, but it isn't one company with ever-increasing life-scope. Bathed.
I choose diversity. In email providers. In email accounts. In browsers. In operating systems. In apps. In platforms. In eComm sites. In banks. In retail stores. In credit cards. In passwords. But I stick with one spouse.
@RedOak so instead of one company having your info, a couple dozen have it. one way to win this is to have 0 online presence, even deleting your meh account.
@RedOak I'm pretty sure that in my diversification, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon are now familiar with my habits. Hell, I even received Geico snail mail solicitations with a cat!
I think I'm still pretty anonymous with Apple; I haven't touched the iPod (4th gen) in years.
I bought one but every time I hear "first sub $100.00 computer" I think of this one: Introduced: July 1982 Price: US $99.95 Weight: 12 ounces CPU: Zilog Z80A, 3.25MHz RAM: 2K, 64K max Display: 22 X 32 text Peripherals: Cassette recorder T/S printer OS: ROM BASIC Timex Sinclair 1000
Hey @Barney, would you like one of these? I'm not quite clear from your previous posts as to whether you need a new computer. (You must have something, yes?)
Aww, @sligett, you are so sweet for thinking of me, but my mom gave me a new computer for my birthday/Christmas. You see, my mom loves/loved to shop and she really loved to give gifts. She would buy things and then hide them away until it was gift giving time. This year, to my surprise, she had pre-shopped for me, a Dell XPS 13 computer. I know nothing about Dell computers, but Mom was a big fan of them, and I was knocked over and yes, crying, when I found it-- my last prezzie from my mom.
Thank you @sligett and @OldCatLady. Mom was the computer expert in our family, I find myself just bumbling along, but I'll eventually (maybe) figure out this new computer. However, I'm not too fond of Windows 10. They took away all of the old games that I liked.
@charliefjohnson Some time ago I got a refurb that acted like that. But I waited too long. You should act while it's under warranty. Either contact Acer as described in the paperwork included with the Chromebook, or contact meh at https://meh.com/support .
Today I opened the two I ordered and they appear to be new. Both work fine.
Specs
Processor & Chipset:
Memory:
Storage:
Display & Graphics:
Network & Communication:
Built-in Input Devices:
Interfaces/Ports:
Software:
Power:
Physical Characteristics:
Condition: Refurbished
Warranty: 90 day Acer
Estimated Delivery: 2/23 - 2/25
Shipping: $5 or free with VMP
What’s in the Box?
1x Acer CB3-111-C4HT Chromebook
1x AC Power adapter
Pictures
Open
Front view
Top/Keyboard view
Back closed
All the way closed
Top closed
Price Comparison
$168 (New) at Amazon (9 reviews, sold third party)
Find a relevant price comparison? Please share it in a comment in this thread
Estimated Delivery
Monday, January 28th - Monday, February 4th
Yup
"Keyed" up tonight -- computer 4 sale!
@AttyVette Just googly over it!
At $90, Win10 or bust.
@stinks Win10 & bust!
@MacroRubio Aren't you missing a vote? ;)
Honestly, there's just too much more (say node.js dev) that I can get on a cheap Windows box that I can't on a Chromebook. I've purchased cheap Windows boxes to throw in the car in case I'm caught somewhere with an hour or two to burn, but ChromeOS doesn't do much for me.
Now if this hardware is easily broken and I could slap Ubuntu on it, I'm in...
@stinks
Bam, https://www.linux.com/learn/tutorials/764181-how-to-install-linux-on-an-acer-c720-chromebook
Or, if you want to still use Chrome OS,
http://lifehacker.com/how-to-install-linux-on-a-chromebook-and-unlock-its-ful-509039343
I'm not dancing. Eff that noise.
This should sell out fast
Is it reasonably easy to run desktop Linux on these, or is that a hassle?
@Beardmancer I have an Acer Chromebook (not sure if same model) and Linux was pretty easy to set up with crouton. A couple things:
-16GB of storage kind of sucks if you want to run various programs (presumably why you're using Linux). Using an SD card makes everything super slow.
-Install the latest version of Ubuntu - I was having tons of problems until I installed Trusty.
@Beardmancer One way
https://www.linux.com/learn/tutorials/795730-how-to-easily-install-ubuntu-on-chromebook-with-crouton
@Beardmancer You can use crouton to install a regular Linux desktop in a few minutes (depending on your internet connection). Put the device in developer mode first.
@Beardmancer I used to think this was a silly question - if you want a linux laptop, just spend the money and buy one. But then I found myself without my Macbook, and I used crouton, and it works well. If you can live with the command line only, it's a lot better - you pop open a terminal in a Chrome browser window, and you've got vim, or whatever other Linux tools you want! I've got a LAMP stack installed - mysql is a little screwy, but Apache works great for local development. X is slower and uglier than Chrome GUI, but if you like Linux, there you go. The SSD size is the only limitation.
@justfred not too keen on 2 GB memory. It might work if you don't use a DE like gnome but I'm still wary.
@Beardmancer It's really easy. I'm running/posting this now from KDE on the toshiba they had awhile back. I can run steam on it and a few apps. It's also good for some web content that may require a more robust browser. I just went in on the acer too and will do the same thing.
@kus Coming from wet shaving, every time I see "DE" I think of double-edged razors and blades... I tend to call things like Gnome a GUI.
@justfred You might be interested in the Crosh Window app, which is more pleasant to use than the stock terminal-in-a-tab.
Thanks everyone! I didn't end up buying, but I'm thinking about it a little harder now. I don't really need it, but dang, that sub $100 price...
@trisk I don't actually think so; I'm more comfortable in a terminal than in X Windows.
@justfred Sorry if that wasn't clear, it's still the terminal (hterm), but in a standalone window which provides more configuration and handles hotkeys better.
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/crosh-window/nhbmpbdladcchdhkemlojfjdknjadhmh?hl=en-US
WTG meh you hit the sub $100 barrier!!!
Now lets try that with the toshiba :)
Enough with the fricking chromebooks. I want another set of sheets.
Not a good price
@speedgraphic Details? Link to a better price?
Very basic, and if you can put up with the flexy plastic, this isn't bad...think of it as a tablet with a keyboard....assuming you're into Google.
Someone convince me to not buy this... I don't need a Chromebook, but it's sub $100!
@Tin_Foil After my Lenovo Yoga broke, I got a Chromebook, and it does nearly everything I've needed my Windows laptop to do. It was an amazing $250 well spent, and you're getting the deal of a lifetime with the sub-$100 price point.
You won't regret buying it.
@Tin_Foil wait for the toshiba chromebook sub 100 :)
@Tin_Foil if the trend continues, the next chromebook they sell will be even cheaper! Chromebook fridays!
@Tin_Foil I'm a tablet lover myself. Just bought a $39 Fire and am hoping to put android on it.It really is amazing times we live in right now.
@Tin_Foil I wouldn't bother, Chromebooks are extremely limited in what you can do. I looked into it last time one came up on here, none of my apps will work on it, you are forced to use Chrome as your browser, and to top it off, the specs are terrible. Chrome needs about 800MB of Ram per tab, you would only be able to open two tabs on this before you overload it.
You can get a Windows tablet for the low $100s that can do everything this can, plus because it is Windows it actually has plenty of apps you can run.
@Tin_Foil You need two.
I switched over entirely to Chromebooks and they're really great for everyday use and work (as a software engineer).
Actual memory usage and not made up figures averages about 60MB per tab including extensions (use uBlock instead of ABP). With 2GB RAM it gets uncomfortable around 15-20 tabs.
If like me, you tend to leave dozens of tabs open, you might want to wait for the Toshiba Chromebook 2 to return (the next best thing is the Asus Chromebook Flip which has a 4GB model).
@Froggy There are tons of offline apps and online now. "Limited" is very much in the eye of the beholder in this case.
@Froggy I started using a Chromebook in late 2010 and within a few months my Windows machine was gathering dust. I may use Windows once a week but Chrome OS has been my daily driver for 5 years.
@eulestadt Which Yoga model broke? I have a Yoga HD+ so I'm a wee bit curious...and sorry to others for hijacking the topic.
@trisk could you please explain how can you live in Chrome as a software engineer? No desktop IDEs? I'm genuinely curious.
@copperx I use Vim for programming, and farm out compilation to remote servers (non-incremental builds can take hours). I spent most of the time working in a tmux or screen session over SSH, so very little changed when switching to Chrome OS.
And fortunately my company uses Hangouts rather than Skype, so I haven't had to fire up crouton much either.
@trisk but does it run a VT100 emulator?
@Froggy I've never had this issue and I've been using chromebooks for several years now. I can have tons of tabs open and it's never crashed. I also don't know why you would want to use any browser but Chrome. And so far as I can tell the Chrome webstore has an app for everything (although I don't know what you mean by "your" apps. It's not an Apple product you realize)
@Tin_Foil Well, congratulations guys/gals... you did everything except talk me out of it.
@Tin_Foil
I bought a Chromebook for my mom - she needs email, facebook, web-browsing and the ability to not accidentally download lots and lots of viruses or have to update software.
It was fantastic until my niece and nephew got into a fight over it and decided to resolve it by standing on a chair and hurling it to the ground ... (Anybody want to buy a niece and nephew, cheap?).
So don't buy this if you have terrible small children?
@Froggy
I assume you have your retirement savings invested in Windows because your comment, although chock-full of words is missing stubborn things like "facts".
@Froggy Uhh, I've got 22 tabs open at the moment, so I don't think that's right.
@nadroj Yes. :P Pressing Ctrl + Alt + T opens the built-in terminal emulator (which is, in fact, VT100 compatible). You'll want the Crosh Window extension for full functionality, though.
@ellett Same here, kind of. 2008 Macbook Pro was dying and got the first gen HP Chromebook to take to Europe for three months. The screen was shit quality but EVERYTHING else was sufficient with or without the Linux install (keep in mind though that i had a 4gb RAM model). 7-10 hours battery life is AMAZING for weekend trips. I actually left the charger behind on 3 day trips. Also, Minecraft for Linux worked really freaking well, and that was 2 years ago.
I highly recommend a Chromebook as a go-to device, just not as a full replacement if you like gaming, Adobe suite, or other specialized software.
zesty muscular peacock indeed
I bought this one from Amazon during one of their black friday sales. works amazingly for 90 bucks.
Site is working well! (If we're going to complain when it's slow, we should note when it's fast!)
@KDemo I don't think you understand what the internet is all about. Only allowed to complain!
You already got me on the 15" chromebook. I probably would have gotten this if it was up first. However, the larger ram/disk space was what drew me to the 15"
So....I guess you win for now Meh. For now...
maybe.
@RedOx I think Meh. should sell both (or all three) Chromebooks at once and we aMeh.ricans can choose - I too may have opted for this one instead of the $200, I mean $155 version...
Meanwhile, somewhere in 2005 Nicholas Negroponte feels a disturbance in the Force...
@Superjimtendo Then he looks for the crank on the side and says "These are not the OLPCs we are looking for. Move along."
Good for kid's first computer?
@hurtsdonut Good in that it's cheap. Maybe not so good in that it's internet based, not sure if you want to just cut your kids loose on the Internet. Although if Norton Online Family still exists, that will provide you with free web filtering that is platform independent (doesn't need any software on the computer itself to provide protection).
@hurtsdonut as long as >90% of what they do is on the net (which is likely with the facespace, that 'cloud' thingy and Altavista....
Relatively resistant to malware.
@hurtsdonut I would say so. It's not touch screen, so if your kid is 2 like mine and used to phones and tablets, learning the mouse cursor will be a challenge. Otherwise, good for web browsing and some games. They have a thing called "supervised user" which basically let's you see what they're doing on it and you can block sites.
@hurtsdonut If you do not mind your kid being online with a Google account, then yes. Without internet, it's a paperweight.
@hurtsdonut perhaps if you're in the room with them.
Kids + free rein on Internet = ???
@RedOak I think a parent could look into setting up supervised users. I haven't, but it sounds like it may help for this case.
@hurtsdonut @sligett suggestion is spot on, the "supervised users" feature that does indeed let you manage which sites your kid has access to. And there are also a good number of apps and games that support an offline mode now.
Acer? I hardly know her!
But this is a good deal and I'm tempted even though I have the Toshiba.
I just bought the Hisense refurb for $89.95 yesterday from you-know-where. It does get good reviews. Is this one better? Darn you. meh.
It's too bad the SD card sticks out on this one. It goes completely in the slot in the Toshiba, so easy to keep it there for extra space, movies, music...
@madmaxmedia https://www.google.com/search?q=short+sd+card+adapter
@madmaxmedia google sandisk ultra fit
Enough with the Chromebooks, how about a decent tablet, respiffied or otherwise.
Yah, 90 bucks seems cool. But I'm not as excited about it as you appear to be in the write up.
Groupon had this same refurb for $85 after 15% coupon yesterday I believe.
The price is intriguing ... but what the heck would I do with this. But still, I waaant this
@justan79 My thoughts exactly! It might be nice to try out, but what will I do with it after 15 minutes? I have tablets for basic web browsing and a laptop with a real OS for real applications and games.
@justan79 Great for streaming on sites where you might not want to take your Windows computer. No problems, no popups. Works great with my Chromecast.
@justan79 It's great for replying to emails. For me (a touch typer) I can pull the chromebook out of my back pack, fire it up and attach it to my phone hotspot and reply to one of my dad's email faster than just trying to reply on my phone keyboard. ...but then as long as it's open, let me just see if there are any interesting forum posts on meh, ...and now 45 minutes are gone forever, so maybe just use your phone.
I have an Acer CB3-111-CBUB that's got the same specs and is likely the same thing. It's OK, though my advice is to spend the extra dough required and get a Chromebook with 4 GB of RAM.
@binaryhermit69 this post made me feel better about getting the 4/32Gb 15" chromebook the other day :)
Active TFT but not likely IPS. It could still be decent and I would have probably bitten if I hadn't got a ThinkPad Yoga 11e (128gb SSD) week before last from the other place. Caution to those thinking to Winify it...it says it has Intels 7260 same as my 11e and the Windows driver has bad antenna reception. Fedora (Linux) is fine with it.
I've had the Toshiba for a year now and I use it every damn day at school. My wife uses hers for Netflix and such. They're great for web stuff, very portable, and cheap enough that I can throw it around without stressing too hard.
Note: they mentioned Skype a few times in the description, but it's incredibly difficult to use Skype on a Chromebook. Anyone figured out an easy hack yet?
@StuMeh Web-based Skype does exist, but I don't think video/voice is ready yet.
However, you can install compatible versions of the Android app on your Chromebook and everything should work.
The regular Skype for Linux also runs with crouton, provided you have a Chromebook with an Intel processor (such as the Toshiba Chromebook 2 or this Acer).
Unblaming @stardate820926 for the sub-$100 computer tonight.
Preemptively blaming @stardate820926 for the whining that will come after this sells out.
@narfcake
Can this play local media (SD card or USB) without a network connection?
@kaighintze yes it does..I watch movies using flash drives
Bought it for my sister. she won';t know the difference..lol as long as she can use it. It is All Good!
For those interested, here is a review of the Acer Chromebook CB3-111. The specifications are similar but not identical.
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Acer-Chromebook-11-CB3-111-Review.129906.0.html
Daaaaamn you meh. I just bought the Toshiba and I've been so happy with it. This will make a great "on the go" alternative as the 13.3" is great for livingroom/couch websurfing. Or it'll live in my garage as a controller for the 3d printer.
@davebsd control a 3d printer? use a raspberry pi running octoprint or astroprint
Maybe at $100
Is there a file manager type program for this? So that I could use it to copy or move files from one external USB 3 drive to another external USB 3 drive? I could buy it just to do that.
@ojohn yes
@ojohn But only 1 USB 3 port:
Number of USB 2.0 Ports: 1
Number of USB 3.0 Ports: 1
@sligett You can buy USB 3.0 hubs. But if the drives are spinning disks, you'd certainly need external power.
@PhotoJim Oh yeah (duh). I even have one of those USB 3 hub/sata hdd dongles. I shouldn't post in the middle of the night.
@sligett And really, for most purposes USB 2.0 isn't too bad either. If you're not moving more than a couple of hundred gigs of data, 2.0 speeds are bearable.
We are way overdue for a knife
Such timing. The $155 chromebook that meh sold me on February 4 arrived TODAY.
@Pamela How is it? I'm wishing I bought one since my Dad has co-opted my first gen HP Chromebook 14.
@andrewpatrick It seems nice. I haven't tested its limits yet. I've just looked at email and done a little web browsing.
I was going to buy one, but then thought better of it as there's obviously just waaaaay too much profit taking on Meh's behalf at the $90 price point.
The only failing I see in these units is the N2840 processor. My Acer c720 has the old 2957U and even with 2GB RAM, runs much smoother than my Toshiba Chromebook 2 (4GB RAM) with the N2840. The N2840 is just sluggish loading pages and streaming HD video.
@KeinoDoggy Actually, there's quite a visible difference between the nicer IPS screen in the Toshiba Chromebook 2 and the TN screens found in this Acer and most other cheap laptops (and inexplicably some expensive ones too).
Also, you might want press Shift + Esc to check if something is pegging the CPU -- I haven't noticed any sluggishness in the Toshiba compared to another laptop with a (IVB) Core i5. Video playback is flawless.
@trisk Not complaining about IPS screen on the Toshiba, it is fantastic! However my old c720 will run circles around it. Look at the benchmarks.:
BenchMarks
any opinions on this Acer C720 vs. HP - 14" Chromebook - NVIDIA Tegra - 2GB ?
@sja4411 You're talking about the newest HP Chromebook, probably but I can vouch for the first gen hp CB 14, it was very high quality aside from lackluster viewing angles.
Just bought one of these from newegg the other day and my wife wanted one. Meh is $30 cheaper than newegg, so take my money!
There seems to be three attitudes towards Chromebooks: those who see ones only as hardware to be modified, those who call them "limited" because they don't run Office, etc., and those who find they do practically all they need. Get the right tool for the job.
@radi0j0hn Agreed but with a perhaps odd-ball sub-"attitude"... Those who resist being Bathed in Google (Resistance is indeed futile.)
@RedOak ... and going on the assumptions that other companies aren't tracking everything they're doing.
@narfcake Yes, but it isn't one company with ever-increasing life-scope. Bathed.
I choose diversity. In email providers. In email accounts. In browsers. In operating systems. In apps. In platforms. In eComm sites. In banks. In retail stores. In credit cards. In passwords. But I stick with one spouse.
@RedOak so instead of one company having your info, a couple dozen have it. one way to win this is to have 0 online presence, even deleting your meh account.
@username yes, you could do that if that's what you're after. I, however, enjoy and learn a lot from going online.
@RedOak I'm pretty sure that in my diversification, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon are now familiar with my habits. Hell, I even received Geico snail mail solicitations with a cat!
I think I'm still pretty anonymous with Apple; I haven't touched the iPod (4th gen) in years.
Perfect 7th birthday present for the nephew!
I'm impressed at how many of these they have! It's a big seller.
Such timing for real. I just received a new comp in the mail yesterday...
When an item at Meh.com sells out do the staff honk horns, clap and high five each other?
@sourhead "Yes, they 'honk' horns." Somebody needed to call that shit out. Brass balls.
I bought one but every time I hear "first sub $100.00 computer" I think of this one:
Introduced: July 1982
Price: US $99.95
Weight: 12 ounces
CPU: Zilog Z80A, 3.25MHz
RAM: 2K, 64K max
Display: 22 X 32 text
Peripherals: Cassette recorder
T/S printer
OS: ROM BASIC
Timex Sinclair 1000
@don On a whim, I bought one of those a couple years for $2.95 from a thrift store.
I think I overpaid.
Anyone have a guess when this device will be shipped to customers?
@Patuxent It said up above in the specs, estimated delivery is 2/23 - 2/25. Reading is fundamental.
@Barney Reading is purplemental
@Saffer49 Ahh, but not everyone is of the purple... Yet.
Hey @Barney, would you like one of these? I'm not quite clear from your previous posts as to whether you need a new computer. (You must have something, yes?)
Purple is fundamental.
Aww, @sligett, you are so sweet for thinking of me, but my mom gave me a new computer for my birthday/Christmas. You see, my mom loves/loved to shop and she really loved to give gifts. She would buy things and then hide them away until it was gift giving time. This year, to my surprise, she had pre-shopped for me, a Dell XPS 13 computer. I know nothing about Dell computers, but Mom was a big fan of them, and I was knocked over and yes, crying, when I found it-- my last prezzie from my mom.
@Barney Oh my. Hugs to you.
@Barney That's a wonderful computer, and your mom chose wisely. I'm so glad you got one last, loving gift.
Thank you @sligett and @OldCatLady. Mom was the computer expert in our family, I find myself just bumbling along, but I'll eventually (maybe) figure out this new computer. However, I'm not too fond of Windows 10. They took away all of the old games that I liked.
@Barney Which old games? Like solitaire and minesweeper?
@dumb_cookie I really like the Microsoft Solitaire and Mahjong Titans
@Barney OK, I'll try to help you out with that tomorrow.
@dumb_cookie Thanks. It's got to be simple, I'm a computer idiot.
@Barney Instructions
Download Link
Works fine. Tried it myself.
@dumb_cookie Thanks!
Will I still get the free 100gb cloud thingy?
@kenleone I got the 100 GB for two years deal. Possible that you will, too.
@kenleone worked for me. needed to update ChOS first and obliviously log in and go to https://www.google.com/chrome/devices/goodies.html
Thanks for the help signed in signed up and good to go
Just received my my Acer Chrome Book but it does not want to hold a charge. Had it plugged in all last night. Any suggestions ??
@charliefjohnson Some time ago I got a refurb that acted like that. But I waited too long. You should act while it's under warranty. Either contact Acer as described in the paperwork included with the Chromebook, or contact meh at https://meh.com/support .
Today I opened the two I ordered and they appear to be new. Both work fine.
it finally told me battery is not found
@username Four years is pretty impressive for a $90 computer.
@sammydog01 i was a bit quick to jump maybe. it charged again for some reason
Ordered, use it about two weeks out of a year. Still workin’ just fine for what it needs to do.