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Google's Pricey Pixel Gets USB-C and a Lower Price
The Register reports that Google's high-end Chromebook Pixel has gotten a few spec bumps, and a lower price. It's still a touchscreen with a resolution of 2,560 × 1,700, but now that screen is backed by 8GB RAM (rather than 4) as a base configuration, and the system is equipped with a Broadwell Core i5 chip, rather than the Ivy Bridge in the first rev. The price has dropped, too; it may still be the most expensive Chromebook, but now it's "only" $999 on the low end, which is $300 less than the first Pixels cost. ($1300, though, gets an i7, 64 gigs of SSD instead of 32, and 8GB of RAM. Perhaps most interesting is that it adds USB type C, and (topping Apple's latest entry) it's got two of them.
I'm a bit disappointed with the 64GB storage.
I would get one of these for as a Linux laptop, but I want 1TB, like my Macbook.
If the wise denizens of /. can tell me I just need to plug thing X into slot Y to get that, I'll send in my order.
I should use this sig to advertise my book ISBN-13 : 978-1501515132.
Close that parenthesis! I can't take it for much longer, it hurts, please!
Violence is the last refuge of the incompetent. Polar Scope Align for iOS
<sarcasm> Yes, but don't forget, it's running everything through a web browser, so it NEEDS the beefier specs. </sarcasm>
Besides, their next version will be $17,000 and have a fake gold-ceramic housing. Give them credit, though - it'll still be more useful than an Apple watch.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
I am not an user of Apple products, but I see their merits (like great customer support, works great out of the box). If the new Apple notebook had 3 USB-C ports all would be fine and dandy. But the moment they have 1 and the only way to access almost ANYTHING else (like a projector or connect your phone to), you now have to buy an adapter separately... It's really evil and a money grab in my opinion. If 100% hardware would work wireless, then by all means, have no ports on your notebook, but this time has not come yet and it will take some time before that happens.
The pixel is endorsed by Slashdot folk hero Bennett, was coded by female H-1B visa workers, uses the latest technological advances in graphene, interfaces with Tesla vehicles and can end global warming. SystemD makes all of this possible.
Actually that means it runs Linux natively, which is kind of a big draw from my perspective. I'm considering getting one, but will not be running ChromeOS on it if I do.
if microsoft surface could run linux, all netbooks and ultraportables discussion would go to the place they should have been for a long time: the garbage.
Being superstitious is bad luck.
the preceding comment is my own and in no way reflects the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
... it only lacks a good web browser.
Right now on my work PC, Excel.exe, which I'm using to reformat the giant big-ass Excel sheets I keep being given by another department into a form I can easily load into our DB, is taking up 14M. Firefox is coming in at 567M (and, to be honest, that's the smallest I've seen it in a while, but OTOH I did restart it recently and it only has a few tabs open.)
So... actually... it makes sense that a device that requires you use the Google office apps rather than native apps, would require you use considerably more memory and power.
Yes, it's ridiculous, but think of it like this: how optimal do you think a Google spreadsheet, implemented over JavaScript, the DOM, and XML, in turn implemented over various abstraction layers that eventually get down to C++ and some kinda linkage to the native widgets of the underlying OS, is, compared to a Microsoft/GNOME Spreadsheet implemented directly in C++, with a little abstraction but not a lot between that C++ and the underlying OS?
TL;DR: A device that forces you to run desktop apps inside a web browser will always need more power than a device that allows optimized apps to run.
Which is probably why we shouldn't be heading in this direction.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
has 16GB, not 8GB, of RAM.
"To those who are overly cautious, everything is impossible. "
I don't understand what you are supposed to do with a beefy chromebook. What can you run that needs that much HP that isn't just horribly optimized?
X
Hardware wise, this thing's a big fat loser compared to the new Macbook 2015.
Off the cuff comparison:
1. Storage is a huge loss
2. Has fan. booooo
3. CPU is a win
4. I am going to guess the touchpad is a loss - hard to beat apple on this.
5. Form factor and weight is a big loss
6. I/O ports, winner. silly being apple apple and sacrificing function over form.
7. OS - I prefer a pure linux for CLI but not so much for GUI apps. I would lean for OS X as it has better support in the GUI apps area.
I got the Samsung 11" chromebook on sale for $150.
It's great for what it is: an inexpensive device with a decent sized screen, full KB, and fast bootup. Unlike windows, it does not get easily infected.
But I cannot see a chromebook being worth $1000.
From what I've seen, web apps and virtualization programs like Citrix deliver 1990s-level-performance on today's processors. All I can think is that at some point someone asked their computer for something, got an instantaneous response back and was terrified. I can imagine that person saying "My God! If my computer responds instantly, how will I take a 20 minute smoke break every 2 hours?" While there's nothing more nostalgia-inducing than watching your UI update with all the speed of a 2400 baud modem, I have to think that companies that don't adopt these solutions will have a huge productivity advantage.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
But is the case 3D-printed?
I don't know if USB-C is backward compatible, but I presume it is. I can't see the specifications, so I don't know if there are additional USB slots if it isn't (but presumably there would be unless they are stupid).
So buy the 64GB version and use that as your system drive. Buy an external USB HD in whatever capacity you want and just plug it in the USB slot.
Problem solved.
Anyone of any competence is going to build a system like that anyway, an SSD system drive with another traditional HD as your media drive. Having your media drive attached VIA USB (particularly presumably faster USB-C, though I am uncertain of compatible HD availability), will have no appreciable performance issues when using it to play media and the like, which is all you will be using it for if you need 1TB+ capacity. You will have an additional thing you will need to throw into your laptop bag, and plug in, should you decide to use it.
I don't know. Maybe it works fine as a Linux Machine.
Most Chromebooks have very little local storage. This "high end" Chromebook has 64GB, but 16GB is more typical. They are intended to be used as thin clients, and there many good uses for those. For non-tech office workers, Chomebooks often work well because they are using web docs anyway, and doing "everything in the browser" means it is all on a synchronized and backed-up server. Chromebooks also work well as shared computers for schools. They are cheap (starting under $200), easy to set up (the apps are on the web, not the local drive), interchangeable (you don't have to get the one where you saved your work last time), and somewhat harder to sabotage.
You really do not pay extra for the Windows license. Twenty to thirty bucks amounts to 1-2% of the final purchase price. It is very cheap. From the manufacturer's perspective, this gives them reduced distribution, support, and inventory costs witch would otherwise be added to the product price. Not surprising if the Windows computer is actually cheaper.
The real reason for getting this laptop is because it's a nice laptop with components that are well supported in Linux. And it is highly likely that Google will continue to support, or require the component designers continue to support, Linux into the foreseeable future.
But I cannot see a chromebook being worth $1000.
Especially with only 32 gigs of storage! It doesn't really matter whether or not you need lots of storage with a chromebook - even assuming you don't, it still costs them next to nothing to put just 32 gigs in there!
#DeleteChrome
Chrome comes with NaCl plugins for google docs, sheets and other things to make them faster. Yes, google docs and sheets use (I believe mostly) native code when run inside chrome (you can disable the plugins that do that). The javascript is for the other browsers.
Does it have a 2,560 x 1,700 screen? I think that's what you're paying for here.
Only if by big draw you like kludges. Sure it may be the Linux way but still.
Yeah, you CAN run Linux on it. You can also run Windows (it has SeaBIOS in it). But to do either means you have hit Ctrl-D within 30 seconds of power up (or reboot) every time to boot into your "alternate" (non-ChromeOS) OS otherwise it times out and goes into a recovery mode where it waits for you to insert a recovery USB stick. Sure not a hassle in that you can turn it off and turn it on again, then wait for it to get to the point where it finds an unsigned OS so you can hit Ctrl-D, but still not elegant.
So yes, you can, but it's not a Linux laptop by far.
As a Pixel 1 owner here, you can just crack open the Chromebook, screw tight the write-protect screw for the BIOS and flash a replacement ROM that removes the whole ChromeOS boot capability and delay.
It does have drawbacks, but you can work around them. Good for tweakers.
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So the CRB 2 probably will have that as well.
Slashdot: stuff for news, nerds that matter, matter for news, stuff that nerd
2560x1700 is essentially a 3:2 aspect ratio. Terrible for watching movies, fantastic for productivity. I used to code on a pair of 3:2's -- it feels a little weird at first, but you gain a lot more vertical space and it's much more sane than portrait 16:10's: it doesn't break layouts in most applications or webpages.
I bought a Lenovo X131e Chromebook second hand for exactly that purpose. Went online for the instructions to boot it into developer mode so I could change the OS ... Nothing worked. I emailed Lenovo directly with the serial number for advice, got no reply. As far as I can tell it is a device that does not allow any change to the BIOS.
I now have a device that runs ChromeOS and nothing else. So it's going to get sold on to the next victim. Make sure if you do buy one for this purpose that you really are able to change the OS.
Never trust a man in a blue trench coat, Never drive a car when you're dead
Seems... awkward. That option isn't available for other (for example, third party) applications presumably, and in any case, doesn't that leave Google maintaining two entirely different code bases for the same product, that aren't even written in the same language or using similar design concepts?
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
You really do not pay extra for the Windows license. Twenty to thirty bucks amounts to 1-2% of the final purchase price.
According to your figures, the minimum people are spending on a computer is $1,000 ($20 == 2%) and up to $3,000 ($30 == 1%).
If you're spending that much, you're more likely buying an Apple laptop, in which case you're not paying for a Windows license.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
Hope none of you are on a limited-data plan.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
<sarcasm> Yes, but don't forget, it's running everything through a web browser, so it NEEDS the beefier specs. </sarcasm>
Besides, their next version will be $17,000 and have a fake gold-ceramic housing. Give them credit, though - it'll still be more useful than an Apple watch.
Barbara, I'm surprised at you.
The high-end Apple Watch is $10k (which is definitely not that high in the watch-as-a-fashion-statement-world) and actually has a solid 18k Gold-Ceramic "alloy" housing.
I must admit though; I probably wouldn't buy that model even if I was loaded...
And I don't know if you watched the Keynote the other day; but they really do make some compelling use-cases for it (and I don't mean stupid-shit like sending your heartbeat or flower-scribbles).
Does it have a 2,560 x 1,700 screen? I think that's what you're paying for here.
Can your eyeballs even use 2,560 x 1,700 on a sub-13" screen?
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
Even at 64GB people would say it's a typical overpriced Apple toy which only fashion-oriented idiots would buy.
But Google releases the same thing with lower specifications and people stay silent.
Get free satoshi (Bitcoin) and Dogecoins
That's not true, you switch between chromos and Linux without rebooting; on a cheap chrome box it works great; chromos for browsing and playing movies, two key presses and you have Linux for programming or whatever.
Why not just run apps natively then, instead of in the crappy browser environment? Oh, right, Google lock-in. Silly me.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
I don't know. Maybe it works fine as a Linux Machine.
I'm sure it would work just fine as a Linux machine, that's probably what most people will buy it for. ChromeOS being a Linux distribution means it should at least have good hardware support for other Linux distributions.
Think of it - it is a nice piece of hardware without Microsoft tax on it.
I'd say that's probably negligible, I mean this is hardly any cheaper than any comparable Windows laptop and it's pretty silly to think they wouldn't be amortizing some of the operating system development costs in the price of this system. On a Mac you're paying an OSX "tax" and on this you'd be paying a ChromeOS "tax".
The high-end Apple Watch is $10k (which is definitely not that high in the watch-as-a-fashion-statement-world) and actually has a solid 18k Gold-Ceramic "alloy" housing.
It's definitely high when the company it comes from is the maker of common computers and smartphones though, particularly when the device itself is identical to the $349 version just in a different colored (let's be honest you're not noticing that it is actually a different material in any circumstance, which is exactly why no other version comes in a gold color unlike many of Apple's other products) case.
it makes sense that a device that requires you use the Google office apps rather than native apps, would require you use considerably more memory and power.
Yes, it's ridiculous, but think of it like this: how optimal do you think a Google spreadsheet, implemented over JavaScript, the DOM, and XML, in turn implemented over various abstraction layers that eventually get down to C++ and some kinda linkage to the native widgets of the underlying OS, is, compared to a Microsoft/GNOME Spreadsheet implemented directly in C++, with a little abstraction but not a lot between that C++ and the underlying OS?
TL;DR: A device that forces you to run desktop apps inside a web browser will always need more power than a device that allows optimized apps to run.
Are you forgetting the other Chromebooks, all implanted with low-end processors? The Pixel is noteworthy because it's overkill. James Kendrick writes, "My old Acer C720 Chromebook had budget hardware when released, and still runs Chrome OS well." (Okay, his "old" Chromebook came out just a year ago. But still, it has a Celeron. Others have ARM processors.) The consensus is that Chromebooks are snappy no matter the hardware.
Why not just run apps natively then, instead of in the crappy browser environment? Oh, right, Google lock-in.
Do apps written in JavaScript lock you into Google?
If my work didn't give me a laptop for free, I would be tempted to snap up a new Chromebook Pixel.
The self-anointed tech pundits are all scratching their heads. "Why such a luxurious laptop to just browse the web?"
"Just browse the web." That's the first lie. Web browsers, especially Chrome, no longer just browse the Web. It is no less than a modern GUI toolkit and practically a whole operating system. HTML 5 specifies that web browsers can run background processes, run offline, open and save local files, stream video, support instant chat, draw raster and vector artwork (<canvas> and SVG), and put up a large variety of widgets from just a little bit of code.
Chromebooks don't just browse the Web, they aren't useless offline --- or actually, Windows and Macs offline are just as useless, the way we use them today. About the only thing I'm still waiting on in a Chromebook is an offline video editor. Everything else --- word processing, spreadsheets, drawing, photoshopping --- are now available and pretty good. In fact, I think they're better, maybe just because they're newer, made by programmers who are wiser.
And who wouldn't want all the nice things in a Google Pixel: a solid build, a nice screen, a good keyboard, long battery life. The only point I agree on is that the processor is a waste, for most people. I would rather Google had gone for an ARM processor while keeping everything else the same, resulting in 24-hour battery life. I would rather get away with forgetting to charge my laptop one night than have that much speed.
Feeding the troll, but...
Ain't Chrome OS derived from Gentoo? That too, only the first version - it's not a rolling derivative, like CentOS or Scientific Linux is of RHEL. So ChromeOS didn't have systemd, and likely won't, unless Google decides they want something like it in the OS.
No, but I don't see the point of such a high res screen, on a device with such limited use.
A nice watch is a great fashion accessory - these are fugly ugly. You can strap them around your ankle and say you're being tracked while out on parole and it would be less embarrassing ...
The first app for it is the BMW one that will let you roll up your windows with your watch. Or find your car. Call me underwhelmed.
About the only really useful app for any watch will be to find my phone (or my keys) :-)
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
I have a normal Dell Inspiron 17, which was $800. 8GB of RAM, 1TB of hard disk (not SSD), a wide keyboard w/ a numeric keypad panel. I overwrote Windows 8.1 w/ PC-BSD, and except for the WiFi issue, no complaints. This whole thing sure beats a Chromebook.
I also bought a new $99 Winbook - 2GB RAM, 32GB integrated flash (translation: NAND flash, same as in SSD). For things that must have Windows, such as my label maker, or GoToMeeting I use that. But my daily activities - browsing, email, even my game FreeCiv - this PC-BSD laptop does it very well. I couldn't be happier!
Good advice. This is why I tend to buy the official Google labeled thing and not the third-party version. Works for Android too. I am indeed trolling the chromium os site to see if info on the new pixel will pop up. So far nothing.
The high-end Apple Watch is $10k (which is definitely not that high in the watch-as-a-fashion-statement-world) and actually has a solid 18k Gold-Ceramic "alloy" housing.
It's definitely high when the company it comes from is the maker of common computers and smartphones though, particularly when the device itself is identical to the $349 version just in a different colored (let's be honest you're not noticing that it is actually a different material in any circumstance, which is exactly why no other version comes in a gold color unlike many of Apple's other products) case.
What in THE hell are you talking about???
The three versions of the watch probably have the same guts; but they definitely have different case materials: Aluminum, Stainless Steel and Gold. Of course Apple would want to distinguish the actual Gold case from the others; to do otherwise would be utterly ridiculous, and would actually devalue both the lower-end AND the premium SKUs in the eye of the (potential) customer.
This is Marketing 101. Can someone with some actual Marketing experience please explain this simple concept to the Parent?
Personally, I hate gold-anodized or gold-plated products. To me, they just look like they are made for those who would like others to THINK they can afford actual Gold (like the high-end Apple Watch), but in actuality, they can't.
Oh, and how many mechanical watches that cost as much, or even more, than the $10k Apple Watch do you think have some generic parts in their high-priced cases? I would be willing to bet that it is a lot more common than you would think.
Nope. You have a fair amount of control as to how much data Google stores, and can tell Google to delete all of your data if you like. See here. I do think Google could stand to do a bit of work improving the interface, and making it more clear that they allow this sort of thing. But they do have pretty good privacy controls.
Even on a Chromebook, you can avoid Google collecting essentially anything connected to you if you simply browse in an incognito window and don't log into Google within that window.
What in THE hell are you talking about???
Why did you ask that question if you were going to go on a big rant about something you profess to not understand rather than waiting for an answer anyway?
To clarify: Other high-priced watches have some differentiating factor, they aren't just a cheap watch with the same case mass-produced from a different material. This is putting a Timex in the same shaped case but mass-producing it out of a more expensive material.
...also please don't take personal offence to the comparison of Apple and Timex, I know some Apple fans (not saying you're one of them) would do that and then pretend they don't understand the point on that basis.
Google apps written in JavaScript lock you into Google.
Personally, I hate gold-anodized or gold-plated products. To me, they just look like they are made for those who would like others to THINK they can afford actual Gold (like the high-end Apple Watch), but in actuality, they can't.
Truly rich people are happy wearing 24 carat gold jewlery that has been copper plated. It matters just as much to them as anything else.
The $10k iWatch is only made out of gold so that it can be priced at $10k.
Has anybody figured out the scrap value? Those places that buy scrap gold need to set their rates for about a year from now when Version 1 is a turd and the new version is specifically designed to have a different case footprint.
Apple, a Buick-class company, got BMW to answer the phone?
Saying ChromeOS is a 'Linux distribution' is like saying that my iPod Touch runs a version of NextStep.
Apple, a Buick-class company, got BMW to answer the phone?
Maybe they heard the rumors of Apple wanting to get in the car business and thought Apple might be interested in buying them. After all, with BMW with a market cap of less than $80 billion, Apple can use part of the $137 billion they have stored off-shore to make an all-cash offer and permanently avoid US taxes on it.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
It is not the whole application that is written in NaCl and google has the man power to maintain two code bases, plus the backend code is, of course, shared. It might also use the google closure compile to have a single code base that compiles down to both targets (NaCl and javascript).
Well they do support browsers that don't have NaCl, those browsers are free to implement NaCl as well if they so chose. This is not evil by itself but I can't say there aren't some unfortunate implications.
Funny thing is, 2 of my nephews have chromebooks for university, and they're not only cheap, but nobody's going to steal them. It's like someone stealing an old flip-phone when there are so many better phones around ripe for the picking.
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
If it only replaces part of the application, it seems to be unlikely that the reduction is enough to counter the fact the same app now has to run under several levels of abstraction, each considerably less efficient even excluding lower levels of abstraction - ie an application written in Javascript, even if somehow compiled to machine code - is always going to be memory intensive* compared to a well written C++ application than the layer below it.
It sounds to be that NaCl is more of a hack to try to reduce the disadvantages of the environment, not a fix for the problem altogether.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.
I bought an Atom based Windows tablet. To run Windows. I wanted a cheap portable Windows device to run some ham radio applications as part of my portable station, and it fills the bill nicely. But I didn't go in with any plans to use it for Linux, nor have I tried it so far.
You are correct, though, if one wants to use it to run any OS other than Windows. Investigate the particular device first.
No, I'm not. The difference between Firefox and Excel was what I was highlighting. Both a 600M and 16M (I can't be arsed to scroll up and look at the exact figures) will fit quite happy on a 1G laptop and run mostly OK on a 10 year old CPU.
The issue comes in applications. Is James Kendrick really using his Chromebook in the same way as a person with similar hardware would use a Windows or GNU/Linux system? Are you expecting him to be able to edit 3D graphics, or play even a 10 year old FPS, even assuming a port to JavaScript of the latter can be found?
ChromeBooks are seen, for the most part, as heavily stripped down, and as less capable than a ten year old Thinkpad, not because the hardware is incapable of running the same stuff (faster, even) but because the added layers of abstraction are both inherently inefficient, and because the choices of abstraction technology, JS, HTML5, etc, are far from ideal in the efficiency department.
Yes, they're usable, but with a gigabyte of memory and a relatively modern CPU, even if not a top of the line one, you should be able to edit using Google Docs. But, well, Google Docs is... let's just say it's not even comparable to Office 95. Remember that? That ran happily on Pentium 1s, with 32Mb of memory. That's how decrepit the enforced usage of web technologies makes a modern laptop.
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.