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First Batch Of Chromebooks Reach End Of Life, To Stop Receiving Support and Updates (betanews.com)
An anonymous reader shares a BetaNews report:The original Chromebooks launched back in 2011 are reaching the end of their support cycle. With Google offering a fairly generous five years of support and updates, users have had a good run, but the Samsung Series 5 Chromebook is the first device to drop off the support list. Having been launched in August 2011, Acer AC700 Chromebook will be in a similar position in a couple of months. Google says that after five years, automatic updates are "no longer guaranteed". Interestingly, it has continued to provide updates to at least one of its own device that originated in 2010. It's not entirely clear what will happen by the end of this month, but if the company sticks to how it handles its smartphones, you should be worried.
I buy Chromebooks to serve as disposable laptops for 1-2 years. In practice: I replace mine once every 1-2 years with something newer/shinier. I don't see the problem with this. My only beef with Google over Chromebooks is they ended the 12 free passes for in-flight wifi Promotion. That perk was worth the purchase price of the device, and I didn't get a single free wifi session with my latest Chromebook purchase.
Given the hardware, why is this surprising? It'll still be possible to use them later; just no more updates.
In other news, I can't run Windows 10 on my 286. I'm so scared.
I hear there are lots of distros to choose from.
SJW's don't eliminate discrimination. They just expropriate it for themselves.
Who knew, things get old, natural obsoletion happens...
Since when is five years considered fairly generous? Surely that would be the absolute minimum for supporting any software, let alone an operating system.
My aging Windows 7 notebook is still getting support, and will continue to be supported for quite some time now that I have done the free upgrade to Windows 10. Hell, even the old Vista notebooks that were passed on to me still get updates, although Windows Update is incredibly slow on them so I can't let it automatically check for them.
After suitable updates (bigger storage and RAM as needed/possible) if your Chromebook is ARM based, put Linux on it. If your Chromebook is intel based, put Linux or Win10 on it.
*** Suerte a todos y Feliz dia!
I never saw the fascination with a device that had so little storage I can't even run off the whole contents of my camera onto if I'm not connected to the web.
Cheap? Not really. Given that for another $100 I can get better specs, a real storage device, and an operating system that's $100 to buy (I realize some don't want Windows), the cost of a Chromebook is really expensive. Not to mention Google spying on you!
HexaByte - he's a square and a half!
My smart terminal - which is all a Chromebook is - is a 2006 era Windows XP machine (registry tweak for continued updates via Embedded track until ~2019).
My main workstation is a 2012 era PC which I've only upgraded by adding more RAM and an SSD.
Sorry, Google boys, but you can plan obsolescence all you want - in the end the consumer will get tired of that upgrade treadmill, just as they did with desktops and proper laptops.
TFA states that the Chromebooks will continue to function - they just won't get updates. Assuming Google told people going in what the support term would be, I don't see the big deal.
But is is a reminder that paying $1200+ for one of those high-end Chromebooks might not have been a particularly wise choice.
#DeleteChrome
That should mean End of copyright privileges so that third parties can pick up where Google leaves off.
Regardless, what's the problem? Will it self destruct if you load a different OS? Even Windows doesn't need 32gb.
“He’s not deformed, he’s just drunk!”
new batch of linux books on sale soon
Why do we need support and updates on a Chromebook?
If we use them in our classrooms, and all our data is in the cloud,
then what is the downside. It's not like a virus or ransomware
is going to mess with a Chromebook.
Or can we expect the cloud to start locking us out through "feature" creep.
Chromebooks have support indefinitely thanks to Linux distributions like Crouton for Chromebook. Companies no longer have the option of planned obsolescence to stimulate sales, because the open source communist will pick up their slack and make OS updates and programs for older hardware. Read http://lifehacker.com/how-to-install-linux-on-a-chromebook-and-unlock-its-ful-509039343
This is how the year of Linux desktop finally happens!
But not even the point where it stopped being developed (The embedded version was still available for what, 2 more years? Not including current deployments of either with the extended service contract.)
For commercial products the claim of 'discontinuing support' should be taken from either the last manufacture or the last sale of the product depending on whether it was continuous manufacture or batch manufacture for later sale (think RVs.)
Based on that, both google and microsoft should be expected to support their devices for at least 5 years after the last sale, not the *first* one.
Sheesh. If you wouldn't accept it for a car/appliance don't accept it for a computer/software!
2GB RAM, 16GB eMMC should be more than enough horsepower for a basic Linux distro running an XFCE, LXDE, or Mate DE. Heck, 1GB is enough for any of those DEs on my eight-year old Atom N270-powered netbook
Geology - it's not rocket science; it's rock science
My aging Windows 7 notebook is still getting support, and will continue to be supported for quite some time now that I have done the free upgrade to Windows 10.
+1 funny?
"My support for 7 is so thorough, it forced me to update to 10".
Support from my car manufacturer was so good, when it broke down, I got a free update to the bus!
Many, many Google Software Projects get Shuttered before their time.
IIRC, Even Nexus Phones are only guaranteed 18 months of Android Support They could get up to 3 years; but might be as little as 18 months, depending.
Now this?
Meanwhile, my iPad 2 and iPhone 4s can load the latest version of iOS 9, and you can install the latest version of OS X, 10.11 El Capitan, on nearly any Mac from 2007-08 up.
for hardware designed for web-based services, which for the most part, will not see much need for increased specs within that time frame. should be 10 years or more.
It will get Windows 10 soon.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
If the drivers are stable there is no reason not to continue allowing the devices to download updates. The only reasons to cut them off would be if a security risk was found in the drivers that would require too much effort to resolve or if the performance and resolution of the devices were not enough to run the newer/bloated software.
Seriously, this is an opportunity for Linux to step forward and provide lots of nice hardware for ppl.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
"My support for 7 is so thorough, it forced me to update to 10".
My other Windows 7 computers are still being supported and will keep getting security upgrades until 2020. So no, I'm not being forced to upgrade to Windows 10. I'm just saying that the upgrade means that I get an additional 5 years of support, which brings the support for my computer up to what I call a generous 14 years.
news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=9216357&cid=52281527
governments have your tax money and want to use it to fuck you up before it's totally worthless. Linus told them to fuck off.
For POS, XP is even longer!
Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
You can pick up a replacement for less than $200.
Plus the cost of disposing of your e-waste.
It's not like a virus or ransomware is going to mess with a Chromebook.
It is if a computer intruder discovers a vulnerability in Chrome that Google refuses to patch on older devices.
Will it self destruct if you load a different OS?
No, but it will kill the "different OS" if you're not very careful.
Putting another operating system on a Chromebook requires switching from verification mode to developer mode. But every time you power on a Chromebook in developer mode, it displays a screen for 30 seconds begging the user to press Space to reenable verification (which wipes the drive). The screen can be skipped by pressing Ctrl+D, but if you're not the person who turns it on, the key that gets pressed won't be Ctrl+D. If someone else (such as wife or kid) turns it on and presses Space, under the mistaken impression that that's the correct button to push, all your work since your last backup is gone, and you are out the use of the laptop until you can make reinstallation media.
From the linked article on lifehacker.com:
Say someone other than you, such as a spouse or child, turns the laptop on and presses Space to re-enable verification during those 30 seconds. Guess what'll happen to your data.