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Google Ponders About a Chromebook Pro (venturebeat.com)
Google is currently surveying people about what a Chromebook Pro should be like. VentureBeat's report cites two people who recently shared the development on a forum. One user was asked the question, "How would you think a Chromebook Pro is different than a Chromebook?" whereas the other user was asked, "what a Chromebook Pro should be like in [his/her] opinion and what type of people would want to use it." From the report:The word "Pro" would imply a high-end laptop running Chrome OS, just like, say, the MacBook Pro or the Surface Pro 4. But there are many other companies -- Asus, Dell, HP, and Samsung, among others -- that make Chromebooks, along with Google. It isn't clear from these survey questions if Google is thinking about making a Chromebook Pro itself, just as it has made high-end Chromebook Pixel laptops, or if Google is just wondering how consumers would perceive a Chromebook Pro made by a third party. Meanwhile, Google last month published a job posting entitled "Quality Engineer, Chromebook Pixel," suggesting that a third generation of that device could be on the way.Chromebooks are becoming increasingly popular. They outsold Mac for the first time in the United States earlier this year. The majority of the Chromebooks available today, however, pack in entry-level specifications, giving users very limited choice. Though we have seen devices like Chromebook Pixel, a range of high-end Chromebooks could entice even more customers.
How about running a full Ubuntu system, while still supporting all Chrome and Android apps?
I find trackpoints utterly unusable. Using them to guide the pointer is like trying to guide a drunk across a busy road using sign language from 2 miles away. A trackpad is much better, but the small trackballs that used to be incorporated into laptops back in the day are far superior to both.
I find it puzzling that not a single vendor goes to market a laptop with a fully free as in freedom software stack, including the initializing program or BIOS.
Programmable components apart from the CPU, say hard drive controllers or 4G modems, should be isolated with an IOMMU.
The last laptops that don't tread on your freedom are from 2008: https://libreboot.org/docs/hcl...
Is this problem too hard for corporations with billions of R&D money at their disposal?
Are they forbidden to develop hardware that doesn't subjugate the user's freedom by 3 letter agencies?
Or, is it simply that most people do not care?