geekwithlaptop.com — The Samsung Series 5 is the first ever Chromebook, featuring a 12.1 inch screen and an Atom N570 dual core processor. In many ways, this is the first ever true netbook, because going on the Internet is pretty much all it can do.
Jun 10, 2011 View in Crawl 4
blackjackjesterJun 11, 2011
I was able to grab one of the early sale ones. It is exactly as advertised.
It feels pretty heavy - due to a large battery, and the 12" screen is super-netbook level. The keyboard is nice (but lacks backlight), and the touchpad is nice. In my experience, the boot time is usually around 3-4 seconds. Essentially instant on. Wifi browsing lasts for at least 6 hours with some video (I plugged it in and went to bed, not sure how long it would have lasted). Pandora and rhapsody both work flawlessly through the browser. HD video plays smooth.
Here are my two complaints:
- The chome extensions vs chrome apps. Apps are stored locally, extensions require internet. THE GOOGLE DOCS REQUIRES INTERNET. This means there is no document editing without internet (completely useless on a plane or in a car). If they had a local version that synced up when you connected next - that would be fine.
#2, which is by far the worst. MOTHERf**kING VERIZON CHARGES $20 PER GIGABYTE OF 3G DATA beyond the 100MB you get for free every month. If you want unlimited data, that $10 / day. $300/month for unlimited data. WHAT THE f**k.
Verizon is the worst part of the chrome book. give me $1/day unlimited 3g and it turns into a very useful and practical device. Until then, it's basically useless for the $500 price tag. You can get a full netbook / laptop for that price.
scottweissJun 17, 2011
I also got in on the early sales through gilt.com. Some friends and I are currently on a vacation to the west coast and I brought this little guy with me. I agree, Verizon's plans really suck and its a shame they dont have any reasonable plans. What I've been doing is taking the sim card out of my phone and popping it in to my chromebook. It's kinda a pain in the ass but I have unlimited data with my phone plan and it works flawlessly with my chromebook. puts me out of a phone but its whatever. either that or setting up a wireless hotspot that kills my phones battery. Haven't tried a wired tether yet but will once I get back to Philly.
jumangiJun 11, 2011
The WiFi version of this should be $300 max.
thoughtsonthisJun 10, 2011
That may be what some people are looking for.
david85282Jun 11, 2011
"Hi, I am looking for a laptop that costs more and does less. What do you recommend?"
cuervoman914Jun 11, 2011
gotta love google, ballsy as f**k.