Are Chromebooks good for me?

kamran · Aug 24, 2015

So, I'm going to visit another country in a few days, and It will be my only chance to buy a Chromebook if i wanted too. I can't resist the urge to buy one!
But im not sure if it will be any good.
I have a desktop at home, i do not go out a lot but i do and when i do i really miss having something like this.

I want to install Ubuntu on it, because it will be completely useless for me without it!
And i would like to do some coding and maybe running World of Warcraft on wine (im not expecting to max it out, my current pc runs it at 27 fps at ultra with smaax8)
Can i do these stuff with a chromebook?

Brutal-Force · Aug 25, 2015

As a general rule, a chromebook is only useful when connected to the internet. I owned the original Google Chromebook and it was really only good for web based stuff. It was almost useless when I was not near an internet connection (so keep that in mind).

There are a lot of stand alone apps as the Chromebook has come a long way since 5 years ago, but I would not say that I would jump that bandwagon. If you need a laptop, you can just purchase a regular laptop with meager specs as that is what is in most Chromebooks.

If you are planning on installing Ubuntu, then what is the point of having a Chromebook? Also if you want to run WoW on it, then you are going to want something a little stronger than a Chromebook. You could probably run it on the hardware that a Chromebook has, but it would run better on a real computer with real OS like M$/AppleOS/Ubuntu, but again, if that then why bother with a Chromebook.

IF its for portability sake, then look one of the lower end Microsoft Surface. Depending on your budget, I bet even a Surface 2 would do what you need it to. Otherwise there are plenty of ultrabooks or lightweight laptops that would fit the bill.

IF its for cost, then consider the Surface 2 or 3 which are becoming more affordable daily.

IF IT HAS TO BE UBUNTU, then why bother with a Chromebook?

Personally, the Chromebook is for one kind of person... someone who hates computers and only uses it to check emails and surf the web. By your own post, that isn't you.

That is my 2 cents.

kamran · Aug 26, 2015

Brutal-Force said:
As a general rule, a chromebook is only useful when connected to the internet. I owned the original Google Chromebook and it was really only good for web based stuff. It was almost useless when I was not near an internet connection (so keep that in mind).

There are a lot of stand alone apps as the Chromebook has come a long way since 5 years ago, but I would not say that I would jump that bandwagon. If you need a laptop, you can just purchase a regular laptop with meager specs as that is what is in most Chromebooks.

If you are planning on installing Ubuntu, then what is the point of having a Chromebook? Also if you want to run WoW on it, then you are going to want something a little stronger than a Chromebook. You could probably run it on the hardware that a Chromebook has, but it would run better on a real computer with real OS like M$/AppleOS/Ubuntu, but again, if that then why bother with a Chromebook.

IF its for portability sake, then look one of the lower end Microsoft Surface. Depending on your budget, I bet even a Surface 2 would do what you need it to. Otherwise there are plenty of ultrabooks or lightweight laptops that would fit the bill.

IF its for cost, then consider the Surface 2 or 3 which are becoming more affordable daily.

IF IT HAS TO BE UBUNTU, then why bother with a Chromebook?

Personally, the Chromebook is for one kind of person... someone who hates computers and only uses it to check emails and surf the web. By your own post, that isn't you.

That is my 2 cents.

Actually the reason i wanted to buy one is price. they're less than 400$ (not all of them) while surface 3 is 500$~ (not pro). actually i think surface is much better! but i don't want to pay

MattNo5ss · Aug 26, 2015

I jumped on a Chromebook when BestBuy had a promo for trading in old laptops which let me get rid of a 15-20 year old laptop and walk out the door with an Acer C720 for $95. I threw a larger M.2 SSD in it and installed Xubuntu to make it a great little laptop for travel. I haven't really done anything more than typical web browsing, LibreOffice, and media stuff with it though. I know mine wouldn't be good for heavy duty work or gaming, but I'm sure there are some out there that are for a higher price. However, if the price of the Chromebook you're looking at and other PCs are similar, I'd go with the Windows machine.

Also, if you get a Chromebook and plan on installing some form of Linux, be sure that it's using typical x86 hardware (Intel CPU) and not mobile hardware which could give Linux trouble. You might also want to google around to see if others have installed Linux on the one you're specifically looking at as well.

kamran · Aug 26, 2015

MattNo5ss said:
I jumped on a Chromebook when BestBuy had a promo for trading in old laptops which let me get rid of a 15-20 year old laptop and walk out the door with an Acer C720 for $95. I threw a larger M.2 SSD in it and installed Xubuntu to make it a great little laptop for travel. I haven't really done anything more than typical web browsing, LibreOffice, and media stuff with it though. I know mine wouldn't be good for heavy duty work or gaming, but I'm sure there are some out there that are for a higher price. However, if the price of the Chromebook you're looking at and other PCs are similar, I'd go with the Windows machine.

Also, if you get a Chromebook and plan on installing some form of Linux, be sure that it's using typical x86 hardware (Intel CPU) and not mobile hardware which could give Linux trouble. You might also want to google around to see if others have installed Linux on the one you're specifically looking at as well.

Ok! i will see what kind of Laptops i can get with that money!

Are Chromebooks good for me?

kamran

Member

Brutal-Force

Member

kamran

Member

MattNo5ss

5up3r m0d3r4t0r

kamran

Member

Similar threads