Google Introduces the Chromebook Pixel to Compete With the MacBook Air

I simply cannot see the appeal of a touchscreen on a vertical display. A multi-touch trackpad or mouse combined with a keyboard should be much more efficient to use than a touchscreen, especially when I have to lift my hands from the controls every time just to touch the screen, and only incidentally for specific features to make it ergonomically practical. A touchscreen absolutely makes sense on a smartphone or tablet, because it is generally the only means of controlling the device for the benefit of portability and ease of use, and they are actually designed for it. Adding a touchscreen to a laptop seems like an added gimmick to me, which is probably one of the reasons why this thing is so ridiculously expensive with the other hardware, and especially software, it offers. I must be getting old.

I wouldn't be surprised if.....

The EULA and TOS actually say:
"By using this product, you agree that any "innovation" or "intellectual property" created with this product will become the sole property of Google, Inc."

I really think that Google really got it wrong with thinking that the future is "in the browser" with Chrome OS. The browser is very limited in terms of GUI and user experience. It's one big rectangle that has a "one size fits all" approach to pretty much everything. You have no access to the hardware, so hardware acceleration, memory management, etc… are all on an amateur level.

I think the future (and even the present) is in dedicated apps, which each perform specific tasks that bridge the OS and the internet natively. Let the browser deal with web pages, and let apps deal with everything else.

The lack of basic things like Skype makes the Chromebook really limited, and I'd say it doesn't even offer enough functionality for a grandma. And iPad or tablet, on the other hand, is a lot more portable, and can run proper apps that do everything you need.

What's the point of good hardware if all you can use it for is to browse the web? Any hardware can do that without any problems…

Hungry&Foolish said:

Like a Think Pad.

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HP Elitebook

LOL! Look people! Someone made a thing! Let us make fun of it and call it stupid!

It's a thin, well designed i5 notebook with retina quality screen. The hardware itself is pretty impressive. You can make fun of it all you want, but it looks at the very least to be a solidly built product on par with what Apple puts out.

Though my biggest question is what will I be using ChromeOS for that requires a Core i5 processor? It's all just cloud and web browsing right now. If I'm gonna pay that much for a computer, I at least wanna run some games on it or something.

MacRumors said:

As added perks, the Pixel comes with 1TB of Google Drive cloud storage for three years, and 12 free sessions of GoGo inflight Wi-Fi.

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And then what, do you have to start paying?

I don't have a MacBook Air to test this on but did anyone else's hard drive crap out after 3 years? Was access locked after that amount of time and you then had to enter your Apple ID and password and pay $0.99 for each file you opened?

Their announcement only states the "deadline" but not what happens after that. Someone please educate me.

omg that video was so "apple".

So..$1300 for the Pixel with a web browser and 32GB flash storage...or the $1359 I just paid for a refurb retina Macbook Pro 13" with 256GB flash storage and a traditional OS...pretty easy choice. Also for $1300 you don't even get built in LTE in a cloud based laptop, you have to pay more for that.

I hope there is some kind of fingerprint resistant coating on the screen. I am noticing that I am a bit obsessive of wiping off fingerprints on my MBP and it isn't even a touchscreen.

I just don't know what their target market is supposed to be. I guess tech bloggers could use it, but even still many would need photo/video editing applications. Web developers maybe? But most of them still need to run photoshop to open designs from their designers...

Honestly this would have been much more enticing if it was a Microsoft laptop with Windows 8 on it (Plus a larger SSD...)

The aspect ratio really hits you in the face when they open it up, honking.

I have no idea why anyone would design a laptop with that aspect ratio in 2013.

And some say Apple is pricy.

Okay is it just me or do all the new laptops just basically try and look like the MacBook Pro? Large trackpads, same basic design, etc.

Only, google messed up and made it uglier somehow. And they're changing $1300 for it? This would have worked for an Google's April Fools jokes but maybe they actually think this is a good product.

Seriously who is actually going to buy this thing? Because it certainly cannot fill the roles of a development, graphic design or a gaming machine. And if you just want to browse the Internet with a high resolution display, what's wrong with the iPad?

I like the idea of Chromebook Pixel and hope it evolves into more models (I'd like to see a 15" version). But this is simply too expensive for what it is.

Looks like a chunk of aluminum that just came out of the factory.

My favorite part is the guy saying we tried to use no lines, and then the video shows all of the lines on the device.

Cannot wait to pick this up. I've been looking to spend $1300 on outdated equipment.

Watabou said:

Okay is it just me or do all the new laptops just basically try and look like the MacBook Pro? Large trackpads, same basic design, etc.

Only, google messed up and made it uglier somehow. And they're changing $1300 for it? This would have worked for an Google's April Fools jokes but maybe they actually think this is a good product.

I don't understand for who it's even for. If you just want to browse the Internet with a high resolution display, what's wrong with the iPad?

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It's for that hip crowd that wears those weird glasses from google.

Renzatic said:

LOL! Look people! Someone made a thing! Let us make fun of it and call it stupid!

It's a thin, well designed i5 notebook with retina quality screen. The hardware itself is pretty impressive. You can make fun of it all you want, but it looks at the very least to be a solidly built product on par with what Apple puts out.

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The main issue is the price when compared with similarly-capable machines, notably the Air or Pro with Retina display. As a community, I think we're all tired of hearing about how "expensive" Apple machines are. The tables have turned on this one and people are enjoying a walk on the other side of the fence.

Google is trying *so* hard to be Apple.
Its funny.

I'll add to the pile on since this Chromebook is just so full of fail. I really fail to see the appeal of having a touchscreen on a laptop like this. It's not a tablet and if you actually did need to use the touch screen for extended periods of time your arms are gonna fall off. It's like they intentionally took every feature they could possibly throw into one package and turned the volume up to 11 regardless of if it made any sense or not.

but it runs Chrome.

djakemc said:

Cannot wait to pick this up. I've been looking to spend $1300 on outdated equipment.

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Yeah? What's outdated about it? That screen is pretty damn impressive, and it's running a current gen i5 processor.

I seriously think some of you people gripe about stuff so you'll all look like you're "discerning consumers" in front of each other.

KALLT said:

I simply cannot see the appeal of a touchscreen on a vertical display.

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Ah, you beat me to this comment!

'The first thing that hits you when you open up the laptop is the screen'....

'The second thing that hits you is that you just spent $1300 on a powerful computer that doesn't really have any software or operating system to show off that hardware in any meaningful way.

I think they should call it the Google Slab cause that's what it looks like to me.

Now even a Chromebook got a retina-class screen resolution... When are Windows laptops ever going to catch up? It is becoming ridiculous that the majority of these computers still have a 1366x768 resolution.

And are you people still wondering if Apple is really going to release a retina MacBook Air in 2013?

A Chromebook with a 2560x1700 screen... it must be the LG screen showed at CES in January... what a waste of a good display putting it on a ChromeOS-based laptop, which does basically nothing but surf the web.

er, ok, or you could buy an iPad and a Mac Mini. lol.