I finally received my Cr-48 laptop last week, and after taking an initial photo tour, I got to work on figuring out the pros and cons of the machine. Of course, Google has already said that this version is not for consumers, and both the interior and exterior could change after the beta testing program has been completed. However, I've already found some great (and not-so great) features coming with the Chrome notebook.
First up, the details: the Cr-48 comes with a 12.1-inch matte screen, flash hard drive, a full-sized keyboard, one USB, VGA, 35mm headphone jack, and an SD card reader. It's said to get about eight hours of surfing time, and so far, that's been right on point. Find out the pros and cons I've come across so far in my first impressions below.
Pros
- Fast setup — just enter your Google account info, take a pic, and you're off — for multiple users
- Lightweight, and comes with a nice, rubbery exterior finish
- All your info/work/data is in the cloud — take it anywhere!
- Seamless Google product integration, like Docs, Picasa, and Gmail (that one's pretty obvious)
- Lots of web apps to choose from in the Chrome App Store
- The option for Verizon contract-free data plans
- Syncs your Chrome browser bookmarks automatically
- Extremely fast wake times
- Matte screen keeps glare at bay
See my list of cons, and who I think this laptop is really for after the jump.
