Google has developed Chrome OS, an operating system for laptops that does just about everything inside a browser window. According to press release, forthcoming Chrome OS laptops from Asus and Samsung (News - Alert) due later this year will be lightweight, low-maintenance and, most of all inexpensive, with a target price range of $300 to $400.
A prototype Chrome OS laptop supplied by Google (News - Alert) weighs less than four pounds and runs silent and cool. This matte-black notebook boots up Google’s Chrome OS browser in seven seconds, and reawakens instantly from sleep. It has no hot, spinning disk drive because it doesn’t need one to hold the small Chrome OS operating system. Sixteen gigabytes of solid-state memory do the trick.
To stay connected to the Internet, it packs both Wi-Fi and a Verizon (News - Alert) 3G account that includes 100 megabytes per month of free data, although there may be different options when the real products go on sale. Additionally, Google has created a Chrome Web Store full of apps that install inside its browser. Many are free. Some even work without a live Internet connection. By adopting a do-it-online mindset, you can perform just about any task as long as you’re connected.