New Acer Chromebooks Coming on Wednesday
Acer will reportedly unveil its first line of Chromebooks running Google's Chrome OS on Wednesday.
According to Reuters, the new Acer machines will feature large, hardened screens, aluminum bodies and Intel's top-flight 8th Generation processors. This means that they could be priced higher than the typical $300 Chromebooks aimed at students.
Chromebooks are known for running cloud-based applications and storing data online. They are cheaper than laptops and are typically powered by long-lasting batteries.
Chromebooks released by Acer, HP, Dell and others, have taken nearly 60 percent of the U.S. grade-school market in the seven or so years since they appeared.
Google is pushing Chromebooks because they help draw customers to its cloud computing services and G Suite workplace software bundle. Since August, Google has charged businesses $50 per laptop per year for a management license. Its education plan costs $30 annually.
But Chromebooks, by design, cannot run complex, business applications. So Google has been trying to up the capabilities of its software and has also increased the number of its authorized sales partners by 25 percent over the last year.
Last year, Chromebooks got support for Google's Android apps, which provide offline functionality.