A few months ago I used Facebook to crowdsource opinions about the Chromebook as a means for writing only. No gaming, no designing, no uploading photos for editing. My iMac takes care of the big stuff but I wanted a laptop for portable writing and researching, and it seemed like a Chromebook was a logical, inexpensive option.
The feedback was mixed, which I expected. Why buy a laptop that does so little? And what about the graphics? How unexciting.
I bought one anyway and I love it.
Low frills? Yes, but also a low price. It goes with me almost everywhere and has allowed me to write in a myriad of settings. The only thing I need is WiFi.
That may sound like a hitch to you, but I was going to need WiFi anyway no matter the laptop I bought. If WiFi isn’t available, I can still write offline and have my work saved to the small hard drive. Once I reconnect, my Google Drive syncs and all is well.
It would’ve been nice to buy a MacBook or a fancy touch-screen thingy that detaches and re-attaches and has all the cool stuff, but that’s really not what I needed. It’s likely that I could get distracted on higher-end laptops, which would defeat the purpose entirely. Lastly, I didn’t have $1,000 to blow on a new toy.
It’s important to note that this is a Google product, which means it’s only compatible with Google applications. That might be a deterrent for some, but since I already used Google Drive and do all of my internet work on Chrome, I didn’t have to change what I was already doing. In fact, I wrote all 50,000+ words of NaNoWriMo 2015 on the Chromebook. It was super handy.
Three Things I Love:
- Lightweight and portable. I bought the Asus 13-inch HD Chromebook. It weighs a little more than the iPad 2, so it’s nothing to carry in my purse.
- Reliable. As soon as I open it, the machine is on and ready. No start-up, no loading, no spinning wheel of anxiety. It just goes! Everything saves immediately, so there’s little room for error. BUT, if for some reason I’m nervous about something not saving, the Chromebook I bought has a USB port for a jump drive.
- Inexpensive. I could’ve bought the Chromebook for the standard $200, but I spent an extra $20 for the pretty turquoise shell. Included in the price was 100GB towards my Drive account, which has come in handy on the iMac for uploading images from photography sessions. Overall, you can’t beat the price.