More hardware emerges from the Google I/O show, which does not cease to fascinate me in the slightest. But after Samsung made its showing, we’ve got a second one coming out to consider, and this time, it’s from Acer.
Admittedly, most of us don’t likely immediately think Acer when we think about quality laptops, or quality computers, for that matter, but they’re going to bring out a rather interesting–if somewhat bargain basement–model for us to consider here.
Here’s the rundown: Acer’s Chromebook brings us an 11.6 inch LED HD display, backed up by an Intel Atom N570 processor, a 16 gig solid state drive, two USB ports, a webcam with noise-cancelling microphone, an HDMI output, dual-band wi-fi and a 3G option if you’d rather, a 4-in-1 memory card slot, a full-size Chrome keyboard, oversized clickable trackpad, and a battery life of fully 6.5 hours.
The big selling points on the Acer are that it’s a bit more responsive than its Samsung counterpart, packing instant-on capability and an eight second boot time, but also, it’s offering up its product at a much lower price–$349 for the wi-fi model and a little more for the 3G option.
You’ll be able to get into this one June 15th also, and you’ll also be able to order from Amazon and Best Buy, just like with the Samsung. The question here becomes just which one you actually go with.
Clearly, if you’re on a budget but you still want Chrome, the Acer beats the Samsung handily in price, but if performance is more an issue, it looks like, right now, the nod is going to go to Samsung with its stepped-up processor, longer battery life, and more besides. So I’ll open up the floor for you guys–you’ve seen the Samsung Chromebook, and the Acer Chromebook, so which one looks the more appealing to you?
