Review of the Google Cr-48 Chrome Netbook

\ \ I really wanted a netbook to keep in my car so that I could blog on the go. I own an iPad, but the iPad is awful for a productivity device. So, I ordered an Asus Eee PC.

About a month ago I saw there was a brown package on my doorstep. I was excited! I swiftly put the box on the hood of my car and tore into it. It wasn’t my Asus Eee PC, Google had sent me a Cr-48 laptop! I didn’t think that I would get one when I signed up for the pilot program.

There are a lot of great reviews of the Cr-48, so I’ll be brief.

What I like:

It focuses on one thing, and does it well: web browsing. The laptop’s software is literally just a web browser.
Battery life. I can pull 7+ hours on this thing.
Bootup takes a few seconds. Resume from sleep is even less.
The rubbery feel. The whole laptop feels like it’s encased in a durable rubber texture.
Built-in Verizon 3G card with 100 MB of data free each month. You can upgrade and pay if you want more data.

What I don’t like:

The trackpad. It’s as if they were trying to build an Apple trackpad but failed miserably. It’s overly sensitive and sometimes locks into a scroll mode.
The power adapter doesn’t use a magnet. It’d be really easy to break it off from where it connects to the laptop. I’m not sure why manufacturers of laptops don’t incorporate the Magsafe magnets into their designs.

I love this thing for blogging! I highly recommend that if you have the opportunity to get one, you should. I’d say that this thing represents what a netbook should be.

Do you have a Cr-48 netbook? What do you think about it?

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-JP

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-JP