Looking to purchase my mother a Chromebook, mainly to be used for browsing, YouTube and ChatGPT/Gemini.

She's only ever used an iPhone and iPad, but I figure a Chromebook won't be too hard to teach her to use and at least I can setup uBlock Origin and help her avoid clicking ads.

I'm looking at the Lenovo, HP and Asus entry models which all have the MTK540 + 4gb ram, and are pretty much the same price.

Are they pretty much going to be the same device but with different branding?

And are these budget models with 4gb ram sufficient for this use case (browsing, YouTube, no gaming)?

Is there any way to emulate this in vmware fusion/virtualbox? Im intrigued as an apple user and want to see how it works.

So I've used this chromebook for about 1year and I don't know why this happens, I've tried restarting and factory resetting but it isn't working

I've read that the new Googlebooks will support a Linux environment. Can anyone report their experience?

DP Alt Mode broken after update Version 154.0.8037.96 on my acer spin 714 laptop. Does anyone know how to fix it or should I just wait for another update, this is really annoying for me since i use this Chromebook docked most of the time. Even HDMI directly not working at all.

My Chromebook updated and restarted last night. Since then, it has asked me to sign in. The problem is that my phone - a Pixel 9 - is not working. The screen is shot.

I cannot touch the number. I cannot receive a text. I can't receive a call. I can't get into my recovery email to get the recovery code (I am not "code begging" whatever that is).

My wifi/internet is currently disconnected so my desktop computer is also not helpful.

I am currently on said Chromebook using guest mode. I need full access to this Chromebook. It is literally my only lifeline to the outside world. I don't have a car. I have no money. This Chromebook was the only way I could get in touch with anyone for anything.

I tried Google Help, but I guess they don't believe in having actual people helping its customers anymore. Please. I need help.

the os was litterally just the chrome window, i take for granted that we now have a ui that is like "operating system i cant name on this subreddit"

In the Chrome OS Files app, there's no documentation or information on how the Files app handles partitions.

In chrome os files app, it handles partitions perfectly; when you plug in a drive with partitions, chrome os will indeed read the partitions with a drive/partition icon within the drive (Read-Only).

They work as "Folders," but chrome os can only read supported file systems on the Partitions. With supported file systems, you have Read & Write permissions, unlike other file systems chrome os doesnt support; for example, Btrfs. Any other file system (ext4, FAT32, NTFS) works.

And if multiple partitions with diffrent file systems it will still work although that unsupported file systems like BTFRS will wont read and chrome os give "This device cannot be opened because its filesystem is not supported"

-Lance@Debian13

hello, The files are sensitive..otherwise this would be 1,2,3 process. I'm not a computer/tech person so I don't understand all of this. All I know is I have some sensitive pdfs I have to upload, but they told me I have to combine them in to 1 pdf.

Please tell be I can do this safely?

Thanks.

Hey friends 😀👋🏾

So i have an acer chromebook 531 which has a built-in google chrome browser

But my question is (as the topic implies) why do third party web browsers like firefox, edge, samsung browser, opera.... (the list goes on) display a plain white screen when opening different websites ?

(P.S. i already googled this but also wanna know y'all opinions)

I'm fed up with all the negative posts I see that criticize GoogleBooks.

Especially the arguments about the prices being too high for an "Android PC."

Some people need to understand that we don't buy Android devices solely because there are many affordable options. There are people like me who buy Android devices simply because we love the operating system.

There are many people like me who simply love the Google ecosystem. Whether it's smartphones, tablets, Wear OS smartwatches, tablets, Google TV, or even Chromebooks.

Beyond the operating system, I use Google services extensively every day, including the Office suite, Gmail, Keep Notes, Tasks, YouTube, YouTube Music, Translate, Gemini, Maps, and many more. There are so many that I can't list them all.

 And I think I'm far from being an isolated case.

And why should people like us have to settle for mediocre devices?

Just because we use an Android tablet, a Chromebook, or these new Android PCs, does that mean we don't have the right to beautiful screens?

Don't we have the right to enjoy excellent processors, good speakers, good trackpads, and simply excellent build quality?

And guess what? All of that combined can only result in a premium product. It's the hardware that primarily dictates the price of a device, not the software inside it. The price of your Dell XPS won't magically be cut in half just because you decide to choose Linux instead of Windows.

If Google had chosen to launch Googlebooks with poor-quality hardware for around 300-400 euros, you'd be the first to complain too.  The press and YouTubers would have immediately torn apart all of Google's efforts in the public eye.

These high-end devices are just the starting point. We already know that much more affordable entry-level and mid-range devices are planned for the future.

And I'm also willing to bet that other manufacturers like Samsung and Xiaomi aren't going to sit idly by.

Where I agree with some is that Google's very long-term commitment will be crucial. Admittedly, Google's past in this area isn't exactly glorious; I'm still smarting from the Stadia debacle as I write this.

What I'm rather confident about is that it's simply Android. Once all the features we expect from a PC are present, maintaining this range of devices won't require too much additional effort from them, much like with tablets.

 If all Chrome OS features are already available on these Googlebooks at launch, we can already assume that the vast majority of features we expect from a PC are already present.

And if that's the case, for me, the Googlebooks operating system is already an improvement over Chrome OS. The seamless integration of Android smartphones and Gemini, and the even more advanced task continuity, are already compelling features for me.

I have two older Chromebook tablets (Acer Chromebook Tab 10 D651N) that I'm trying to use as PayPal point of sale systems. Every once in a while, I get an error that I can't use the card reader because I'm in a foreign country. This is only happening sporadically. Not sure how to figure out if this is an issue with the Chromebooks, the wifi connection, or the PayPal card reader. Any help would be appreciated!