Google and Intel team up to give Chromebooks more power

[techbeck]

Lenovo isn't the only company with Chromebook news today. Intel and a slew of hardware manufacturers announced a lineup of new Chrome devices today at an event in San Francisco ? including devices that will feature more powerful hardware than we've seen thus far in most mainstream Chromebooks.

 

Later this summer, both Dell and Acer will be launching Chromebooks that run on Intel's Core i3 processor ? Dell will bring out a new version of its Chromebook 11 including the i3 "later this year," and Acer's C720 will be available "early in the back-to-school season" for $349.99. Unfortunately, there's no word on how much the Dell will cost, but as it was probably the best all-around Chromebook we've seen, we'll be looking forward to seeing if the new processor measurably improves the experience. There's little doubt that the i3 will offer a faster experience, but battery life will, as always, be a key concern.

 

Beyond the Core i3 devices, Google also announced a number of new Chromebooks based on Intel's Bay Trail-M chipset. While there's no doubt that these computers won't be nearly as fast as the i3 models, Intel is touting up to 11 hours of battery life. There's also no fan, something that should make for a much-improved experience ? as much as we enjoyed Dell's Chromebook 11, the constant presence of fans turning on and off were a big distraction.

 

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http://www.theverge.com/2014/5/6/5687518/google-and-intel-team-up-to-give-chromebooks-more-power