My dear Cr-48. I have given you time to rest. I have given ChromeOS time to mature. But alas, I don't think it will work. I think you have a corrupt hard drive.
In December of 2010, I was ecstatic to learn that I was one of the few that Google had chosen to test out their new ChromeOS on an experimental laptop called the Cr-48. Which I wrote about, here, here, and here. It was a fantastic machine, albeit, there were some small issues. The best part, is that anyone that came over could use it, without fear that they would delete something or mess up my settings. They had their own account with their Google preferences already installed. Very simple. Very convenient. Very cool.
And then, 6 months later, our house was burglarized, and the Cr-48 was taken. I was heartbroken. Fortunately, a couple of awesome Google employees (to which I will always be appreciative) sent me a replacement Cr-48. Unfortunately, this version had issues, but they didn't show up for a while. I have come to the conclusion that it has a bad hard drive, as I can't get the updated and reinstalled OS to boot up. As many times as I try... I keep getting this screen:
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| Before you ask... yes, I make that same face when I see that screen. |
I have disassembled the Cr-48 and made sure that all wires were plugged in, and to see if I could spot any other problem. But I couldn't. Everything looked the way it should. If it really is a corrupt hard drive, then I can't even install a different operating system, which means my beloved Cr-48 is now nothing more than a paperweight. So I'm thinking it may be time to dispose of my awesome gift.
My main machine is a 17-inch laptop beast that weighs in at 40 pounds (not really, but it feels that way) because I opted for the extended battery. Due to it's size and weight, I never want to bring it anywhere. It's just too... much. And honestly, what do I use it for? I have iTunes, the Adobe Design Suite, and some games installed. But mostly I use it for internet. Which makes me eye the retail version of the Cr-48, called the Chromebook.
Google has made some great improvements to the ChromeOS software, and with more web apps popping up, living in the cloud is getting easier and easier. Google Play now lets you buy movies and TV shows, so one can live without iTunes, and a web app called Pixlr gives you Photoshop capabilities without the install and huge price tag. My initial complaint about the Cr-48 was that it was impossible to do everything I do 'in the cloud'. Two years later, it's still impossible... but the list of things you can't do is getting significantly smaller. I don't think I'll ever be able to get rid of my monster of a laptop, but a Chromebook may just be a great option for day to day use. And at only $249... it's a really good deal.
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