Some might not consider Chromebook as a proper laptop but for what it’s worth, I believe that Chromebook will be around for quite some time as Google continue to gather partners for the cloud-based notebook. In fact, they have just received one more partner this week which is Dell who have just announced their first ever Chromebook.
As the name implies, the Dell Chromebook 11 is equipped with an 11.6-inch 1366×768 display and is powered by the Haswell-based 1.4GHz Intel Celeron 2955U processor which also features the Intel HD Graphics as its built-in GPU. Claimed to have up to 10 hours of battery life, the Dell Chromebook 11 also comes standard with a 720p front-facing webcam, two USB 3.0 ports and a HDMI port as well as connectivity support for Bluetooth 4.0 and 802.11abgn Wi-Fi.
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With a 16GB solid state drive as its internal storage, Chromebook 11 will be made available in two different variant: one with 4GB RAM and another one with 2GB RAM. Expected to cost under USD 300 (RM 969), the 4GB variant of Dell Chromebook 11 will be released in US and UK in January 2014 while the 2GB version will follow suit sometime in the first quarter of 2014.
For now, Dell have yet to announce any release detail for the new Dell Chromebook 11 in our market. The chances of seeing it here in our market might be further affected by the fact that 1BestariNet which is one of the main driving force behind Chromebook adoption in Malaysia already has its “own” WiMAX-enabled Samsung Chromebook.
That being said, Chromebook in general still have its place in the market as a productivity and light-duty entertainment machine. So, let’s see if Dell are willing to bring it over to Malaysia in 2014.
