Tag: Chromebooks

Chromebooks keep growing in demand, and as cheap laptops, they make for a great purchase on Black Friday.

Android 12 might just be fresh off the oven, but Google is following it up with Android 12L as it optimizes its mobile operating system for foldables.

Microsoft could be taking on Chromebooks by launching an 11-inch Surface device. The product is code-named Tenjin.

The HP Chromebook x2 11 is a well-built Chrome OS detachable tablet that would serve students quite well.

The Acer Chromebook Spin 514 bolsters a growing stable of 14-inch Chromebook convertibles with promising performance and a solid build.

Chromebooks are fantastic little devices, and their popularity has skyrocketed during the pandemic. However, they are notorious for being light on storage space. Fortunately, many Chromebooks have the option to add additional storage through a USB drive or SD card slot.This comes in handy when you have files you’ve downloaded or created and you need a place to keep them. But what about when an app needs more storage space? A prime example of this would be the Netflix app which can download videos for viewing when you’re offline.In that case you’re going to need to enable saving files to the SD card. That’s not much of a hassle, really, but we’ll walk you through the process and show you how to do it.How to use an SD card for app storage on Chromebooks for appsFirst, you’re going to need to make sure external storage is enabled and you have a card inserted in your Chromebook.Open the settings menu. You can do this by pressing the search button (magnifying glass key on the keyboard) and typing in “settings” and “enter.”Type “storage management” into the search bar at the top.Choose “External storage preferences” at the bottom of the screen.Toggle on the SD card.Restart your Chromebook.Additionally, you’ll want to make sure that you’ve given the app storage permissions before you can save files internally or to the SD card.To check this, open the settings menu and location the Apps section. Click on “Manage your apps,” navigate to the app you want to give storage permissions to, and toggle it on.If you don’t see a toggle for storage, then click on “More settings and permissions” to access the permissions menu and enable storage.Now that you have it all set up, you’ll be able to change the download location if the app supports that feature. Since Netflix is so popular and supports changing location, we’ll use it as our example.Open the Netflix app.Tap on More.Select App Settings.Choose Download Location and select SD Card.And now you can fill up your SD card with lots of Netflix series and movies to watch anytime, anywhere, because you won’t need an internet connection to watch.Where each app hides the setting to change the download location will differ, if it supports it at all. For example, Amazon’s Prime Video is another app that supports this feature, however, Disney+ does not.So, be aware, you’ll have to do a little digging in the settings and there’s no guarantee your chosen app will have this option.Related content:How to right-click on a ChromebookHow to take a screenshot on a ChromebookHow to use Caps Lock on a Chromebook

A software update for the Coreboot firmware platform revealed some key details about Intel's upcoming Alder Lake-P range for Chromebooks and laptops.

The Asus Chromebook Flip CM3 surpasses expectations for its rock-bottom price.

The Asus Chromebook Flip C536 has its flaws, but its strengths and its low price make up for them.

Prime Day is nearly upon us, and laptops will always be hot sellers. But which should you buy? Don't make one of these obvious mistakes.

A code teardown suggests that Google may be replicating Microsoft's Your Phone app and Samsung's DeX for PC for Android phone owners who use Chromebooks.

The Acer Chromebook Spin 514 is a big-screened convertible that’s also rugged and tough. But does it perform?

Acer has introduced the Chromebook 317, the first to boast a 17-inch display. We took a look for some first

The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 stands out thanks to its flashy design. Does performance match the good looks?

HP is refreshing its 14-inch enterprise Chromebook with Intel's latest 11th Gen silicon. And with Parallels Desktop support, it can even run Win32 apps!

Chromebooks and Chrome OS have grown exponentially in the past few years. From its focus on education to the perfect pandemic device, more and more consumers are taking notice with their wallets. Chrome OS is now the second most popular desktop system behind Mac OS and knocking Windows to number three.Another focus has been developers and Google created the Linux app runtime on Chrome OS with this user in mind. Today, after three long years, Google has announced at I/O that Linux apps will remove the beta tag. This will come in the latest Chrome 91 update coming to devices in the next few weeks.While the experience is limited, this does open Chrome OS devices up to a large ecosystem of Debian Linux apps. Google was quick to remind that this is mostly intended for developers to test dev systems with IDEs and code editors, but it also allows for you to run traditional desktop apps. Think Firefox, Thunderbird, Signal, or even LibreOffice.As Google continues to mature the software behind Chrome OS, and in extension Android apps, Linux support could be a key cog in developers taking the platform seriously. Being able to champion the platform you are making applications to run on is huge and isn’t very easy without the Linux runtime.You can watch the full virtual keynote below. It’s worth noting that Google also calls out plans to launch 50 new Chromebooks this year and Android 11 will come to the Android environment. No details were offered on the new hardware, but Android 11 is confirmed to make it in the next update with Chrome 90.

There's a lot to be excited about for the future of Chromebooks. Here's everything new in the world of Chromebooks coming out of Google I/O 2021.

The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 stands out thanks to its flashy design. Does performance match the good looks?

Did Acer deliver a knockout punch with its Qualcomm-powered Chromebook Spin 513? It sure comes close.

The HP Elite C1030 Chromebook is one of the most secure and manageable Chrome OS laptops you can buy.

With Chrome OS recently surpassing MacOS as the second-most-used operating system in world, there are a lot of lessons to be learned by Microsoft.

The Acer Chromebook Spin 713 is a fast and long-lasting Chrome OS 2-in-1 that's well worth consideration.

Dialed back high-end features and a more affordable price, but was the compromise too much?

The ThinkPad C13 Yoga Chromebook is a solid Chromebook for work, but fails to pass the test for the average person.

Samsung is offering purchase incentives if you pre-order a Chromebook 2 early. The star of this convertible Chrome OS laptop is its bright QLED screen.

If you need a new laptop, then these Presidents Day Chromebook sales are your chance to score one for cheap.

Google has a real winner for the year of the pandemic in Chromebooks. The devices are deployable and easily maintained for cloud-based remote work. This past year of 2020 has driven the largest growth the company has seen for Chrome OS devices.Mountain View has decided to invest more into this trend with on-going improvements to Meet and a new partnership with Zoom. Google sees these changes as a way to make sure education and remote workers have a more fluid experience with both its in-house Meet platform as well as the dominant player that Zoom has become.It’s all about the dynamicsThe main alteration Google has made is how Meet sessions are streamed. The company claims its optimized the backend processes on how Chrome OS handles the network and bandwidth. Meet now takes into account device, open streams, and even simultaneous chats taking place while on calls.Google hopes this leads to less dropped sessions by instead altering the resolution and screen frame rates to keep the stream going while other things are hitting the network. This is much the same way content streaming services like YouTube and Netflix handle network jams while playing a video. Using this same type of approach on live calls seems like a natural progression for Google Meet.Education specificsGoogle also notes that it added a few things to make the classroom setting a little easier. You can now raise your hand, use a virtual whiteboard, break out rooms, and polls inside the Meet interface. These additions are a great way to make sure teachers have features to utilize with the kids in their classrooms.Zoom gets some love tooGoogle recognizes that Meet doesn’t meet all the needs of every user. Engineers have been at work with the Zoom team to make sure some of these tweaks make it to that platform as well. The main of which is dynamic streaming. Zoom will now adapt to the network and system payload to lower or raise the stream quality as needed.Video calls have been crucial over this crazy last year and looks to continue in 2021. It’s nice to see Google continuing to invest in both Meet and Zoom for Chromebooks.

Signal Messenger is a great way to securely talk to friends and family. The messaging service offers users an end-to-end encryption protocol to make sure only the folks involved can have access. It also recently got a huge bump by Tesla’s founder Elon Musk’s support on Twitter.So what’s the problem?Signal is readily available for mobile for iOS and Android. It’s also available for desktop for Windows, Mac, and even Linux. Unfortunately, there’s no web client and that leaves Chromebooks users without a native solution.But you said there’s an Android app? Yes. That’s correct, but the Android client is not optimized for Chromebooks and you will be unable to install it through the normal means of the Google Play Store.Linux has you coveredDespite this omission, Signal can be installed with a workaround by utilizing the Linux app environment Google recently added to Chrome OS. This adds a virtualization layer that allows you to run full Linux desktop apps as “native” ones on your Chromebook.

Ahead of CES 2021, Samsung has announced the Galaxy Chromebook 2, which starts at $550 and comes with a QLED display -- a first for Chromebooks.

The Asus Chromebook C423, with a 14-inch HD anti-glare display, is on sale with a $50 discount on Best Buy, which promises delivery in time for Christmas.

Looking for a high-value laptop for work? We've got all the hottest Cyber Monday Chromebook deals, along with a handy buying guide to help you save.

Black Friday is over, but there are still some great deals like this Lenovo Chromebook 3 deal from Walmart.