You might have heard Google's Chrome OS
will live entirely in the cloud, and that devices running the web-based platform will automatically back up your data on remote servers. You might think it will keep your private details safe -- as safe as anything else you trust Google to store, that is. But had you ever considered what the cloud meant for the hardware running it? CEO Eric Schmidt has. This week, he told the Atmosphere Cloud Computing Summit that Chrome OS devices will be "completely disposable" at
netbook-esque price points of between $300 and $400. That's pocket change for a large IT department perhaps, but we can't imagine tossing even the cheapest Eee PC in our dustbin. How about subsidized, though? Asked whether Google might give away devices on contract, Schmidt said "Sure," adding afterwards only that his company doesn't see
itself selling the data plans. We wonder what that means for the
thousands of enthusiastic towns now praying for
Google fiber. Hear Google's CEO for yourself after the break; info in question begins 13:33.
posted April 20th 2010 8:08PM
$300-$400 is hardly disposable...
@Ben64 unless you are Eric Schmidt i guess.
@Ben64
What? you don't throw away $400 every week?
sheet this world is so sad... people cant eat and this joker along with f'in GM CEOs think $400 is disposable...
I can get a Laptop that lasts me years for $400 on a good sale...
@Ben64
they arent talking about disposable in terms of cost, or use it once, toss it and buy a new one.
they are talking about disposable in terms of sensitive information, i believe. they do not have to be so careful when they are getting new computers or whatever because all the information they have is stored in the cloud, not in the computer
@direxnipe spot on
@Ben64
Taken out of context, it seems meaningless. But what Schmidt is talking about, are thin clients.
GoogleOS devices can replace thin clients, which an IT department does in fact see as throw-away devices, without much fuss in terms of setting up the client, because data and software will exist primarily in the cloud. Thin clients are considerably more attractive to large companies, because the amount of effort and time to get brand new computers up and running with all the installed drivers and software including configuration is very costly. Compare the cost of configuring the thin client via web-based controls, and the thin client wins.
For the rest of us, it is not so disposable.
@direxnipe
Umm.. no faking way do I want all my info going through the cloud...
C'mon please... you can get a good 16-32GB USB drive on sale for cheap... this should be easily used to back up plenty of important info...
heck I can ConeZilla my HDD on this thing...
You obviously dont live in USA... there disposable means throw away.... why do you think GM is in the poop hole now? people want cars that last.. ie HONDA
@MFrasier That's what I thought too until I saw the whole video.
@AppleDrank
i dont think you know what you are talking about
@direxnipe
%99 of my comments are based on the first comment and title of the article.. I just wanted to join in on the hate trashing... :D
@Ben64 I don't know about that. Look at all those iFad user who purchased it because its Apple. Not because they need the device.
@Ben64
Not to mention that being able to be priced like that will still highly likely lead to labor practices highly contradictory to googs "don't be evil" or whatever their BS motto is. great search engine, still a bunch of hypocritical schmucks though.
@kojo87
No matter who you are, "disposable" is not a good way to describe your company's hardware.
@Ben64 Perhaps he means it like get a netbook from your kitchen. Anyway, the chrome netbook that surfaced last year, provided some interesting features. http://j.mp/chrome-netbook
@direxnipe wouldn't "interchangeable" be a better word? I think 'disposable' sounds cheap to the average person.
@gerrrg
Cool eh, those fortune 100 companies can toss out their servers and computers and just give all their data to Google.
Nothing amiss in that picture is there.
@Cy Starkman Yeah -- that's where I really don't see how this technology makes the leap into real-world corporate usage. Sure, the thin clients themselves may be cheap, and be easy on the IT department staffing budget, but what companies are going to trust their sensitive data to the GoogleCloud?
If the answer is for every company to host their own individual "mini" cloud unto themselves, like so many do with Exchange servers, where is that cost savings and lack of upkeep that is supposed to drive the adoption in the first place?
It seems like a great idea for a utopia where everybody can trust Brother Google, but I don't see that utopia happening anytime soon.
@RidleyGriff
There are some very very smart people in your organization that you dont know. Usually the smart people that are very low in the organizatin are sort of suffering because no one will talk to them. Try to find them, try to tlisten to them and try to have them be your beacons as to how the organization should evlolve. - Eric Schmidt
@PastorTom
and eric isn't talking about his company's hardware, that'll be made by someone else; his company only makes the software
@John Doe
I have friends unnecessarily spending nearly $100 a month on a voice and data connection for their "smartphone" to go along with their internet connection at home. Give me a cheap $40 phone. I can wait until I get home to read my email.
@John Doe You'll never know because you haven't used an ipad. I've used it, I have used Android phones and own a windows notebook. For many things the ipad simply blows the other devices out of the water.
Google, hardware =/= a cup of starbucks coffee. You don't just throw it away. It's supposed to last a while.
Why is there such an obsession with cloud computing? I don't think most people are always connected to the net so how would this work? I understand automatic back ups and whatever but this doesn't sound right. I hope it does not repeat the sidekick thing, but I am sure Google has a masterplan. Is that why they are test rolling 1gbps fiber? Hmm just some food for thought :)
@Mike Vick 3G Network?
@Mike Vick
Exactly this could nonsense everybody keeps shoving down our throats is getting nonsense. These days these ISP are putting data caps on everything and also if I am away from the house sometimes I don't have access to the net. Also what if I can't get a signal. Cloud computing is looking like a big fail to me. The Sidekick fiasco also proves another point against it.
@tkrow21
As if our networks aren't overloaded with video streaming and all that crap already. Now you want to send your whole HDD over the air too?
@Mike Vick People will be connected all the time in the future. Google isn't exactly building something for the present.
@Mike Vick
Chrome OS + Google Fiber (paid service) + Google Femtocells (built into modem) = Depressed Telcos
Bow to Overlord Google!!!!
Chrome OS is disposable and virus free. The only problems are that it can't run Microsoft Office and other applications... (thinking about the 2 second boot time)
@prodigypv
there are many alternatives to Microsoft Office. open office is one example. since chrome OS will be based on Linux there will be many programs that will work just the same.
but thats not even the issue, you wont NEED any programs. you will run web based programs. you can use google docs or whatever else is created to do everything you need without having any programs or information stored on your computer
@direxnipe Well of course, that is obvious, but I wasn't referring specifically to Microsoft Office in general, but to most of the applications out there. And there is no way to download applications - all applications have to be web-based (in that case, Microsoft's web office should be able to work). So as you see, I was talking about one of its biggest handicaps - dependence on the internet. Because most of the applications are internet based. So without internet, the OS transforms the PC into an expensive paperweight.
@direxnipe Actually, both of you are completely wrong.
1. Google Chrome OS will not have any programs installed besides Google Chrome. You won't be able to save ANYTHING to the hard-drive. It will check the MD5sum of the hard-drive's system files on boot-up and if it doesn't match with the original install, it will re-download the system files and overwrite the contents of the hard-drive.
2. Since Microsoft is making a web-based office suite available for free (think Google Docs), Microsoft Office documents you receive via E-mail or instant messaging will open automatically in that suite.
@The Madman Actually, there will be applications like Yahoo Mail, Gmail, YouTube, Google Apps (Google Calendar, etc.), Pandora, Hulu, Facebook, and Twitter. There may also be games and there will be a calculator. And you will be allowed to save music on the hard drive.
The picture of the OS that Google released has PicasaWeb and Chess on it (which shows that there may be other applications).
Also, I imagine if you dual-boot and partition the hard drive, you will be able to save other information on the hard drive.
Perhaps I'm an old fogey, but having email in the cloud is one thing. Facebook pictures and status updates are another.
But all of my applications and their data, stored on Google's servers? Hell no. I value my privacy.
@RidleyGriff When I think about it - the majority of businesses use all sorts of off-site services. Webservers, datacenters, offsite backup (if they are smart), etc... These are all through different companies.
If Google had a private server package around their OS, it isn't that much different than hiring any other data center for backup of your critical data.
Yup, all the world needs is more people thinking of computer components as disposable. Like we don't have enough e-trash problems as it is.
@KupoCheer
look at my reply to the first post. i believe they arent talking about disposable in terms of buy one, throw it away, get another. i think they are talking about disposable in terms of your information, programs, etc.
you dont have to worry about your sensitive information when you get a new device, or about moving all your programs over to the new device. they are all there for you already in the cloud.
@direxnipe The thing is with HTML5, more data is stored in your browser.
Yes your things are stored in the cloud, but a subset of that is also in your "disposable" hardware.
@Ben64
yes, but it also makes migration much quicker, and cheaper for companies to use the cloud.
its new, but i think it will catch on
It's like.... something out of a dream.... [Skywalker]
I don't even consider my $10 hdmi cable disposable. How the hell does he quantify disposable?
Must be nice being a billionaire I guess...
Google should charge individual user zero for Chrome OS could service, at least at the very beginning, they may offer competitive price for enterprise user. I think these are only options if they want a real success
Ok people, you are all commenting about disposable, but you all missed the point. He wasnt saying you just buy the device, throw it away, and buy more.
he was saying all of your information is stored in the cloud, all your programs are stored in the cloud. you dont need to worry about sensitive information getting stolen from your computer because its not on your computer. you dont need to worry about transferring your programs to a new computer because its not on your computer.
you dont need to worry about your harddrive crashing because your information, your documents, your presentations, etc... are not stored on the computer. Thats what he means when he talks about disposable
@direxnipe
You're right, but he should have said "interchangeable".
@direxnipe
Sounds great. And I might actually be up for Google's vision of Cloud Computing... just not now.. maybe in 10 years...
When he said "disposable" he probably meant that you can constantly switch and change devices (i.e. dispose of using them) while always having all your settings and data present. I doubt he literally meant to throw it away in the garbage once you're done using it.
If its disposable it means you'll want to call Dispose() once you're done with it.
$300 to $400 for something intending to replace a netbook? According to Engadget, the average price for a netbook is $300. With an OS requiring less tech support, a small amount of flash memory rather than a HDD, and probably an ARM processor, I would expect these to be more like $175 to $250.
By disposable, he probably means that none of your data will be on the device and everything will carry over to a new device.