Google and Intel have today announced three new Chromebooks and a Chrome Box, all of them running Intel’s much hyped new Haswell processors.
This announcement has been made today on stage at Intel Developer Forum Keynote in San Francisco USA. Two new laptops from existing Google hardware partners, HP and Acer, and a Chromebook from Toshiba, and a Chrome Box from Asus have been showing off. Its the first time Asus and Toshiba’s to craft Chrome OS hardware. With the Haswell processor Intel promises battery life to be increased by 15 percent and 50 percent performance improvement compared to their Atom-based predecessors.
There is no information on hardware, pricing, or release details on any of the four new chrome devices, but the move to Haswell seems to be a step up for Chrome devices.
Google is in the thick of pushing for apps that can help build Chrome OS into a legitimate desktop operating system — in order to compete with the likes of with Windows and OS X. Currently Chrome OS is just a browser and nothing more. But if the chrome OS is going to grow up and truly take on Microsoft and Apple, it’ll need both better apps and better hardware. Chrome apps are getting better, and with these new Haswell Chromebooks being introduced, a range of more powerful hardware options are now on the way too.
