Google made a joint announcement this week with Intel regarding the next generation of Chromebook at the Intel Developer Forum and it looks like the brand new processors that consumers learned about recently will be getting installed on the device. The Haswell processors made by Intel were revealed this week and Intel claims that they are more efficient than previous models released in recent years. Google announced four different models of the new Chromebook with two being developed by HP and Acer and the other two coming from Toshiba and ASUS.
HP and Acer made the current models of the Chromebook, while the partnership between Toshiba and ASUS will see Chrome hardware for the first time. The two versions that are made by HP and Acer have appeared on the product pages on Google’s website. Called the new HP Chromebook 14, it features a 14-inch display, is just 0.81 inches thick and weighs less than 5 pounds. Battery life is one thing that Google claims will be better this time around and the HP Chromebook 14 reportedly comes with about 9.5 hours of continuous use. All users that pick one up will also get 100GB of Google Drive storage that is good for two years.
The model that is being made by Acer is called “the new Acer Chromebook” and comes with a smaller, 11.6-inch display and weighs just less than 3 pounds. The battery life is not quite as good as the HP model listed at just 7.5 hours, but that is about average for more laptops these days. The Acer model is also thinner than the HP model measuring just 0.75-inches thick. Google is promising battery life improvements by more than 15 percent and a performance boost by almost 50 percent thanks to the new Haswell processors.
The Asus model actually what Google is calling the Chromebox, or a small desktop computer that is similar to the Mac Mini. Samsung already makes a device that is similar to the Chromebox, but now Asus is getting into the same niche. When the new devices will be ready and how much they are going to cost has yet to be announced, but because they are Google products, consumers can expect to pay an affordable price for the new Chromebooks.
