Windows Laptop.. time to switch??

[DD716TED]

Just looking for thoughts... My Windows 10 Laptop has been experiencing issues this past year and time to replace it.. The only thing I do with the Laptop is when in my recliner, read email, search INET, banking and other basic tasks.. All my MS Office documents are on the cloud.. Would a Chromebook serve my needs as I have 2 other desktops in the house to do serious matters/projects/photos.. I never travel with the laptop.. I don't know anyone with a chromebook to ask questions to and all salesman are pushing another Win 10 laptop.. Comments on Chromebook 32GB?

[D_E_Bishop]

A couple of years ago we got the DW a Samsung TAB A about the time they were closing her model out and coming out with the current one. For travel, we use ships, ferries and reluctantly airplanes in addition to our rig for travels. They are pretty cool and do the same as a chrome book but a little smaller. I got one after we ran into sharing time with HER tablet on a ferry trip up to AK.

We can use it with the Ring doorbell as the front of our house is the back and the back is the front. View to ocean from back of house. Just an idea. It accepts a 32GB micro SD card and external HDD as well as new USB flash drives with micro USB port.

Has all the apps and is really cool for us.

[pauldub]

You can buy a Chromebook from Costco and take it back if you don't like it. I took mine back because is wasn't any better than the old laptop I was planning to replace.

[Ed_Gee]

If you want to use a Chromebook while traveling just be certain you will have Internet access.....this is why I like to keep my stuff on my own hard drive.

[delwhjr]

2oldman wrote:

AsheGuy wrote:
It is easy to change batteries on most laptops and Chromebooks

Did that. I have to physically remove and reinsert the battery to charge it. For the life of me I can't understand that.

Check to make sure all of the contacts are making connection. You may need to clean/burnish them to restore good connections. Some HP laptops have a current limiting feature which will kick in when the battery starts to decay and draws more current to charge. This disables the battery charging until you remove and reinstall the battery. A real pain in the ...

[2oldman]

AsheGuy wrote:
It is easy to change batteries on most laptops and Chromebooks

Did that. I have to physically remove and reinsert the battery to charge it. For the life of me I can't understand that.

[delwhjr]

Many people have problems printing with a Chromebook. It generally requires a wifi or networked printer but can use a USB if the printer is supported. The problem is IF the printer is supported. It was a real pain in the early days but is a little better today.

[wa8yxm]

I have gone to all Chrome books. and you can save on them. they support EXTRENAL hard drives.

one nice thing. both my Chromebooks got hit by a virus.. I managed to get to Settings. Advanced, Power wash and a couple minutes later was back to Brand new.. Since it's all backed up on the cloud (Google) a couple minutes after that I was back on line from a different access point.. All my files. (Save the ones on the local drive.. which were basically nothing) all my bookmarks. all my apps. Reloaded fast as the Router could ship 'em over.

[AsheGuy]

2oldman wrote:
Chromebooks also know how to charge a battery, but my HP laptop seems to have forgotten how.

More likely the battery than the device. My wife just occasionally uses her Chromebook and has let the battery totally discharge several times resulting in it not holding a charge very long. It is easy to change batteries on most laptops and Chromebooks (lots of how to videos on Youtube), the bigger problem is to find a source of batteries that have not been on the shelf of your source too long.

[AsheGuy]

Chromebooks are a great alternative to Windows and are less expensive. I got my wife one and it is the perfect solution for many users. Web access, email, etc as well as all the Google apps including Google Apps that allows you to open most standard Windows documents and spreadsheets. No more Windows updates to deal with.

When my laptop with Windows starting acting up I replaced Windows with Linux Mint. I wouldn't recommend this to anyone not somewhat tech savvy but it's not that hard to do and my laptop is now just fine. Plus I still have a Windows 10 desktop for a few (very few) things I can't do on Linux.

Chromebooks, by the way, are based on Linux.

[2oldman]

Chromebooks also know how to charge a battery, but my HP laptop seems to have forgotten how.

[GordonThree]

sch911 wrote:

2oldman wrote:
Chromebook is fine as long as you don't have a dire need to save things, as there is no hard drive.

No hard drive needed! You can save pretty much everything you do with your Chromebook. It's all saved to your Google Drive storage. Just like most other current computers out there now day's.

Additionally, Chrome books have USB and most have a micro SD slot as well, easy to store stuff locally if desired.

[sch911]

2oldman wrote:
Chromebook is fine as long as you don't have a dire need to save things, as there is no hard drive.

No hard drive needed! You can save pretty much everything you do with your Chromebook. It's all saved to your Google Drive storage. Just like most other current computers out there now day's.

[2oldman]

Chromebook is fine as long as you don't have a dire need to save things, as there is no hard drive.