Thoughts on Acer Chromebook Tab

So Acer announced the long rumored Chromebook tablet today called the Acer Chromebook Tab. And I have to say I was a little worried because I JUST bought the Samsung Chromebook Pro over the weekend. My Galaxy Note Pro 12.2 is getting old and slowing down, so I figured the Chromebook Pro was a logical choice.

So why am I not worried? Well, the Acer Tab will start at around $329, the Pro was on sale and I got it for under $500. It might seem like a lot, but remember the Tab doesn't have any type of keyboard and bluetooth keyboards usually run $50+. The other thing that makes me feel better it the screen size, it is only 9.7 inches. When I first started using a tablet to teach, I used the Note 10.1. It was ok, but I quickly realized 10 inches isn't a lot of space to write on. So no keyboard and small screen size makes me feel good about my purchase.

But what about the Acer Tab? Well I think it is an interesting idea. I don't know if it will catch on or not. I can see these in the primary grade levels where touching things and writing is more important than a keyboard. I have a hard time imagining these in grades 6 and up. But hey, that's just me.

Specs wise, it looks great. Almost like a smaller Chromebook Plus with no keyboard. It has the same internals and it has a holder for the pen. Google needs to start implementing more pen input into their apps. A note taking app like Squid Notes. Google Keep isn't it for me. Although, that is the direction I have to move in until my district approves Squid Notes for me.

I like the fact the pen has a holder built into. The pens will still be lost, but that number should be smaller. I think I might pull all the pens from the tablets and hand them out when needed. Curious what the replacements will cost.

So all in all, I am at a wait and see. I do think Android tablets are done. Why would you buy a tablet for Android when you can by a Chromebook and have a solid OS & Android Apps?

Review: Asus Chromebook Flip (2nd generation)

I can't believe I forgot to take pictures of the Flip for this review. A little back story, for Christmas I decided to use a gift card to buy myself a new Chromebook. I wanted a Chromebook that rotated into a tablet. I have the Note 10.1 tablet from 2012 and it is starting to slow down. So I figured if I got a convertible Chromebook, I would have the best of both worlds.

I settled on the Flip because I use my Note 10.1 tablet I figured I would be used to the size. It is the smallest Chromebook I have ever owned. I have a Dell Chromebook 13 that I use for work when I have meetings outside of my room. I have used my daughter's Lenovo 11.6 Chromebook and my wife had a 15.6 inch Acer Chromebook. The small size didn't really bother me that much in tablet mode, but in laptop mode I did find the keyboard cramp.

The build is very nice. It is made of all aluminum and it didn't feel like it was only $250. When flipped in tablet mode, I didn't find the keyboard on the back distracting. It was there and you got used to touching the keys as you held it.

I ran the Octane benchmark (even though it isn't official anymore) and it scored just under 10,000 each time. It was the lowest score of any of my Chromebooks minus my daughter's. I did have it freeze a couple of times. I had about 6-7 tabs open. And when I tried to switch between the tabs I couldn't. It sat there for a few seconds and then went black and restarted.

So after 8 days I returned it, why? Well, I just didn't need it and it didn't do enough for me to be able to keep it. My Dell runs Android apps and it has a touchscreen as well. The only thing it can't do is go into tablet mode.  I didn't use it in tablet mode as much as I thought I would.

Am I saying that a two in one Chromebook isn't useful? I don't know, all I know is that for my the Flip isn't that solution. Maybe the Samsung Plus or Pro might be better.