ChromeOS is basically bigger than an iPad plus a keyboard. Battery life is close.
ChromeOS starting before you even think of opening the lid is moot. Nobody has problems with iPad startup. EVER. Unless you depleted 100%.
A child can figure out the iPad.
Ok lets rewind a bit.... @$#$%$#%#%$#%#$.... ok...
So basically you have TWO choices for online connectivity: Wifi OR Verizon. Verizon plans are bullshit at best. They are overpriced 3g pieces of shit. If I could pay for 1 gig and use as I please until it runs out, great, but NOOOO, its 1 gig expires in 1 month. A 1 day unlim pass for 10 bucks? Holy shit!
Clear wireless gives a unlimited usb wifi 4g modem for 30 bucks a month. Thats right 4g and its pretty much 2-4 bars EVERYWHERE in nyc. And no data caps. But of course can't use that shit since the chromeos does not support it.
I guess its all over the place. A crippled iPad + keyboard. A crippled laptop since you are limited to choices for wireless isp (can't even put in a 4g card because there is no slot there). Hold on it gets better.
The wifi reciever gets 3 fucking bars of service when sitting RIGHT NEXT TO THE WIRELESS ROUTER. Thats a problem. There is also no ethernet jack so at work since I can't set up microsoft authentication for our wifi (not supported), but can use an ethernet jack, I can't use the laptop (yay). Lets keep going.
> Web technologies suck... bla bla bla...
Yea not only do they suck the performance on that laptop is ATTROCIOUS. Those webapps need to be optimized to no fucking end before they can be run "smoothly" in any sense of the word. And adobe needs to improve linux flash performance significantly. So far the only use I got out of the chrome os laptop is my daughter playing the PBS spelling games. She loves them. Except in 5 minutes memory leaks kick in and the laptop is unusable.
Basically this laptop solves zero percent of my needs (ok fine 10%)