Following the failure of the Stadia service, which will be discontinued in a few months' time, Google, along with several hardware and software partners, announced a new initiative that it calls ".
The ChromeOS laptops are very successful in education and in the corporate sector. Almost all of these devices can work perfectly well with cloudy game services. However, the new laptops announced today are technically quite different from the usual chrombukes.
The first device, Acer Chromebook 516 GE, has a 16-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 2560 x 1600 and a 120 Hz update frequency, as well as a keyboard with RGB lighting and Anti-Ghosting technology. Depending on configuration, the laptop can be assembled by different models of Intel Core 12-generation processors up to Core i7. The laptop is equipped with a gigabit port of Ethernet, two USB-C, as well as USB-A and HDMI. A large-scale DTS sound technology has been implemented through two upwards and two downwards. Acer will propose several configuration of the device, but the first one will be available for sale this month at a cost of $650; it will include the Core i5, 8 Gbyte Operational Memory and 256-Gbyte NVMe SSD.
The ASUS has presented a 15.6-inch sensor display with a resolution of 1080p and a 144 Hz update frequency. The name suggests that CX55 can be opened and used in tablet mode. The keyboard does not have RGB lighting, but it has a rather characteristic orange border around the main game keys of WASD; and the keyboard is 1.4 mm. CX55 uses Intel 11th generation processors: configuration with Core i3, Core i5 or Core i7 is available. The volume of the LSA is 8 or 16 Gbyte, the storage volume is up to 512 Gbyte. The laptop is also equipped with two USB-C and USB-A and HDMI ports.
The ASUS Chromebook Vibe CX55 Flip will be on the market this month, and Google reported that the price would start with $399 – apparently a configuration on the junior Core i3.
Finally, the third device, IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook of Lenovo, has quite a lot in common with Acer's laptop. This laptop has a 16-inch display with a resolution of 2560 x 1,600 points and a 120 Hz update frequency, as well as a 1.5 mm RGB keyboard. The configuration options include Intel Core i3 or Core i512-generation processors, 8 Gbytes on-line and between 128 and 512 Gbyte flashbacks. This laptop offers only two USB-C ports, one USB-A port and a microSD slot. Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook will be sold this month; its price will start at $599.
In order for all buyers of these chromebags to start playing immediately, Lenovo, Acer and ASUS include a three-month subscription to GeForce Now and Amazon Luna+.
For its part, Google entered into partnership agreements with NVIDIA, Amazon and Microsoft to ensure that these devices operate as comfortable as possible with GeForce Now, Luna and Xbox Game Pass services. The partnership with NVIDIA is probably the most significant, as for the first time, the performance of GeForce Now RTX 3080 will appear on the ChromeOS devices, which means that games will be in resolution up to 1600p at 120 FPS, with rays on. In addition, Google optimizes ChromeOS specifically for these laptops to facilitate direct launch.
Full-scale gameming with Chromeos is a pretty serious step forward from Google, especially considering that, in addition to the already available subscriptions to GeForce Now, Luna and Xbox Game Pass, a beta version of Steam for chromeboxes is coming up in the near future.