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Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks
Interesting discussion. Excuse my ignorance, but other than price what are the basic differences between a Chromebook and a cheap laptop with a 14" screen.
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The difference is ease of use vs. ability to run non-cloud software.
ChromeOS takes very little setup, boots up almost immediately, updates are simple when they happen. On the flip side, you are limited to web-based stuff and Chrome apps, and as noted not a lot of local storage. If you do most of your stuff online (email, browsing, web apps), and particularly if you are already in the Google ecosystem with Docs, Drive etc., a Chromebook may suit you well.
If you need other sorts of apps, e.g a DAW or scoring software, utilize the Microsoft Office, Apple or Adobe ecosystems, or create large files you want to store locally, a Chromebook won't work as well. You can access web-based versions of, say, Microsoft Word or Adobe Photoshop, but they won't be as full-featured as the installed versions. If that describes your usage, a small Windows laptop might be a better choice.