Chromebooks - A few questions

Okay so I am tempted to get a Chromebook soon, Now I am waiting out for the ASUS models to see if they have bay-trail in and if they can be modified.

But I have a few questions about the C710 which I am aiming at currently, I know you can swap the HDD for SSD which I plan to do, but RAM wise, what is the true max amount? the CPU supports 16GB but the Spec sheet says 4GB, Someone on youtube put 16GB in but it does not show it in Linux,

So the questions are, Will the C710 take 16GB RAM? and does anyone know any more information about the ASUS chromebooks, I have seen what OMGChrome! Says and they seem convinced.

Thanks!

I wouldnt waste the time...just buy a windows laptop and install linux.

I have a samsung chromebook that i installed linux on, and I can say i should have just bought a windows netbook.

Really, I hear the the samsungs dont perform as well, but I don't want to spend a fortune on a laptop, and over here I dont see many laptops that are dual core for £200 but ill keep looking thanks!

If you just want the desktop environment functionality maybe this might help http://lifehacker.com/how-to-install-linux-on-a-chromebook-and-unlock-its-ful-509039343 I haven't tested it and I think i would go with the a dual boot if possible but it seems like one more option

I just bought the Acer C720 for $199 (which i really like). is there any reason why you are opting for the C710 of the C720? the C720 has a haswell processor and get REALLY good batery life. like 7-9 hours. and the SSD can be upgraded, although it is a m2 sata SSD (i think that is what it is called). the RAM cannot be upgraded (soldered on). 

this is the SSD it takes. they come in 32, 64, and 128. http://www.amazon.com/MyDigitalSSD-Super-Cache-Solid-State/dp/B00EZ2E8NO

I have the C710. You can upgrade the RAM, storage and battery. The Sandybridge based Celeron 847 dual core CPU is nothing to shake a stick at, but then again, it out performs the Exynos ARM based CPU in the Samsung chromebook significantly in nearly every aspect (and that was with it underclocked @ 800mhz). Considering the light weight chrome OS or Linux one might install, for most functions (save for gaming or heavy computing) it's more than enough.  

Also, if you keep the screen brightness down, it'll help extend battery life. 

Yeah but I want 4GB RAM, i plan to run videos and stuff like metasploit with it, so more ram the better, also a bit more "Future proof, DONT SHOOT ME!" but yeah although I am waiting for ASUS to do something and see 

Just buy a used laptop off of Ebay. 

Used laptops on Ebay are rather expensive for what you get, never found a new laptop on ebay that lasts more than 2 hours on battery

Well you aren't going to get much for $200 if you try to buy new. Just save your money and buy something nice.

well just been looking at the Sony Vaio Pro 11, Dont need much power for what I want, just unsure if RAM can be upgraded later 

you won't beat a chromebook for the price. light, fast, no over heating, cheap. not to mention the battery life.  a new C720 chromebook is $199. the cheapest new laptop is like $300, and it is bogged down by having windows running on low spec hardware. My sister used to buy a new laptop every year or so and would only spend $300-$400 on the,. they were shit.

it's not like you would be doing gaming on one of those laptops. i did see someone running skyrim on an acer chromebook with linux though. was cool lol

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yeah, i kept seeing about any news for 2014 chromebooks, but in the end, the C720 just had such good reviews, and i didn't want to spend more than $200 on a laptop/chromebook anyways. just wanted something to browse web/vids/music/pics and homework in my room. i love it. 

hell, i can picture edit on this thing lol. i beleieve there is a 4gig RAM version of the C720 for $264?

http://www.macmall.com/p/Acer-Notebook-Computers/product~DPNo~9830658~pdp.ieegddg?source=mwbgoogleshop&adtype=pla&kw={keyword}&gclid=CKyk3Kvw2bwCFVJcfgod0BIA1Q

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My school has Chrome books for my telepresence class. i know chrome os will be supporting windows applications soon http://google.com/producer/s/CBIwk7KAlRE . we have the acer one and its a little slow. install linux on it. 

the acer 710? wonder if the slowness is the cpu or the HDD. my c720 is blazing fast. everything just opens when i click it. probably due to the SSD

Putting 16 GB of RAM into a netbook seems like an exercice in futility to me to be honest, it will not be a balanced system.

A netbook is what it is, it's a netbook, it's not meant to do things powerful laptops or desktops are meant to do. You have to understand that the mobo on these things is not full-featured, the RAM isn't going to be fast at all, the mSATA is very slow, etc... it's good for casual computing and very good for mobile office productivity in companies that have the cloud infrastructure to integrate them safely, and it's great for students to take notes if typing is permitted in the auditorium and there is Wi-Fi on campus, but it's not a powerful computer.

On the C710, the major bottleneck is the HDD, not the CPU. An SSD would make it much faster.

The CPU in the C710 is a Sandybridge based dual core that is surprisingly capable. It out performs the Exynos ARM CPU in the Samsung chromebook, even when it's underclocked to 800mhz. 

I agree with Zoltan. Putting 16GB ram in something like this is major overkill and completely unnecessary. 

Heck, I only have 8GB ram in my gaming rig and have yet to see more than 6 or so used at any given time. Even while running the most demanding games and multiple apps at the same time. 

For something like a netbook or chromebook, 2GB is ok for light to moderate usage, but that can be eaten up fairly easily just by opening a dozen chrome tabs or so. IMO 4GB would be most ideal in this case. These are not heavy multi-tasking devices. Anymore than that is not really necessary. 

yeah, that is the reason i chose the c720 over the samsung, or the HP. that, and the $199 price. perfect for what i need. portable internet/media.

I'm typing this from my ASUS C200MA right now. I would take the "buy a windows" or "its to slooww" opinions with a grain of salt, they likely haven't actually tried a CB.

ChromeOS is much lighter to run than Windows and simply doesn't require as much power. Obviously (most) cb's aren't powerhouse gaming laptops, but they get the job done with more than enough power. Also you'll like likely value the extreme battery life over a bit more power, laptops are meant to be mobile after all.

I wouldn't hold my breathe on modifications btw. Soldered ram has become the new norm in most smaller laptops and this isn't unique to CBs. Also I wouldn't recomend the c710, its awfully old now.