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1Chromebook Pixel Hits the Market
Google began accepting orders for the WiFi-only Chromebook Pixel Feb. 21, and said the laptop will begin shipping in three to five days. The WiFi version is priced at $1,299 in the United States. A version with LTE will ship in April and retail for $1,449. Users will have access to 100MB per month on Verizon’s LTE network.
2Touch-Screen Resolution Rivals Apple Retina Display
“It is the highest-resolution, brightest, best screen that has ever been put in a laptop computer,” said Linus Upson, Google’s vice president of engineering, in a promotional video. The 12.85-inch screen packs in 4.3 million pixels. Apple says its 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display has “over 4 million pixels” and its 15-inch Retina display has “over 5 million.”
3Pixel’s Clean Design
Andrew Bowers, Google’s group product manager, says the team wanted “as few lines as possible, as few markings as possible, as few screws as possible.” In essence, they wanted the hardware to “disappear” as the user focused on the Pixel’s high-resolution display. Oddly, then, one can’t help but notice that the Pixel looks like nothing else. Its long, rounded hinge—almost like a notebook spiral—is also impossible to ignore.
5Backlit Screen and Keyboard
6The Chromebook Pixel’s Easy-to-Open Thumb-Catch
7Chromebook Pixel Front View
8In Comparison: Acer C7 Chromebook
9In Comparison: Samsung Chromebook
10In Comparison: Lenovo
The ThinkPad X131e is a rugged Chromebook designed to face the “daily rigors of K-12 education,” says Lenovo. The laptop’s starting price is $429.