The Price of Perfection: Understanding the Chromebook Pixel's Value Proposition

There has been a lot of talk about the price of the Chromebook Pixel, with some considering it to be too high at $1,300. However, when viewed from a different perspective, the price point starts to make more sense. The Chromebook Pixel is not intended for the typical consumer market; instead, it serves as a halo product that inspires innovation in the industry. As Gene Lewis, a Google Plus user, aptly put it, "the Chromebook Pixel is really just an experiment... but it's one that's crucial for Chrome OS." By creating this high-end device, Google aims to push the boundaries of what is possible with Chromebooks and inspire other manufacturers to follow suit.

This approach makes sense when considering the criticisms leveled against Chromebooks in the past. One common complaint has been the use of cheap hardware, which led some to view Chromebooks as little more than glorified web browsers. However, with the Chromebook Pixel, Google is taking a bold step towards changing this perception by investing in high-end hardware that rivals other devices in its class. By doing so, they are demonstrating that Chromebooks can be cutting-edge and powerful, rather than simply being associated with budget-friendly options.

The Chromebook Pixel's role as an experiment also highlights the importance of addressing two key areas: software and applications. Critics have long noted that Chrome OS lacks powerful productivity apps, games, and video editing capabilities, which are essential for mainstream consumers to fully appreciate the platform. By creating this device, Google is signaling that it intends to prioritize these areas in the future, with a focus on developing more robust software offerings that will set Chrome OS apart from other operating systems.

To achieve this goal, Google will likely work closely with developers to create new apps and content for Chrome OS. The Pixel's release has already sparked excitement among developers, who are eager to get their hands on the device and contribute to its development. In fact, it is rumored that the Pixel will be given away for free to developers at Google I/O this year, which suggests a commitment to empowering these individuals and driving innovation in the platform.

The Chromebook Pixel's focus on hardware-first design also marks an important shift in the industry's approach to Chromebooks. No longer can manufacturers rely on cheap hardware as an excuse for not producing high-quality devices. Instead, they must invest in cutting-edge components that justify premium prices and meet consumer expectations. By setting a new standard for Chromebook design and performance, Google is paving the way for other manufacturers to follow suit and create their own high-end Chromebooks.

Of course, one of the key factors contributing to the Pixel's price tag is its touchscreen display. However, as Gene Lewis notes, "my biggest problem with touchscreen laptops was actually pressing it – the hinge would bend and it would wobble back and forth." This suggests that a truly exceptional touchscreen experience is essential for justifying the device's high price point.

As of now, I have not had the chance to physically hold or test the Chromebook Pixel. However, in the coming days, I will be sharing a video review of the device, which should provide more insight into its features and performance.

Ultimately, the Chromebook Pixel represents an exciting new chapter for Google's Chrome OS platform. By prioritizing hardware innovation, software development, and user experience, Google is setting the stage for a future where Chromebooks become more than just a web browser in disguise. With the Pixel as its flagship device, the company is pushing the boundaries of what is possible with Chrome OS and inspiring other manufacturers to follow suit. As I explain in my video "Chrome OS Explained," this is an exciting development that has significant implications for the future of computing.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enhey what's up guys mkbhd here and how about those chromebooks huh many of us have thought that chromebooks were a dead or dying breed but one of them has been the number one best-selling laptop on amazon since the first day that it was introduced so what's going on here chromebooks have been doing really well as very cheap but also very easy to use laptops they're basically a 250 laptop that you can get for mom or grandma or something like that and it just runs google chrome you can use all the chrome web apps and everything like that and it's been doing pretty well just as a basic product like that a couple of weeks ago a very interesting video came out that sort of showed a high-end looking chromebook with a sort of a retina display and all these really interesting things that we would have loved to see but never really happened but it was sort of dismissed as sort of a non-real product but yesterday google came out with announced and made available the chromebook pixel it's real and uh looks sort of a bit like a squared off macbook pro it looks good and the specs are actually high-end so start off with the display that's basically the highlight of the hardware this thing's called the chromebook pixel because it is a 13-inch 2560x1700 display which gives it a pixel density of 239 pixels per inch that makes it the number one highest pixel density on any laptop display out there it's also a three by two aspect ratio which you might think is a little bit weird especially if you're going to do media consumption on this thing but when you think about it it's a chromebook you're going to be using this thing entirely for web browsing and media consumption and for that extra vertical pixels are better than not enough especially when pretty much every website scrolls down you want to be able to fit as many things as possible on that display so the extra pixels are definitely helpful and then it's a 400 nit display that's the brightness level this here happens to be a 300 display and it's a high-end display so the display on the chromebook pixel is already very high-end and it's touch screen so the touch screen layer adds a whole new level of interaction and sort of immediate experience you can you know tap it just like it was sort of an android tablet you can tap to play and pause videos you can tap to actually click the way you'd use a mouse the sort of the same way we've seen windows 8 touchscreen laptops so this is absolutely a really high-end display and that's probably why they named it the chromebook pixel inside is a dual core 1.8 gigahertz core i5 processor with integrated graphics and around the outside it does look pretty good it's made of anodized aluminum it has two usb 2.0 ports a mini display port and an sd card reader and up top is an hd webcam there is a wi-fi only version of this guy for 32 gigs and that's basically 1300 and there's an lte version of this guy that has 64 gigs of storage all the links for that will be down below right below the like button on this video so it seems like in terms of pure specs this thing is shooting at the 13-inch retina macbook pro plus a touch screen but then you consider the fact that this entire package fits in a 3.4 pound body that's just 16.2 millimeters thick which is actually thinner and lighter than that 13-inch macbook pro there's been a lot of talk about the price of the chromebook pixel at thirteen hundred dollar base price it seems a little bit high very high actually but when you think about it it still seems very high let's take a step back and consider the purpose of this machine the real reason it actually exists right now and for that we take a look at a quote from google's blog which says this brings together the best in hardware and software and design to inspire the next generation of chromebooks this is a halo product this is the nexus 10 and the nexus 4 of chromebooks this is the inspiration for the next hardware manufacturers to start making chromebooks that are actually high-end and from high-end specs right now all we've seen so far is 250 and 300 cheap plastic hp and sort of basic chromebooks this is the inspiration for the next generation of high-end chromebooks so in its creation it's not even really made for the typical consumer it's not made to sell well it's not a flagship it's just a chromebook so what is the real purpose of this chromebook pixel well gene lewis guyan on google plus put it best in his post the chromebook pixel is really just an experiment but it's one that's crucial for chrome os it may not sell well at all in fact it probably won't and the chrome team may not care how well it sells after all what they will watch closely is what happens next specifically in the chrome web store this is similar to what this nexus one did for android consider the two biggest complaints you've heard about chromebooks in the past few years one it's cheap hardware and two it lacks powerful apps so the critics have called it just a glorified web browser and to them the chromebook pixel looks exactly the same as the rest most early reviews will conclude that it's too expensive or the hardware is premature but as we've seen repeatedly in blog posts and videos from google the pixel really is for what's next what today's announcement shows is google has chosen to address hardware first in doing so on its own they're not relying on samsung or acer or hp or anyone else and they're doing so boldly no longer are chromebooks synonymous with budget hardware they can be cutting edge and specs are no longer an excuse now we have high end hardware so now the hardware is out of the way chrome os really needs to step up it needs cutting-edge applications to make it more than just a glorified web browser the chrome team has known this for a while and they certainly know it today it's the missing element what they need it's what consumers have said are keeping them from adopting chrome os or switching completely from windows or mac users need powerful productivity apps and games and even photo and video editing apps and the web store has to be better it has to offer that the groundwork has now been laid over all these years with the cheap chromebooks and google needs the developers to make the rest happen they also need a chromebook to get excited about that's the pixel so over the next few months you'll see google doing its best to get the pixel in the hands of and the minds of as many developers as possible in fact the pixel will probably be given out for free to developers at google i o this year meanwhile the chrome team will continue to push development until the web is all users really need reducing hardware dependencies and bringing in things from android like notifications and google now so when the apps become powerful enough and the pixel is powerful enough chromebooks will become more than just a glorified web browser in the eye of the mainstream consumer and that is the gamble that google made today so in the end the chromebook pixel is a halo product it is sort of a beginning and a sort of an entry into a new market that doesn't really exist yet but it's google pioneering away where it wants others to follow it's paving that path that it wants manufacturers of other chromebooks to start to follow to make high-end new generation of chromebooks and the reason sadly that it is so expensive is that touchscreen it's that better be a really good touch screen in order for it to be so expensive my biggest problem with touchscreen laptops was actually pressing it the hinge would bend and it would wobble back and forth this needs to be a great touch screen to justify me paying 1300 for it now all that being said i still haven't held one yet i haven't actually held it so expect a video on it coming up in the next few days when i get my hands on one until then i will leave you with my chrome os explained video which is down below first link in the description but yeah that's it so hopefully i'll see you guys in the next video and this was the chromebook pixel explained thank you for watching and i'll talk to you guys later peace so youhey what's up guys mkbhd here and how about those chromebooks huh many of us have thought that chromebooks were a dead or dying breed but one of them has been the number one best-selling laptop on amazon since the first day that it was introduced so what's going on here chromebooks have been doing really well as very cheap but also very easy to use laptops they're basically a 250 laptop that you can get for mom or grandma or something like that and it just runs google chrome you can use all the chrome web apps and everything like that and it's been doing pretty well just as a basic product like that a couple of weeks ago a very interesting video came out that sort of showed a high-end looking chromebook with a sort of a retina display and all these really interesting things that we would have loved to see but never really happened but it was sort of dismissed as sort of a non-real product but yesterday google came out with announced and made available the chromebook pixel it's real and uh looks sort of a bit like a squared off macbook pro it looks good and the specs are actually high-end so start off with the display that's basically the highlight of the hardware this thing's called the chromebook pixel because it is a 13-inch 2560x1700 display which gives it a pixel density of 239 pixels per inch that makes it the number one highest pixel density on any laptop display out there it's also a three by two aspect ratio which you might think is a little bit weird especially if you're going to do media consumption on this thing but when you think about it it's a chromebook you're going to be using this thing entirely for web browsing and media consumption and for that extra vertical pixels are better than not enough especially when pretty much every website scrolls down you want to be able to fit as many things as possible on that display so the extra pixels are definitely helpful and then it's a 400 nit display that's the brightness level this here happens to be a 300 display and it's a high-end display so the display on the chromebook pixel is already very high-end and it's touch screen so the touch screen layer adds a whole new level of interaction and sort of immediate experience you can you know tap it just like it was sort of an android tablet you can tap to play and pause videos you can tap to actually click the way you'd use a mouse the sort of the same way we've seen windows 8 touchscreen laptops so this is absolutely a really high-end display and that's probably why they named it the chromebook pixel inside is a dual core 1.8 gigahertz core i5 processor with integrated graphics and around the outside it does look pretty good it's made of anodized aluminum it has two usb 2.0 ports a mini display port and an sd card reader and up top is an hd webcam there is a wi-fi only version of this guy for 32 gigs and that's basically 1300 and there's an lte version of this guy that has 64 gigs of storage all the links for that will be down below right below the like button on this video so it seems like in terms of pure specs this thing is shooting at the 13-inch retina macbook pro plus a touch screen but then you consider the fact that this entire package fits in a 3.4 pound body that's just 16.2 millimeters thick which is actually thinner and lighter than that 13-inch macbook pro there's been a lot of talk about the price of the chromebook pixel at thirteen hundred dollar base price it seems a little bit high very high actually but when you think about it it still seems very high let's take a step back and consider the purpose of this machine the real reason it actually exists right now and for that we take a look at a quote from google's blog which says this brings together the best in hardware and software and design to inspire the next generation of chromebooks this is a halo product this is the nexus 10 and the nexus 4 of chromebooks this is the inspiration for the next hardware manufacturers to start making chromebooks that are actually high-end and from high-end specs right now all we've seen so far is 250 and 300 cheap plastic hp and sort of basic chromebooks this is the inspiration for the next generation of high-end chromebooks so in its creation it's not even really made for the typical consumer it's not made to sell well it's not a flagship it's just a chromebook so what is the real purpose of this chromebook pixel well gene lewis guyan on google plus put it best in his post the chromebook pixel is really just an experiment but it's one that's crucial for chrome os it may not sell well at all in fact it probably won't and the chrome team may not care how well it sells after all what they will watch closely is what happens next specifically in the chrome web store this is similar to what this nexus one did for android consider the two biggest complaints you've heard about chromebooks in the past few years one it's cheap hardware and two it lacks powerful apps so the critics have called it just a glorified web browser and to them the chromebook pixel looks exactly the same as the rest most early reviews will conclude that it's too expensive or the hardware is premature but as we've seen repeatedly in blog posts and videos from google the pixel really is for what's next what today's announcement shows is google has chosen to address hardware first in doing so on its own they're not relying on samsung or acer or hp or anyone else and they're doing so boldly no longer are chromebooks synonymous with budget hardware they can be cutting edge and specs are no longer an excuse now we have high end hardware so now the hardware is out of the way chrome os really needs to step up it needs cutting-edge applications to make it more than just a glorified web browser the chrome team has known this for a while and they certainly know it today it's the missing element what they need it's what consumers have said are keeping them from adopting chrome os or switching completely from windows or mac users need powerful productivity apps and games and even photo and video editing apps and the web store has to be better it has to offer that the groundwork has now been laid over all these years with the cheap chromebooks and google needs the developers to make the rest happen they also need a chromebook to get excited about that's the pixel so over the next few months you'll see google doing its best to get the pixel in the hands of and the minds of as many developers as possible in fact the pixel will probably be given out for free to developers at google i o this year meanwhile the chrome team will continue to push development until the web is all users really need reducing hardware dependencies and bringing in things from android like notifications and google now so when the apps become powerful enough and the pixel is powerful enough chromebooks will become more than just a glorified web browser in the eye of the mainstream consumer and that is the gamble that google made today so in the end the chromebook pixel is a halo product it is sort of a beginning and a sort of an entry into a new market that doesn't really exist yet but it's google pioneering away where it wants others to follow it's paving that path that it wants manufacturers of other chromebooks to start to follow to make high-end new generation of chromebooks and the reason sadly that it is so expensive is that touchscreen it's that better be a really good touch screen in order for it to be so expensive my biggest problem with touchscreen laptops was actually pressing it the hinge would bend and it would wobble back and forth this needs to be a great touch screen to justify me paying 1300 for it now all that being said i still haven't held one yet i haven't actually held it so expect a video on it coming up in the next few days when i get my hands on one until then i will leave you with my chrome os explained video which is down below first link in the description but yeah that's it so hopefully i'll see you guys in the next video and this was the chromebook pixel explained thank you for watching and i'll talk to you guys later peace so you\n"