Schmidt says Chrome OS devices will be ‘disposable,’ priced like netbooks

You might have heard Google’s Chrome OS will live entirely in the cloud, and that devices running the web-based platform will automatically back up your data on remote servers. You might think it will keep your private details safe — as safe as anything else you trust Google to store, that is. But had you ever considered what the cloud meant for the hardware running it? CEO Eric Schmidt has. This week, he told the Atmosphere Cloud Computing Summit that Chrome OS devices will be “completely disposable” at netbook-esque price points of between $300 and $400. That’s pocket change for a large IT department perhaps, but we can’t imagine tossing even the cheapest Eee PC in our dustbin. How about subsidized, though? Asked whether Google might give away devices on contract, Schmidt said “Sure,” adding afterwards only that his company doesn’t see itself selling the data plans. We wonder what that means for the thousands of enthusiastic towns now praying for Google fiber. Hear Google’s CEO for yourself after the break; info in question begins 13:33.

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Schmidt says Chrome OS devices will be ‘disposable,’ priced like netbooks originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 20 Apr 2010 20:08:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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