Code Name: Cr-48

Yesterday I came home to another mysterious package. I haven’t ordered anything online recently, so I was very confused. To my amusement I found a box in a box. (The box below was inside another box that was less interesting.)

. Vermin powered Dual-Booster rocket inside?

Looks important

I still don’t know what this is until I open the box…

And behind Door#1 is....

… A Google Chrome OS laptop?! So it all comes together now. On Wednesday I got an email saying I’m eligible to receive a free Chrome notebook.

I applied online months ago to receive updates on Chrome OS.

The link took me to their Chrome OS Pilot Program signup. So I filled it out on the same day I got the email and thought nothing of it. I didn’t realize they were already ready to send me one.

If you don’t know what this is all about, in a nutshell Google has been in the works of developing an operating system called Chrome OS. What makes this different to other OS’s is that it is designed to get you on the Web faster. Here is a video of how Google explains it:

So this pilot program is so people can test the OS and give feedback. They created this extremely lightweight laptop called the Cr-48 that is designed for Chrome OS.

Anyways, by now I bet plenty of people have posted their own unpackaging of the Cr-48… So I’ll just post pictures and my thoughts below. (All pictures are subject to poor room lightning since it was in the evening.)

NOTE This will just be my first impressions of the Cr-48’s physical hardware. I’ll do a followup post on my impressions of Chrome OS and Chrome OS+Cr-48.

Intel is challenging me to take the Cr-48 apart	Diagram of the Cr-48	A quick getting started guide
The items in the box	AC Adapter and Plug	Thin but big... and called Mario
Interesting paper material	A closer look... this looks very entertaining	This might be the first safety notice sheet I've read
What does it say on the back?	And there's more...!	Now I wish I had the FCC Rules
It's has a grippy feel	Battery takes up half the underside space	(Had to put my camera's flash on)
Looks like a Macbook keyboard...	Macbook-like touchpad	More Macbook-like features
Screen is about 10.5in wide...	... and 6.5in high.	Opens up to about a 135 degree angle
(Left to right) VGA port, fan opening(?), left speaker	(Left to right) right speaker, SD slot, headphone jack, USB port, AC plug	They are so thin o.0

0.5in for the bottom, 0.25in for the screen, 0.75in total thick

The light is orange when charging

Here are my first impressions of the physical aspects on the Cr-48:

• Reminds me of a Macbook – for better or worse. The Macbook’s physical design is very slick and simple compared to your conventional Windows laptop. The Cr-48 is very light (~4lb with the battery in), making it a very portable device.
• External ports and no CD drive – there’s not many external ports. Not having lots of external ports and lack of an optical drive is alien to me just because I’m so use to it. Although considering the design of Chrome OS, it makes sense that there is so little on the Cr-48.
• Mario battery – the battery is thin and covers lots of surface area. It doesn’t stick out which keeps the laptop thin. My only worry is that the battery’s capacity isn’t large enough. I’ll have to do some tests on that before coming to a firm conclusion. UPDATE: Through my usage I estimate 7-8hrs of battery life (I was testing just listening to music from Pandora.com)
• AC Adapter – the part that plugs into the Cr-48 is heavy-duty. When plugged in, it doesn’t feel secure. I doubt it’ll fall out
• No Ethernet port – only wireless?! Makes sense for the design of Chrome OS. Hopefully the wireless doesn’t fail.

Overall the Cr-48 is pretty much a netbook. So I think its a good fit for what Chrome OS is designed for. I must admit the Safety Notice was a good read, definitely worth reading. In my next post I’ll focus on Chrome OS, which will also include my thoughts of Chrome OS running on the Cr-48. Click here to learn more about Google Chrome OS. Stay tuned!