IDC: tablet and Chromebook shipments grew in 2021, but things are slowing down

31 January 2022
Shipments grew in 2020 and 2021, but with the pandemic easing off and chips being in short supply, 2022 may see lower numbers.

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Pumpino, 01 Feb 2022How do you change the linux container to Manjaro? If you go... moreThe default Crostini container is Debian. Arch and Manjaro will have newer software versions. You can easily change it to Arch, but I have Manjaro on some other computers so I'm more familiar with it. Basically you'd make a new Arch container and change the repos to Manjaro. There's a bit more, but that's the overall summary. How is it better than using Crouton? It's probably not, but you don't have to put your Chromebook into developer mode and press CTRL+D every time you boot. I believe Crouton has significant security implications as well. Crostini can be backed up from the Chrome OS GUI and you can run GUI apps in a way that appears native in Chrome OS.

    Anonymous, 01 Feb 2022I dunno how my brother installed mint on my old one and fed... moreIt's using chroot if you still have Chrome OS as the parent OS. It's using a custom BIOS if you boot straight into Mint / Fedora.

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      • Quericus
      • YeV
      • 01 Feb 2022

      It was nice to see a resurgence of tablets in 2020 but the Covid pandemic is still not waning as there will be new mutations and variants. Thus tablet sales will continue to be brisk until the pandemic wanes to an epidemic.

        Pumpino, 01 Feb 2022How do you change the linux container to Manjaro? If you go... moreTo clarify my question, I was thinking purely about the OS (not the hardware). For example, if I bought a second-hand Dell Latitude laptop for the same or less than a new Chromebook, why would I choose to install Brunch Project or CloudReady rather than a linux distro like Manjaro?

          Pumpino, 31 Jan 2022I couldn't agree more. Chromebooks are so limited and ... moreYou can still have a detachable keyboard for a tablet. After all, it offers flexibility depending on circumstances.

            "Chromebooks were hit with a double whammy last year – market saturation and chip supply shortages. With not enough chips to go around, manufacturers focused their supply on Windows laptops, which have higher margins."

            Seriously though, why would anyone buy a Chromebook? I had my fair share of experience on it and I totally regretted it. The Play Store app support is not that different from a typical Android tablet. Even Linux for Chromebook is far from usable. Forget overall performance, a $400 used 2019 flagship smartphone is still much faster than any similarly-priced Chromebook laptop. I'm much happier using a Windows laptop with Linux running through virtualization software or running Android Desktop Mode with a lapdock than getting another Chromebook laptop.

              dbjungle, 31 Jan 2022My first Chromebook in 2014 was a pretty cheap one too. Ev... moreHow do you change the linux container to Manjaro? If you go to that trouble, how is that preferable to running Manjaro with Chrome installed (I'm genuinely interested)?

                Pumpino, 01 Feb 2022Yes, I think a tablet with ChromeOS is advantageous in that... moreYes debian is outdated and slow, but now with multiple container support, you can run any distro of your choice, be it arch or anything. And Steam support is also around the the corner, so it would be pretty solid Linux machine soon.

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                  • Anonymous
                  • 7kj
                  • 01 Feb 2022

                  dbjungle, 31 Jan 2022My first Chromebook in 2014 was a pretty cheap one too. Ev... moreI dunno how my brother installed mint on my old one and fedora on new one , and I can even play tomb raider easily ( in low graphics 720p )

                    salarx, 31 Jan 2022Still if I have to choose between an android tablet, iPad a... moreYes, I think a tablet with ChromeOS is advantageous in that it will receive regular updates rather than being hostage to the OEM for Android tablet for updates. There are some Android apps that don't work on ChromeOS tablets, however.

                    Linux apps on ChromeOS sound nice in theory, but I found the linux container always took forever to start after booting. The Debian apps were outdated, though flatpaks generally worked well.

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                      • Anonymous
                      • 6wN
                      • 31 Jan 2022

                      An android phone coupled by a great laptop is the best.

                        Pumpino, 31 Jan 2022I couldn't agree more. Chromebooks are so limited and ... moreStill if I have to choose between an android tablet, iPad and chromepad (chromebook tablet), I'll go with the latter because of the flexibility. You get support of Linux, android apps, and every form factor imaginable.

                          FatShady, 31 Jan 2022article about chromebooks, puts pictures of ipads instead..... moreI couldn't agree more. Chromebooks are so limited and the decent ones aren't especially cheap. It's better to grab a second-hand Dell Latitude and install linux on it.

                          As for tablets, use a phone or a laptop instead. They're just a laptop without a keyboard, which is also limiting. :)

                            Anonymous, 31 Jan 2022I bought a Chromebook just 200$ and I'm impressed by i... moreMy first Chromebook in 2014 was a pretty cheap one too. Ever since then I've been hooked. I'm on my 4th one now. I think you can quickly get into the law of diminishing returns with Chromebooks until Crostini gets further expansion. You can still do quite a bit already. I changed my Linux container to Manjaro and it's more compatible with GUI applications.

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                              • Anonymous
                              • 7kj
                              • 31 Jan 2022

                              Oh and battery is also good and GeForce now also works really good

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                                • Anonymous
                                • 0p}
                                • 31 Jan 2022

                                Tablet I want ...

                                - 10.5" LCD HDR 2400 x 1350
                                - 6GB + 128GB + micro sd
                                - SD 695
                                - 8600mAh + 15W
                                - Earphone jack, usb C 3.1
                                - Stereo speakers
                                - No rear camera , 13MP 1/3" f2.0 22mm front cam
                                - Stock android

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                                  • Anonymous
                                  • 7kj
                                  • 31 Jan 2022

                                  I bought a Chromebook just 200$ and I'm impressed by it .It have better screen than my acer aspire , weird because it doesn't even cost 1/3 of it

                                    article about chromebooks, puts pictures of ipads instead...
                                    also, this is what happens when you put illiterate people in charge of buying "computers", they buy the "cheapest" and most useless ones every time.

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