Chrome OS Sets Sights on Dell Computers

It is rumored that Google and Dell have been talking about the potential for a Dell laptop with Chrome OS. When Google first announced Chrome OS back in July, 2009, our networking experts thought the idea to be almost comical. Sure Google is by far the number one search engine, but that doesn’t mean they have any business in the operating system market. Chrome OS would be competing with some huge (and well established) names like Windows, Mac OS, Linux and many more. Now that Google might have Dell on board, they are gaining credibility in their pursuit of the market.

I expected the networking side of Keystone to be almost furious at the sound of Dell even considering supporting an operating system other than Windows OS (since those networking guys tend to always side with Microsoft). However, I found the complete opposite response. The networking team was not surprised at all. They believe Chrome OS would be impractical on a desktop or even a high powered laptop. However, a Netbook with Chrome OS wouldn’t be out of the question. Because Dell already carries some computers with Ubuntu and some with no operating system at all, adding Chrome OS really would not be surprising.

The web side of Keystone thinks Dell will accept Chrome OS on some computers simply to keep up with competition. Since Dell is the 2^nd largest computer provider in the United States, they have to be up-to-date on the latest and greatest tech developments, like Chrome OS. “There are going to be unique innovations coming up in the marketplace in two, three years, with a new form of computing, we want to be on that forefront,” Amit Midha, a Dell executive, told Reuters’ reporter Melanie Lee. Medha’s attitude reflects exactly what was said in the line before. Dell wants to be a leader in Internet and computer developments and they believe supporting Chrome OS will put them there.

Google only needs to convince a few of the big name computer developers to try their operating system because the others will be right behind. Already committed to trying out Chrome OS are Acer, Adobe, ASUS, Freescale, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, and Toshiba. If Dell does support Chrome OS on its new lineup of computers, it will be in an attempt to overcome the number one U.S. computer developer, Hewlett-Packard.