One Drive on Chrome

Microsoft has Onedrive in the cloud where you can store your files. A file can be created using the online version of Excel or other MS Office app, then stored on Onedrive. Since PCs are more expensive than chromebooks, could Microsoft sell a chromebook with a shortcut to Onedrive.live.com. Since chromebooks is chrome running natively on laptop, this would be a great way for schools to cheaply run MS Office.

Conversation 6 comments

  • NoFlames

    14 February, 2019 - 6:49 pm

    <p>Office can already be run on the web, and tie into OneDrive so I think that will work out of the box, but I'm not sure since I don't have a Chromebook.</p>

  • StevenLayton

    27 February, 2019 - 8:02 am

    <p>This is what we do in the School I work in. We had a well established and well used Office 365 setup in school, but bought 200 Chromebooks, to supplement the regular Windows desktops, as the cheapest way of bringing mobile web access to the students (which is all they really needed). Office 365, and its Web based version of Word, Excel and PowerPoint works really well on them. Also, the Chromebooks need very little maintenance, once setup.</p>

  • wright_is

    Premium Member
    27 February, 2019 - 8:16 am

    <p>Why would Microsoft sell a Chromebook? There are dozens available and adding your own shortcut doesn't take much effort. Given that it isn't Windows, I doubt that they would.</p><p>As to price, over here, a Windows PC is either higher specced (Core i3 instead of a Celeron) or much cheaper than a Chromebook. Generally, for a similar specced Chromebook, you are paying between 30% and 50% <strong>more</strong> than for a Windows PC.</p><p>In fact, Chromebooks are so popular over here that Google doesn't even list them in its online store!</p>

    • Paul Thurrott

      Premium Member
      27 February, 2019 - 8:51 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#407632">In reply to wright_is:</a></em></blockquote><p>Chromebooks are very popular, and not just in the United States, and not just in education. While I don't see Microsoft selling a Chromebook anytime soon, I could see it bringing a native sync client to the platform. </p>

    • AnOldAmigaUser

      Premium Member
      27 February, 2019 - 10:00 am

      <blockquote><em><a href="#407632">In reply to wright_is:</a></em></blockquote><p>If the new Windows Lite is not as easy to reset as a Chromebook, Microsoft would do well to pitch Office 365 with Chromebooks in the K12 market. One cannot underestimate the lack of technical knowledge and support in most school districts here in the US, so hardware maintenance is a huge issue. If Microsoft wants students using their tools, and they do, they need a hardware platform that is drop dead simple from a support standpoint.</p><p>I do not love the idea of Google getting the digital exhaust from these students because they have already been caught cheating on the terms of service once, a few years ago, and it is just the way their products are designed; but these school districts simply do not have the resources to maintain and support a large number of PCs.</p>

      • wright_is

        Premium Member
        27 February, 2019 - 10:22 am

        <blockquote><em><a href="#407644">In reply to AnOldAmigaUser:</a></em></blockquote><p>I agree, although I don't see them selling Chromebooks. They might partner with Acer, Samsung etc. to do that, but I don't think they would ever sell directly, which was my point.</p><p>The bit about price and availability had nothing to do with the idea of Microsoft selling a Chromebook, just in response to the OP, pointing out that here Google thinks Chromebooks are such a spiffing idea that they don't actually sell or promote any, neither their own Pixel line nor third party Chromebooks, on their website. And those that are available over Amazon.de are ridiculously expensive.</p>

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