# Ordered a Chromebook by mistake **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [February 8, 2021, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423 "2021-02-08T05:12:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/1 "2021-02-08T05:12:25Z")
Can’t believe I did this, looked at so many laptops last night on so many sites, when I decided to order clicked the wrong link on Ebay. Too late to cancel, but I think it doesn’t matter. The only thing I use my laptop for is going online from the couch, CB works fine for that. I am currently looking for a remote job, if I get one will probably need a 2nd monitor, but I understand that screen sharing/remote desktop will work just fine My new laptop has 12 hours battery life and can be tented, the 2 most important things I wanted. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/2 "2021-02-08T05:26:43Z")
You covered almost everything I was going to say in your opening email. If you only need it for browsing, it’s fine. If you have a desktop computer, you can use remote desktop or similar to access it, which would probably work for a remote job as well The other thing I would cover is that modern Chromebooks can run Android apps and apparently Linux apps, which means they can run Wine. Also, there are ways to install Windows on if you really need it. But, given your use case, that previous paragraph is likely overkill. Install some extensions on Chrome (e.g. uBlock Origin for adblock) and maybe install an app (a Chromebook app or an Android app) for a site you use often. And, yes, install remote desktop or a screen sharing solution if you need to access another computer. ---
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/3 "2021-02-08T05:46:11Z")
yeah, I may have lucked into something. For a $500 laptop, battery is way better on CB. And 8 second boot up time, as I have just learned, I am The Most Impatient Man in the World. Where is my commericial? (obscure Bill Hicks reference) ---
**Author:** ![erysichthon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d07c76/32.png) [@erysichthon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/erysichthon)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/4 "2021-02-08T07:36:24Z")
Chromebooks are awesome. I’m typing this reply on one. I do have a “real” Windows 10 desktop computer upstairs. But for web browsing from my comfy chair in the living room, this is perfect. ---
**Author:** ![kanicbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/5f8ce5/32.png) [@kanicbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kanicbird)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/5 "2021-02-08T12:21:30Z")
For my son’s remote schooling he uses a chromebook, which he uses a $14 USB-C to HDMI adapter to get a second screen on his TV, so a second monitor is no problem. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/6 "2021-02-08T13:53:51Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > The other thing I would cover is that modern Chromebooks can run Android apps and apparently Linux apps, which means they can run Wine. Also, there are ways to install Windows on if you really need it. If it’s an ARM CPU rather than x86/amd64 getting Windows or Windows apps to work on it, even with WINE, may turn out to be somewhere between ‘tricky’ and ‘impossible’ ---
**Author:** ![gdave](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gdave/32/3683_2.png) [@gdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gdave)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/7 "2021-02-08T14:07:29Z")
I am also typing this on a Chromebook. I _love_ it. It Just Works. Lightning fast boot up, seemless and lightning fast updates, long battery life. I still prefer my desktop with Windows and the full version of Word for word processing, but the current Chrome version of Word is actually pretty good, for my purposes. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2021, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/8 "2021-02-08T14:25:41Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > modern Chromebooks can run Android apps and apparently Linux apps I have a Chromebook that is apparently Linux-compatible (Lenovo C330). I’ve tried several times to install it, and I’ve never gotten it to work. I’m not incredibly computer-savvy, I know enough to get myself in trouble. However, I think models even just a year older than mine may have had a change made to them that makes them more Linux-friendly. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2021, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/9 "2021-02-09T02:07:32Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > > [@BigT](#): > > > > The other thing I would cover is that modern Chromebooks can run Android apps and apparently Linux apps, which means they can run Wine. Also, there are ways to install Windows on if you really need it. > > If it’s an ARM CPU rather than x86/amd64 getting Windows or Windows apps to work on it, even with WINE, may turn out to be somewhere between ‘tricky’ and ‘impossible’ Yes, doing so requires actually emulating the x86 CPU, either within Wine or using the one that comes with ARM versions of Windows. Wine was designed to be able to do this, but it’s not perfect. And, up until recently, Windows for ARM could only handle 32-bit apps. It’s not easy at all, and not anything I’d recommend to anyone but tech enthusiasts, or those who could have a tech enthusiast set it up for them. That said, there is a new class of Chromebook coming out that uses Parallels (a virtual machine software) and runs Windows quite well and simply. I do believe they use x86 processors, though, and likely would not have the battery life that the OP’s device has. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2021, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/10 "2021-02-09T15:00:41Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Yes, doing so requires actually emulating the x86 CPU, either within Wine or using the one that comes with ARM versions of Windows. Wine was designed to be able to do this, but it’s not perfect. And, up until recently, Windows for ARM could only handle 32-bit apps. > > It’s not easy at all, and not anything I’d recommend to anyone but tech enthusiasts, or those who could have a tech enthusiast set it up for them. Yeah, last I checked, WINE needed some additional libraries and stuff to actually run on ARM - there were a couple of different options (QEMU or ExaGear) - neither of which were straightforward (and I’m not sure they were free to use either ---
**Author:** ![Cumberdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8c91f0/32.png) [@Cumberdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cumberdale)\ **Post date:** [February 9, 2021, 7:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ordered-a-chromebook-by-mistake/932423/11 "2021-02-09T19:32:59Z")
My CB has replaced my iPad and for the most part my laptop,except when I’m at my desk. If I discovered it sooner it could have saved me several hundred bucks.