Most people will never get their hands on the Google Chrome Cr-48 notebook that the search giant started distributing to a chosen few these past several days. The prototype computer is part of a Google pilot program and offered only to selected applicants — anyone can request one online — who Google feels will provide frequent feedback. The machine, however raw, is worth paying attention to for what it says about Google’s vision of a mobile computer and, more specifically, the cloud-based Chrome operating system software at its core.
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The Cr-48 is the first real access anyone outside of Google or the development community has had to examine Chrome OS. The software looks and behaves a lot like the Chrome Web browser you can download onto a Windows PC or Mac. The first true Chrome OS-based computers aren’t expected to go on sale until the middle of 2011. Acer and Samsung will be the first to sell such machines. Final hardware may look quite different. Google says other PC makers will follow. No pricing has been announced.
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Google has been inundated with applications to test drive the notebook but will be accepting requests through Dec. 21 (head to www.google.com/chromeos/pilot-program.html). The company says the pilot program is not for the faint of heart, which, based on my experience, is true.
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Google didn’t want me to review the Cr-48 as if it were a finished product because, well, it is not. There’s an icon at the top of the screen that you click on to report bugs. Right now, you can’t stream Netflix movies, the gesture-driven touchpad is a mess and you can’t Skype (though you can make video calls with the built-in camera and Google Talk).
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Still, there are several things worth raving about. Setup was a breeze. I signed in with my Gmail credentials,…