One of the biggest developments in personal computing over the last couple of years has been the rollout and success of Google’s Chromebook, a hybrid laptop that combines a tablet’s portability and ease of use with the productive power of a computer. The Lifesize Cloud Web App is tailor-made for Chromebook adopters since it gives all cloud users access to the same services they know and love—including recording and sharing capabilities. And because it was designed with the browser in mind, all it takes is an Internet connection—no downloads required!

The Chromebook Revolution

In many ways, the Chromebook represents the first major new development in personal computing since the introduction of Apple’s iPad® in 2010 and the subsequent tablet craze. Suddenly, Chromebooks are everywhere; an estimated 5.2 million Chromebooks were purchased in 2014, and by 2017, that number is expected to triple.[1] Chromebooks accounted for roughly 14% of the total laptop market last year, which represented an 85% increase over 2013’s market share.[2] The driving force behind these sales figures is simple: it’s the cloud.

Anyone who remembers the original Gmail™ rollout ten-odd years ago knows that Google’s selling point has always been a combination of storage space and ease of use. The Chromebook was designed to be used primarily while connected to the Internet, with most applications and data reading occurring on the cloud. This makes the laptops less expensive to purchase because they ship with substantially less software and therefore fewer costly licensing agreements; in fact, just about every piece of software other than the operating system is hosted offsite. An added benefit of the third-party software hosting is that Chromebooks are incredibly user-friendly. Virtually no IT is required since updates and patches are all handled remotely and automatically.

This combination of “cheap and cheerful” affordability and technophobe user-friendliness has made the Chromebook especially popular with students, school districts, and universities; according to Google, schools purchased a whopping one million Chromebooks in Q2 2014 alone.[1] More than 500 school districts in the US and Europe have gotten in on the action, and even the US Army—another organization that values price point and usability—has inked a contract.[3] Between the institution-friendly price tag, the democratic user-friendliness and the low overhead, it looks like we could be in for a genuine Chromebook renaissance.

Get Lifesize Cloud on Your Chromebook

And now you can add Lifesize Cloud video conferencing to the growing list of easy-to-use Chromebook apps! Our new web app makes it possible to connect on Lifesize Cloud right from your Chrome web browser, complete with all the features—and all the ease of use—you’ve come to expect from our desktop and mobile apps. You don’t even need to download or install anything. Try it out at webapp.lifesizecloud.com.

informationweek.com/mobile/mobile-devices/chromebook-sales-surge/d/d-id/1297921

gigaom.com/2015/03/01/chromebook-sales-still-on-the-rise/

zdnet.com/article/the-google-chromebook-suddenly-is-an-enterprise-contender/