Why will Google's low-cost Chromebooks go up in the long run?

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Chromebooks, the lightweight PCs running the Google Chrome operating system, have been renamed for their low prices since they were released in 2011. Prices per PC are normal at around $ 200, and a model is now selling at $ 180 in American stores. tech report. Companion tech news site CNET calls the Chromebook a "simple and inexpensive alternative to a laptop or a Macbook under Windows".

But in the longer term, Chromebooks will become more expensive, according to Acer pioneer developer. That's because they have more features, including touch screens, and are more attractive to markets that have the money to spend instead of just schools. At the same time, Google upgrades the operating system.

"My overall expectations over the next two years would be to see Chromebook prices trending upward as we begin to see vendors introduce some premiums (units) into their portfolios, while innovation experiences in form factors and touch screens are more numerous. Says Ishan Dutt, an analyst at Canalys, a technology research company.

Acer has above average prices

Acer's average selling price is already above the market average, said a spokesman for the company at Taipei's suburban headquarters. This is because Acer adds to its "innovation" and public schools, Chromebook's leading customers to date, are starting to want more than less expensive base models, according to the & nbsp;spokesman.

Acer describes as "premium" a pair of Chromebooks, the 714 and 715, which Acer showed in April at an event in New York. They come with backlit keyboards, and the 715 has a dedicated numeric keypad. Both models are aimed at business consumers, Acer said in a statement. declaration. They'll sell for $ 499 when they hit the markets in July, & nbsp;CNET says.

More on Forbes: How Acer became the first seller of Chromebooks

Acer collaborated with Google in 2008 to develop the original laptops running on the Silicon Valley giant's fast, cloud-based Chrome systems. Acer, the world 6th PC supplier in the first quarter of 2019, held the largest share& nbsp; the market for Chromebooks among suppliers in 2017, although its 26% share last year is lower than HP's, which was 31%, according to Canalys data.

Acer announced on May 8 a first quarter net profit NT $ 706 million ($ 22.8 million) on revenues of NT $ 54.7 billion, with an increase in the "average sale price" of its personal computers in all categories. Acer does not disclose revenue figures for Chromebooks, but this report, PC subclass sales increased 30% year-over-year from January to September 2018. Acer & nbsp;CEO Jason Chen called the Chromebooks an essential source of revenue, just like gaming computers.

Acer as a pioneer

Acer is not the only company to expect a rise in Chromebook prices, analysts said. With the exception of units that reduce the quality of certain specifications for schools, "Chromebook brands are ready to improve product specifications to extend their reach from the education market to the consumer market with higher price tags, "says Sagitta Pan, Senior Sector Analyst at Market Intelligence & amp; Advisory Institute in Taipei. Business users can, by and large, afford to spend more.

Chrome's improvements to ChromeOS to catch non-school users will further increase the price of Chromebooks, says Dutt. In 2017, Chromebooks made 60% of all computers sold to American schools.

Chromebooks, including 15 million sold under different brands in 2018 and forecasts of at least 13 million sold this yearLinn Huang, director of research at IDC, a technology market analyst firm, will continue to reach schools, but more and more users, Linn Huang said. "The shift in education market mix, traditionally favored in the bargain section, pulls the overall product line and prices constantly," says Huang. "Even in the field of education, we are seeing schools evolve towards … features such as convertibility and touch."

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Chromebooks, the lightweight PCs with the Google Chrome operating system, have been renamed for their low prices since they were released in 2011. Prices per PC are normal at around $ 200, and a model is now selling at $ 180 in the US. American stores. media report. Another new technology site, CNET, sees the Chromebook as a "simple and inexpensive alternative to a laptop or Macbook under Windows."

But in the longer term, Chromebooks will become more expensive, according to the pioneering Acer developer. That's because they have more features, including touch screens, and are more attractive to markets that have the money to spend instead of just schools. At the same time, Google upgrades the operating system.

"My overall expectations over the next two years would be to see Chromebook prices trending upward as we begin to see vendors introduce some premiums (units) into their portfolios, while innovation experiences in form factors and touch screens are more numerous. Says Ishan Dutt, an analyst at Canalys, a technology research company.

Acer has above average prices

Acer's average selling price is already above the market average, said a spokesman for the company at Taipei's suburban headquarters. That's because Acer is adding to its "innovation," and public schools, the Chromebook's biggest customers to date, are starting to want more than cheaper base models, according to the spokesman.

Acer describes as "premium" a pair of Chromebooks, the 714 and 715, which Acer showed in April at an event in New York. They come with backlit keyboards, and the 715 has a dedicated numeric keypad. Both models are aimed at business consumers, Acer said in a statement. They will sell $ 499 when they arrive in the markets in July, says CNET.

More on Forbes: How Acer became the first seller of Chromebooks

Acer collaborated with Google in 2008 to develop the original laptops running on the Silicon Valley giant's fast, cloud-based Chrome systems. Acer, the world's sixth-largest PC provider starting in the first quarter of 2019, had the largest share of the Chromebook market among suppliers in 2017, although its share of 26% last year is lower than that of HP (31%). %, according to Canalys data).

Acer announced May 8 first-quarter net profit of NT $ 706 million ($ 22.8 million) on a business turnover of NT $ 54.7 billion, as well as an increase the "average selling price" of its computers of different categories. Acer does not disclose revenue figures for Chromebooks, but according to this report, PC subclass sales increased by 30% from one year to the next from January to September 2018. Jason Chen , CEO of Acer, has qualified Chromebooks as an essential revenue source, in the same way as gaming PCs.

Acer as a pioneer

Acer is not the only company to expect a rise in Chromebook prices, analysts said. With the exception of units that reduce the quality of certain specifications for schools, "Chromebook brands are ready to improve product specifications to extend their reach from the education market to the consumer market with higher price tags, "says Sagitta Pan, Senior Sector Analyst at Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute in Taipei. Business users can, by and large, afford to spend more.

Chrome's improvements to ChromeOS to catch non-school users will further increase the price of Chromebooks, says Dutt. In 2017, Chromebooks accounted for 60% of all computers sold to US schools.

The Chromebooks, of which 15 million sold under different brands in 2018 and at least 13 million sold this year, will continue to affect schools, but will affect more and more other users, predicts Linn Huang, director of research at IDC, a technology market analysis company. "The lag in the composition of the education market, which has traditionally been discussed in the bargain section, to the benefit of other segments pulls up the overall product line and constantly sets prices" Huang said. "Even in the field of education, we are seeing schools evolve towards … features such as convertibility and touch."