After Xolo and Nexian Chromebooks, Google now ventures into business segment with Chromebox for Business priced at Rs.90,000
Google is seriously pushing its Chromebooks to buyers. After the launch of its budget Chromebook laptops called Xolo and Nexian starting from Rs.12,999, Google has now released a office PC variant called Chromebox for Business for Rs.90,000.
The Chromebox for Business runs on Chrome OS operating system as with the Chromebook laptops. Speaking on the launch function, Smita Hashim, global product manager, Chrome OS said that, “The Chromebook was launched in India a year ago. Now we are launching three new Chromebooks.”
While the Xolo and Nexian were targeted at schools and educational institutions, the Chromebook for Business are targeted that SOHO segment. “Since launching Chromebooks in India, we’ve been working to ensure that Chromebooks work in an environment where connectivity can be spotty, and many people’s first experiences with technology are through a phone rather than a laptop,” Hashim said.
Price of Rs.90,000 too high?
When a small office or a medium sized business can buy a pretty decent i5 powered PC for less than Rs.50,000.00 is Google wrong in pricing Chromebook for Business at Rs.90,000.00? No says Matt Thorne, Head of IT, Pinterest while defending the price of the Chromebook, “When I was invited to take part in a beta test for Chromebox for meetings, I jumped on it. The price was right, which is important for a young company. While legacy video conferencing systems can cost millions, we’ve spent a small fraction of that with Chromeboxes. Setting up our 60 devices was easy and people can use them without constant IT hand-holding.”
With very less Apps and a low acceptability Google Chromebooks cant afford to be priced in the same range with Macbooks. Considering that Xolo and Nexian are priced very competitively, Google may have just erred in the pricing of Chromebook for Business.
