Google is launching new Chromebook Enterprise devices that it hopes will draw more businesses away from Windows-powered laptops. Microsoft has dominated enterprise computing for years, but as businesses increasingly look to modernize their fleet of devices, there’s an opportunity for competitors to challenge Windows. Google is teaming up with one of Microsoft’s biggest partners, Dell, to help push new Chromebook Enterprise laptops into businesses.
Dell is launching Chrome OS on a pair of its popular business-focused Latitude laptops, offering both a regular clamshell design and a 2-in-1 option. While it might sound like just two existing Windows laptops repurposed for Chrome OS, Google and Dell have been working together for more than a year to ensure these new Chromebook Enterprise devices are ready for IT needs. That includes bundling a range of Dell’s cloud-based support services that allow admins to have greater control over how these Chromebooks are rolled out inside businesses.
It means IT admins can more easily integrate these Chromebooks into existing Windows environments and manage them through tools like VMware Workspace One. Microsoft and its partners have offered a range of admin tools for years, making it easy to customize and control Windows-based devices. Google has also tweaked its Chrome Admin console to improve load times, add search on every page, and overhaul it with material design elements.
Businesses will be able to choose from Dell’s 14-inch Latitude 5400 ($699) or the 13-inch Latitude 5300 2-in-1 ($819). Both can be configured with up to Intel’s 8th Gen Core i7 processors, up to 32GB of RAM, and even up to 1TB of SSD storage. The processor options are a little disappointing considering Intel just announced new 10th Gen processors, but the blow is softened slightly as both devices will offer LTE options and USB-C docking.
Google is now teaming up with a number of OEMs to better target enterprise customers. While Dell is the first OEM to announce Chromebook Enterprise laptops, there will be more. “This is not an exclusive with Dell,” explains John Solomon, vice president of Chrome OS at Google, in an interview with The Verge. “We’re launching with Dell first… but in the future we will be getting back to doing this more broadly with the ecosystem.”
You can imagine Lenovo and HP partnering to offer Chromebook Enterprise laptops in the future, just like they currently offer devices to both consumers and businesses. This tighter integration benefits OEMs as they can now bundle a larger stack of software and services on a Chromebook targeted at businesses.
Chromebooks have traditionally fared well in education but have had little traction in businesses that are used to relying on Windows. Google’s new focus is a significant change, but it doesn’t mean the company is suddenly going to attract business customers overnight. “Enterprise is more of a marathon than a sprint,” admits Solomon. “For Google this is a key moment for us to really telegraph that we’re very serious about the enterprise. This is not just a project that’s ‘well you know it’s like an experiment, we’ll see how it goes.’ This is a long term and serious commitment.”
Microsoft’s response to this new Chromebook Enterprise offering will be telling. It has steadily been trying to counter Chrome OS with cheaper Windows-based laptops of its own, but that’s not a modern OS challenge. Microsoft is also currently working on a “Windows Lite” version of its operating system that will be far more cloud-powered to compete with Chrome OS. This stripped-down version of Windows could help Microsoft better compete with the modern benefits of something like Chrome OS. Microsoft has tried to counter Chrome OS with efforts like Windows 10 S in the past, but it’s always been more of a locked down version of Windows than anything truly modern.
”What I’ve read is that Microsoft is actually going to modernize their operating system, because they have an operating system that was actually architected for a world of IT that was very client-centric, very sort of heavy device,” says Solomon. Microsoft’s support of older applications, hardware, and even Windows versions is what sets it apart for IT admins right now, but Google is betting on its modern OS taking over.
”There’s a reason there’s not been malware attacks or viruses on Chromebooks, it’s a very tough surface for any bad actor to penetrate,” says Solomon. “I would imagine Microsoft are going to try to modernize their operating system and bring it to where IT is going, but they have the problem of legacy and we don’t.”
If Microsoft does try to create a more Chrome OS-like operating system, Google thinks it will still have the upper hand thanks to its investments in machine learning. “We’ve been working on Chrome OS for 10 years, it’s not just something we came up with last year,” explains Solomon. “We’ve developed areas that we’re innovating in, like machine learning — which is the core competency of Google — and we’re starting to apply it. We have a raft of features that we’re working on for management of the product through machine learning, and actually deep at the OS level. So, how you can optimize the CPU, battery, and display through that.”
Google’s partnership with Dell is a big warning shot to Microsoft and its Windows dominance, but it’ll be up to Google and its partners to really prove it will work. We’ve seen Google exit the tablet hardware business earlier this year, and its efforts to push Chrome OS onto tablets haven’t really worked out. Google now needs to prove it’s willing and able to provide flexible software and services that will convince businesses to make the big Windows switch. Solomon described enterprise as a marathon and not a sprint, but with Microsoft involved it’s going to be more like a really long boxing match between two of the world’s heavyweight tech companies.
Comments
All I can say is – good luck Google!
Microsoft’s "problem with legacy" is also its biggest advantage. There’s a reason why Windows has compatibility modes even today – big enterprises want their custom applications to work, not to mention Office. Switching to Chromebooks isn’t just about switching devices – it also means switching productivity and email tools, and that’s a much harder sell. Education was easy, but this is going to be a tough war, and I’m curious to see how it’ll work out.
By andromorr on 08.26.19 8:15am
Plus, does anyone actually like Dell’s enterprise laptops beyond them being dirt cheap? My company switched over from Lenovo a couple of years ago and the quality of the machines is severely lacking.
By TDHawk00 on 08.26.19 10:09am
I purposefully bought a Latitude 7490 over any of the modern ThinkPads.
1. They are fully serviceable. RAM, power plug, LTE, WiFi, etc are all changeable. New ThinkPads solder the WiFi card, one of the RAM slots, etc. It’s shit.
2. Better display quality. Every ThinkPad I have owned post 2013 has been either horrific garbage or decent but with a lot of backlight bleed.
By privilegejunkie on 08.26.19 10:13am
That’s fair. But that’s also a different league of business laptop than Dells bread and butter enterprise laptops. Typically, when we’re placing an order for 1000 of them cost is also a clear factor.
By TDHawk00 on 08.26.19 10:18am
our company recently merged with another large network; and we had to switch to Lenovo from dell. I’m shocked but the dells are better hardware, built worse. The Lenovo’s still feel more premium than the dells (they don’t fall apart as fast) but I do miss the days of the T510 you could rip to components in 15 seconds with 0 tools.
first thing I noticed about the new breed of 4/580’s was the backlight bleed.
then again, about 70% of our fleet (not even kidding) of Latitude 7XXX series had batteries bloating and dying within about 18 months. It’s totally insane how cheap some of this stuff is.
back in the day tho, I think we had about RROD levels of t410’s that would die via graphic card. Cheap computers are cheap.
By JesseDegenerate on 08.26.19 10:42am
I have like a dozen of them, and yeah, they’re decent. They certainly aren’t thinkpad quality, but they’ve been reliable, perform as expected given the hardware, and Dell’s customer support for them has been great. Had a key on one of them break, and Dell had their nearest guy drive 9 hours the next day to fix it for me.
I wouldn’t have one as my personal laptop, but for a basic business machine I’m fine with them.
By itfa on 08.26.19 4:07pm
What I find fascinating is that MS helped Dell go private with a big chunk of cash, and now that Dell has their s—- together they go ahead and develop technology for Google. Does anyone know if Dell paid MS back that money? I mean, I’m all for competition, don’t get me wrong, but I would have expected this from another OEM, not Dell.
By PeteBeast on 08.26.19 11:41am
This is exactly what I’m thinking. Coming from a home consumer point-of-view I’m deeply invested in Windows. As much as I love Google, I have zero use for a Chromebook. And I cannot image using Chrome OS for work. It’s not tailored to people who work in the IT Department. LoL!!
How I’ma remote in to users machines? Yea, Windows does have legacy, and if there’s one thing I noticed about companies they hold on to older software for as long as possible. My goodness, some companies be having this ancient history software, but hey it works with Windows because of legacy support.
The software would have to be built for Chrome OS. LoL!! Nah, Google should focus on the home market. I think that’s where Chromebooks would excel.
By GayleWind on 08.26.19 11:55am
There are remote desktop solutions on ChromeOS, heck Google has their own remote desktop solution that is quite good. I use it over teamviewer and it works awesome on phones/tablets.
https://remotedesktop.google.com/
By Ragin on 08.26.19 12:34pm
https://youtu.be/ua9P4VsICFM?t=678
Google’s Solution isn’t as good as Windows Virtual Desktop on Azure.
By Daniel Su on 08.26.19 5:33pm
Google’s Solution is also not as good as Workspaces on AWS.
By NoPokyMe on 08.26.19 7:14pm
Remote desktop.. what else?
What you miss is that you’re solely looking at this from an IT standpoint, do you think any business department cares if they can remote desktop? They care about amount of money they’re spending on IT and if they can do their work fast with no crashes/malware/installation&updates
Advantages of Chromebooks is that you don’t have to pay for Windows & Office licenses + hardware is way cheaper (and i’m not talking about list prices). When it comes to software, a lot of stuff is cloud based nowadays and the worst case scenario you can setup a VDI/Citrix environment for just those users/apps that don’t/can’t run on Chrome.
By ROMSPAX on 08.26.19 5:37pm
the reason this isn’t the theme of my post is because well, things like Citrix exist. Companies actually use windows apps that are too old for compatibility modes all the time.
but not too old for Citrix. which runs on chrome, in iPads etc. it’s money tho. But a better solution than just using compatibility modes, or leaving IE 6 installed for custom apps and creating security nightmares.
By JesseDegenerate on 08.26.19 12:04pm
I like Windows as an OS, but I wouldn’t need a Windows laptop if my company would just deploy Citrix on Chrome OS, iPad, or even Android. I can do my entire job through Citrix, but my company ONLY deploys Citrix on Windows using an IE plugin. At home or the office I can use a hard-wired VDI/WYSE thin client, but on the road it’s full Windows or bust.
By Johnny Socko on 08.26.19 12:47pm
I feel like if you get to make it work at home with any client, you can make it work mobile with any client too, unless they literally white list IP’s or something ridiculous.
By JesseDegenerate on 08.26.19 3:33pm
Yeah, I thought so too. They aren’t literally white/blacklisting (I don’t think), it’s more like there is a license fee for Citrix Receiver that they don’t want to pay, but Receiver is how you run Citrix on iOS & Android. Hence the stupid IE plugin being the only way in. The thin clients are just their brand-new original idea (/s) for replacing desktop PC hardware throughout the organization.
By Johnny Socko on 08.26.19 4:31pm
Citrix is a nightmare from a usability perspective.
By daxus on 08.26.19 3:58pm
Yup. I use it every day, and it is slow as all get out and, at least for the software I’m using, totally unstable.
By xenon on 08.26.19 4:20pm
TBH. I think it’s too late for Chromebooks to gain any ground in the Enterprise space. Microsoft’s ecosystem is far too entrenched into the sector. If you want security, price sensitive option. People should be waiting for Windows Lite OS to come out as it will be part of the MS ecosystem, have Office 365 while still having Chrome OS advantages.
By Daniel Su on 08.26.19 5:23pm
nothing is ever too late in the tech space. Right now, there isn’t much space for Google, but all it takes is an opportunity (whether is a mess up by my MS, or a new innovation in the space) for another player (like ChromeBooks) to get in there.
By NoPokyMe on 08.26.19 7:15pm
Microsoft is already working on a solution against Chromebooks, Windows Lite, which has everything a Chromebook has but inside the MS Ecosystem.
By Daniel Su on 08.26.19 7:27pm
I don’t doubt MS is working on the "Windows Lite." It’s been speculated for some time now. But until we see it, no one can’t predict what it will do.
And to your earlier point about there being no space for ChromeBooks in Enterprise; there may be no space for "Windows Lite" in the current space dominated by ChromeBooks.
By NoPokyMe on 08.26.19 7:51pm
How’s Google G Suite performing in the enterprise verses Microsoft’s Office 365?
That should kinda tell the enterprises’ acceptance on what Google is offering.
By prompt on 08.26.19 8:19am
well, obviously poorly, but it’s difficult for them to fight such an entrenched opponent. Office has been ground zero in this war before, and these are the guys that actually use ridiculous pivot tables and half the features in excel, that are only there for them.
so I would honestly think google has 0 chance. but it will be fun watching them throw a ton of money at it for a short period of time, watch it just start to gain traction, and then have them pull the plug on it.
By JesseDegenerate on 08.26.19 9:35am
There is nothing ridiculous about pivot tables. They are the instruments of latter day wizards.
By ardent on 08.26.19 9:59am