Acer C720 Drivers Release

ccschmidt
ccschmidt Member Posts: 5 New User
in 2014 Archives

When will the contract with Google end so we can get the drivers?

 

Just wondering when would be a good time to buy the C720, but I want to be able to use it for whatever I want. Locking it down like that is pretty weaksauce. It's the equivalent of Apple with iOS. And aint nobody got time for that.

Answers

  • Ideas_Acer
    Ideas_Acer Member Posts: 284 Practitioner WiFi Icon

    There are no plans to end that contract at all, cc.  And if you are looking for a C720, you had better hurry.  We have already moved on to the C740 and the C910 and other new models also.  Bigger, brighter and faster all the time.  And yup, every one of them is Chrome OS only.  Just like Henry Ford used to say, "You can have any color you want, as long as it is black."  The same goes for Chrome.

  • ccschmidt
    ccschmidt Member Posts: 5 New User
    Thank you for your quick reply!

    Do you know why Acer has made such a contract with Google? From an outside perspective, it would seem like it would alienate a whole variety of consumers that want to be able to customize their computers.
  • billsey
    billsey ACE Posts: 34,219 Trailblazer

    I believe you'll find that Acer makes a fair number of models that aren't Chrome based... But to be called a 'Chromebook' it's got to have Chrome on it, which means you have to do what Google requires. Smiley Happy Maybe what you want isn't a Chromebook, but a Windows laptop instead?

    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful or click on "Yes" if it answers your question.
  • ccschmidt
    ccschmidt Member Posts: 5 New User

    I have tested 31 (documented) different laptops and found that the weight, size, RAM and hardware customizability of the C720 were ideal for my needs. This includes Windows tablets, netbooks, Chromebooks, and the Macbooks. And to boot, the trackpad is super responsive and the price is fantastic. 

     

    I just don't want to be stuck with Chrome OS only, and I'm sure I'm not the only one that feels this way. Not being allowed to do what you want to a device doesn't make sense to me in this day and age, and that is why I am asking the question I am about the reasoning behind the decision.

     

    I mean, what if every Windows computer did the same? People would be outraged. Even with a MacBook you can install Windows with the drivers provided by Apple.

     

    I am not asking for Acer to reconsider. It's their decision and I can respect that. I am just curious as to why Smiley Happy (were they forced to? did they get a special deal?)

     

     

  • billsey
    billsey ACE Posts: 34,219 Trailblazer

    One of the design decisions when building a laptop is storage capacity and speed. If you put a fast SSD in you raise the price a bunch unless the size is really small. Chromebooks can be at the prices they are partially because they can be built with very little capacity. My C720P has 32GB in the SSD, which is high for a Chromebook. My W700 Windows tablet has a 128GB SSD as a contrast. Though it's possible to install and run Windows on a machine with only 32GB of storage, it also tends to keep you on your toes clearing old data off to make room for new.

    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful or click on "Yes" if it answers your question.
  • ccschmidt
    ccschmidt Member Posts: 5 New User
    So I buckled down yesterday and bought the C720P despite the drivers not being released. I took it apart and upgraded the SSD to a 128GB m2 sata, which took about 10 minutes.

    If the reason the drivers aren't released has to with storage capacity and speed, I'm not convinced. Those things can be customized.

    Without Windows drivers, I ended up opting for the Bodhi Linux distro which has an ISO that's been tailored specifically to the Acer C720 Chromebook (touchscreen is still a no-go), but overall it gives a myriad more possibilities for customization and usage.

    Would've kept Chrome for the dual boot option, but decided not to because at this point I'm satisfied with Bodhi.

    Great computer, so thanks for that, Acer. Open up them drivers and I'll buy another computer made by ya Smiley Happy
  • Ideas_Acer
    Ideas_Acer Member Posts: 284 Practitioner WiFi Icon

    Just a quick follow up for you, cc.  First, thanks for buying a C720.  I hope you love it.  But second, I just wanted to clarify that the contract issue is NOT an Acer issue. In order to license the Chrome OS for sale on this unit, or any of our Chromebook models, we MUST agree to support ONLY the Chrome OS on the device.  Google invests some development and marketing money in the product and wants to ensure that the device is sold ONLY as a Chrome device.  What you may choose to do with it after you buy it is entirely up to you.  We are just restricted from helping you with any other OS support on the device.  Hope that clarifies things a bit.

  • ccschmidt
    ccschmidt Member Posts: 5 New User
    Thank you. I do love it so far! No complaints. And thanks for all your replies. It makes sense from Google's perspective if they are really trying to get ChromeOS going.
  • coolstar
    coolstar Member Posts: 1 New User
    Just a heads up, we got quite a few drivers working on Windows on the C720 and I have started writing a few drivers that we weren't able to otherwise find available, starting with the keyboard driver Smiley Wink

    http://community.acer.com/t5/Chromebook/GUIDE-Install-Windows-8-on-the-Acer-C720/m-p/360699#M1936

    It's quite fun when you have hardware that doesn't work with Windows, the Windows Driver Kit, programming experience and some time to kill Smiley Wink

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