Chromebooks aren’t just cheap laptops with Google’s Chrome OS software anymore. There’s a wide range of Chrome OS devices these days, including entry-level and premium devices, and new form factors including tablets.
But one thing we haven’t seen yet is a Chromebook with AMD or NVIDIA graphics. But that could change soon.
Xda-developers spotted a Chromium OS code commit mentioning a new board code-named “Kidd.” What’s special about that board is that it features an Intel Kaby Lake-G processor, which combines an Intel CPU with AMD Radeon Vega graphics.
Computer makers have introduced a handful of laptops and mini-desktops powered by Kaby Lake-G chips, but so far all of those devices have been designed to run Windows.
Kidd is expected to be a Chromebook.
Other than that, we don’t really know much about it. Will it have a 65 watt or a 100 watt version of Kaby Lake-G? How big will the screen be? Does it have a touchscreen? When will it ship? How much will it cost?
Your guesses are as good as mine. In fact, it may never even see the light of day. All we know right now is that someone is testing the open source version of Chrome OS to ensure it’s compatible with a development board that may or may not show up in a real laptop one day.
Still, it’s intriguing to think about a Chromebook with discrete-class graphics. Sure, you don’t really need a powerful GPU for most of the things you used to do on a Chromebook: Chrome OS started out as a glorified web browser. But these you can use a web browser to play some pretty complex games.or even experience virtual reality… and Chrome OS is a lot more than a web browser. It also supports Android applications and support for native Linux apps and games is also in the works.
A high-performance GPU could surely come in handy for those sorts of activities.
i’d go for a chromebook with a slightly beefier gpu, might make some more demanding play store games more bearable (hearthstone, vainglory).
not sure how i’m going to justify buying kidd when kevin and falco still treat me so well.
It’s the new kidd on the block
(I’ll let myself out)