What an absolute scam.
“They’re designed to be disposable,” Berg said.
How the fuck is this legal
Fwiw, they aren’t expired, they just stop getting feature updates after a while. They still get security updates and they work perfectly, software gets updates etc. Essentially the same as MacBooks. So no, not at got as getting a Windows laptop but not as bad is getting screwed by apple
No my man, they stop getting security updates. If you think cash strapped K12 institutions would happily toss useable Chromebooks out because they don’t get feature updates, then you are dead wrong.
There is going to be a massive K12 money issue coming in about 3-4 more years. Everyone who didn’t have a 1 to 1 program in effect took all that COVID money and threw it at their Tech depts to enable 1 to 1. Those grants, for those amounts, aren’t gonna be here 3-4 years from now. I honestly have no idea what poorer districts are gonna do, but it’s gonna be a fucking reckoning.
Source: Former Ed-Tech Tech
Interesting, I bought my Chromebooks from schools and they all are still getting security updates haha, so I guess it’s a moot point. They get supported past the period at which a school keeps them before replacement. 6 years does seem like a long time for schools to hold on and that’s just for feature updates. If the security updates are lasting longer… Well. There that. And considering the basis of all things on them are based around the browser, which will get updates indefinitely then I guess the concern just isn’t there. I actually am a contractor for one of the poorest public schools in the US and even they don’t keep their computers around for more than 4
It’s likely they’re purchasing 1-2 year old devices then. The AUE starts ticking the second the first unit gets made available for sale. The district I worked had over half of its 12 schools as Title 1, and we held on to every device to the point that they expired over the summer or were replaced summer prior if they were going to expire during the school year.
Don’t let ChromeOS and it’s penchant for WebApps fool you. It took Google months to patch the firmware shims, and it’s not like they had any suggestion other than “You can tell it’s Shimmed by the enrollment date” “Just configure a report to spit out enrollment dates after X/Y/Z to locate Shimmed devices”. Never mind the fact that every new board meant a new enrollment date so we had to physically keep tabs on what potential repairs were being done.
I hate Chromebooks, btw.
My 2015 MacBook got its last major update last year - that’s 7 years. It still gets security updates.
This article says the Chromebooks get 3-6 years.
Anyway, now that I know this I’m going to look out for second hand chrome books. Think I could run a Plex server on one?
Anyway, now that I know this I’m going to look out for second hand chrome books. Think I could run a Plex server on one?
You can refer to https://mrchromebox.tech/ for a listing of what chromebooks that firmware can be flashed on to (refer to Supported Devices on the left). Chromebooks ship with a modified BIOS that will only work with the Chrome OS that installed on those devices. Their BIOS/firmware is also in read only mode but that can be disabled usually by removing a screw somewhere on the motherboard. After that, you have to flash that alternative firmware over so that the computer can have a BIOS that is compatible with other operating systems (consequently making the computer unable to run Chrome OS).
The FAQ (linked below) mentions that there is a “handy spreadsheet” compatibility list as well. Notably, some Chromebooks are not quite compatible with Linux and show this by literally frying their speakers (supposedly) if you try to use Linux on them… so you may have to be selective in what you purchase.
As a Plex guy myself, I’m sure you could, you will need to transmit over WiFi or get a USB nic. Inversely is you are looking to make a Plex server I would suggest looking at used HP elite desk mini’s, they have much beefier CPU’s, 6th and 7th gen i5 processors and gigabit nics. You also have the added benefit of m.2 slot and typical data 2.5" caddy
This is the end of official updates for them, they’re not bricked.
Older Chromebooks do have a shitty support lifecycle, it can’t be denied. Newer (post 2020 launch) Chromebooks come with at least 8 years of updates, although that’s from product launch, not from when you buy them. That is comparable to Apple’s support lifecycle.
It is possible to install ChromeOS Flex on out-of-support Chromebooks, though likely you will lose some features. You can also install generic Linux on them, but it’s got to be said it’s a slightly annoying experience.
Back in 2008 my school were throwing away about 200 workstations, with monitors. We asked if we could buy some, but they told us no; they were being donated to a charity which ships them to Uganda.
I’m hoping these Chromebooks aren’t “recycled” but instead have a similar fate as those desktops from my school. I’m in Indonesia right now and could give away thousands of Chromebooks in a heartbeat.
It’s astonishing how much time and money my school must have spent on repairing, replacing, and performing software/IT maintenance on these piece of shit computers instead of just using brands that work.