Chromebook for Bloggers

When I was thinking about how I am going to achieve my blogging goals for 2017, I knew I’d need to set myself up for success.  One easy way to do that was to make sure I had all the right ingredients for optimum workflow.  I needed a laptop for three basic reasons: (1) to have a way to easily write anywhere and anytime, (2) one location for all my photos and photo editing, and (3) to be able to get my work done quickly.  Based on a quick internet search, the chromebook looked like a viable option. A 2006 Macbook (that’s right) is the most recent laptop I’ve owned.  Not a Macbook Pro, just a plain ole ten-year-old Macbook.  This laptop was still operating pretty well, but in the past couple months, a few of the keys suddenly stopped working.  I actually had to plug in a keyboard just to be able to write anything.  Well, you can imagine the annoyance with trying to balance the laptop AND the keyboard on my lap.  Basically, the laptop wasn’t so lappy anymore! So one day, I finally made up my mind.  I walked into the living and made the announcement to my husband, “I’m going to buy a laptop.”  Now, I had a small budget set aside for this very thing, but my husband surprised me by saying he had an extra laptop that I could use.  Well, that was amazing news, and it meant I didn’t have to spend money. Woohoo!  It turns out, however, that the laptop was fairly old and incredibly sloooow!  So, the decision to buy a laptop was back on the table.

Side story time….

I’m a part-time teacher, but I also do some subbing.  So this one day, I was a 7th grade math teacher, and during my glorious planning period, I got to thinking.  In the school district where I sub, every student is issued a Google chromebook.  I wondered how well their chromebooks worked for them, how expensive they were, and what the big deal was.  So I grabbed one that the teacher had as an extra, and checked it out.  At least, I wanted to check it out.  Unfortunately, I couldn’t login to it because (at the time) I didn’t realize your just logged in with your Google account.

I had loads of questions

Is it fast?  Will it work for what I need to do?  So I went to my #1 platform for information – PINTEREST!  Of course!  *wink*  Anyway, I typed in something like “Chromebooks for Bloggers” and guess what popped up?  Nothing!  Seriously….  So, with Pinterest being a bust, I did a Google search.  I looked at a few different articles, all of which sang the praises of the chromebook.  It was enough to encourage me to take the leap.

Back to the topic…

So I ended up buying the THIS laptop, the Samsung 11.6 inch chromebook.  I was hoping to spend less than $300, so I was thrilled that it was only $199!  The computer came eight days ago, and I am already totally in LOVE with this thing!  So, if you are a new (or experienced) blogger looking into the chromebook, here are some of the the reasons why I’d recommend it!

1. It’s lightweight.  This is probably one of my #1 reasons why I love my new chromebook so very much.  I can easily carry it with one hand around the house while I’m wrangling kids, cooking dinner, or picking up messes.  I can also throw it into my church or school bags and it fits perfectly!  I’m actually looking into finding a bag like THIS one that allows me to carry my laptop but also use is as a purse.  I’m no fashionista, so functionality is my top priority!
2. It’s cheap.  Obviously, I already covered this point, but I wanted to make sure I added it here in case some of you goofballs out there didn’t take the time to read my long, drawn-out intro.  Hehe…  At just $199, I’m not going to freak out if my one year old knocks it on the floor (this literally happened yesterday), it would be very inexpensive to replace.  It’s one of the cheapest laptops you can find anywhere!
3. It’s fast.  Pretty much, the system boots up in about 10 seconds (maybe even faster, I haven’t timed it).  When I have an idea, and I’m ready to write, I don’t have to wait long at all in order to jot my ideas down!
4. I can share the screen with my iMac.  Using Google Remote Desktop, which I have to install on both computers, I can easily login to my iMac and work on project without being in my home office.  This works out great especially if I want to be hanging out with the family in the living room while still getting other thing accomplished.  For example, the other night, I needed to sort some photos on iPhoto, but I didn’t want to miss out on a show my husband and I love (Touch on Netflix).  So I just made sure the iMac was awake (otherwise, connecting to it won’t work), I entered in the PIN I created, and I was in business!
5. It has great battery life.  This was something I read on a few articles before buying the chromebook.  This was a BIG reason I went this route.  All the computers I’ve owned in the past have mostly been refurbished or used, so I’ve never had a laptop with a great battery.  So far, i’m able to use the computer throughout the day without plugging it in.  It’s great!
6. It’s a complete package.  I was really worried about whether or not I’d be able to edit photos on the chromebook, but I figured as long as I could find a good (and free) online program, I’d probably be OK.  Thankfully I found THIS website that allows me to do pretty good edits.  I’m used to Photoshop Elements, which I’d HIGHLY recommend, but the chromebook is not set up to install tons of programs, so that was a no-go from the beginning.  I can do all my work online and save everything on Google drive, so all my needs are met!
7. It’s completely web-based.  Why is this such a great thing?  Because you aren’t bogging the computer down with all sorts of programs and files that make it slow!  I guess this could be the downside, but for me, it’s exactly what I needed.  Of course, if there’s no internet, then you are up a creek, so you do need to consider that.  Just think about what you’ll be using the chromebook for.  You might find that you really don’t need all the fancy bells and whistles of a Macbook Air or one of those cool Microsoft Surface Pros (although that are SO cool).

So that’s it!  The seven reasons why I LOVE my laptop and why I think bloggers should totally go out and buy one, too!  Or at least take a few moments to consider using one.  You will NOT be disappointed!  So what equipment do you guys use for all your blogging needs?  Let me know in the comments below!