Chromebooks and centralized management of devices

We've mentioned in past blog posts that we're well-equipped to tackle anything we might need with nothing more than a web browser and a laptop. So why bother spending hundreds or thousands of dollars outfitting the team with laptops that will only run a web browser? Why not invest in smaller, cheaper, faster laptops that are designed around a suite of web-based applications? That's where Chromebooks come in.

Google's Chromebook Pixel

Chromebooks can boot to the desktop in less than 10 seconds, automatically update on their own, include built-in virus protection, and integrate very tightly with the Google Apps suite. If you're already using Google Apps, it's the perfect laptop for your sales team that uses email, calendar, contacts, Solve360 CRM, Google Drive, and more. Chromebooks can even edit Excel and Word files for no additional cost.

If you still need to run Windows-exclusive software, install one of many RDP (Remote Desktop Protocol) clients from the Chrome Web Store and connect to a Windows Terminal Server or Windows desktop computer.

Add in the Chromebook Management Console and you can manage thousands of Chromebooks from your Google Apps admin control panel to make your life even easier. You can configure wireless networks so users are up and running as soon as they log in, allow or block guest access to the machines, and much more. By design Chromebooks are encrypted and highly secure, and since all your data is stored in the cloud, users can pick up any available Chromebook and be productive in seconds.

A Chromebook even works great offline for drafting emails, managing appointments, and editing documents.

The best part is, as always with Google, the price. Chromebooks start from as low as $249 CAD and a one-time license for the management console costs just $161 CAD for businesses or $32 CAD for education users, available from us here at InterlockIT.com.