The Acer R11 arrived. Had only a few hours to play with it.
Initial response: I'm impressed.
4GB RAM / 32GB storage, 11.6" IPS display, full-sized ports (USB, HDMI, SD). Despite it's mostly plastic construction, build quality is solid (no body flex). The inset metal on the lid is a nice touch that gives it a nice look.
In addition to my simply wanting a chromebook as part of my tech gear, I wanted the Acer in particular as a replacement for my Surface 2. The Surface 2 was great for productivity (near-full MS Office suite with a permanent license), entertainment (watching videos onscreen or attached to a projector/HDTV), using USB peripherals, as well as working with files from removable media.
Performance and screen quality are terrific. The trackpad is actually surprisingly good considering the pricepoint for this device. Far, far better than the Surface TypeCover trackpad and about on par with mid-range windows notebooks.
Of course, Google apps simply "just work"... and work well. I was able to get MS Office (online version) working. I cobbled together a chromeOS launcher for Apple's iCloud website so that I can edit my iWork files. It works fine from the Chrome browser itself, but I like to have individual apps/launchers.
There are a lot more ChromeOS apps that have offline capabilities than in the past. I installed a few of those. (I toggled wifi on and off in my testing to confirm what I could and couldn't do with no wifi connection)
Google Play Store support is a welcomed addition. I want to make as much use as I can of "native" ChromeOS apps but there are some "holes" in the software that I use so having the option to install the Android version is very helpful. The only 3 that I installed were: Logos Bible Software, Simple Mind Pro (cross-platform mindmap), and ES File Explorer.
The greatest limitation to Android app support on Chromebooks at this point in time is the sandboxed storage. Storage used by Android apps is hidden from ChromeOS apps (and vice versa)... the only exception is the "Download" folder which is accessible by both. Android subsystem doesn't "see" the SD card or USB media. So if I have files on my SD card that I want to use with an Android app, I need to copy the file to the "Download" folder, fire up an Android file manager (ES File Explorer in my case), move the file from "Download" to a folder needed by the app. I tried this with my cbz/cbr reader, Komik, and it worked ok.
That's a bit cumbersome, so for now I'll restrict my use of Android apps to those things that don't require local storage (make use of cloud syncing and file access).
Ran a few games (both Android and ChromeOS). It recognized my USB game controller.
I tried the R11 in its 4 different modes. Great flexibility. This will certainly be handy for travel... even on cramped plane seat-back trays. It functions very well as a tablet. Obviously heavier and thicker than a dedicated tablet, but works well and even supported my powered capacitive DotPen stylus for drawing/writing.
I still have much more exploring to do and sadly very little time. I'd like to hear from others who are using chromebooks and how they're pushing the boundaries on it.
