Google and several laptop makers have teamed up for a controversial announcement: You can now buy a Chromebook for gaming. Three models are available for pre-order: the Acer Chromebook 516 GE for $$ 649.99, the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook for $$ 599, and the Asus Chromebook Vibe CX55 Flip for a price yet to be announced. These models are positioned as being specifically designed for gaming.

What seems odd about these “gaming” laptops is that, being Chromebooks, they don’t come with discrete graphics cards. As a rule, computers with only integrated graphics aren’t considered gaming (even with modern integrated graphics cores, gaming is difficult).

These Chromebooks are intended to be used for cloud gaming. They will come pre-installed with NVIDIA GeForce Now. This platform could theoretically offer the performance of an RTX 3080, including demanding graphics modes like ray tracing, without the need for a powerful graphics card on the player's side. Interestingly, the announcement comes shortly after Google shut down its own gaming platform, Stadia.

Of course, aspiring cloud gamers can run GeForce Now on any PC — there’s hardly a need for a Chromebook to be a gamer. So what makes these devices “gaming” Chromebooks? Well, they’re exactly what gaming laptops are called. They also look like gaming laptops — equipped with a glossy RGB keyboard with anti-ghosting technology and other backlighting.

The only significant hardware advantage of these models is the display refresh rate. The Vibe has a 144Hz display, while the Acer and Lenovo models have 120Hz displays. Interestingly, the cheap GeForce Now plans are capped at 60fps and will require a GeForce Now RTX 3080 tier subscription to get the benefit.

On the one hand, the presented Chromebooks will become one of the cheapest devices with 144Hz and 120Hz screen refresh rates, on the other hand, the GeForce Now RTX 3080 tariff plan costs $ $ 19.99 per month, and saving on it can compensate for the price difference after a while with a full-fledged gaming laptop.

Logitech is developing an analogue of the Steam Deck – support for GeForce Now, Xbox Cloud Gaming and Steam is possible

[timed-content-client show=”0:15″]

code here

[/timed-content-client]