Microsoft on their Scroogled site:
At Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, it’s all about separating the real deal from the imitation—and the Google Chromebook sticks out like a sore thumb.
Rick and his crew are leery of the Chromebook—and you should be, too. See for yourself in this video.
Here’s something that caught my eye on the Scroogled site; they have an ‘expert’ section with quotes from a variety of authors on Chromebooks. They quote film director tech writer Kevin Smith:
It’s not a laptop. It’s not a tablet. It’s a shell that houses a Web browser. That’s it.
…but, if you go on to read the entire article, Kevin concludes:
Overall, the Chromebook still feels like it doesn’t have a place in the world. If you’re looking for an ultra-portable device to simply browse the web and enjoy media, you’re probably better off getting an iPad or similar tablet.
So I looked back through all the other quotes too.
Julie Borts (Business Insider) & Jeffrey Van Camp (Digital Trends) concluded they were going back to their Macs. Jill Duffy (PC Mag) made no alternative recommendation. Larry Seltzer (ZDnet) was overall positive on Windows vs. Chromebook devices, but said:
Windows 8 hybrids would be a slam-dunk if only Microsoft could get people more enthusiastic about Windows 8. Will Windows 8.1 turn the corner? I wouldn’t bet on it, but perhaps. There’s no question in my mind that Microsoft can get consumers to buy a lot of these devices just by flooding stores with them and promoting them properly.
Not exactly a ringing endorsement of Windows.
From the videos, to the cherry-picked quotes, to the merch: this whole Scroogled campaign just feels incredibly desperate to me.