Report: Acer Set To Launch Chrome OS Devices

a Thursday report from Venturebeat

The report doesn't mention what type of devices Acer will show at Computex, which will take place from June 1-5. But Google has suggested that in addition to netbooks, Chrome OS could be suitable for tablets and smartbooks that run ARM processors, Venturebeat noted in its report.

Acer Chairman J.T. Wang last year vowed to be the first OEM to launch Chrome OS devices, and his timeframe for doing so was the second half of 2010, according to published reports.

Acer was one of the original partners that teamed up with Google last year to bring Chrome OS devices to market last fall, a list that also includes Adobe, ASUS, Freescale, Hewlett-Packard, Lenovo, Qualcomm, Texas Instruments, and Toshiba.

Google has maintained a cone of silence around Chrome OS and has stuck to its "second half of 2010" mantra. The silence has contributed to a marked lack of Chrome OS-related buzz in the system builder channel, although Google appears to be focusing its efforts on the initial wave of OEM devices.

Netbooks aren’t nearly as popular as they were last July when Google first took the wraps off Chrome OS, and there have been signs that Google is expanding its scope to other computing form factors. In March, developers posted details on a concept Chrome OS powered tablet to the Chromium.org Website that features a 5-to 10-inch screen, tab navigation, and a virtual keyboard.

Google, which is already working on an Android-based tablet with Verizon Wireless, has suggested that Android and Chrome OS development will merge at some undefined point in the future.

In the meantime, Acer and other PC makers will act as Chrome OS "guinea pigs" to determine whether there's room in the market for both operating systems.