[dlloyd44]

Will it be possible to use printers and other peripherals with the device?

 

[Reed8419]

I did read that you will be able to use printers that are on your network, but I am not sure about other peripherals. I don't believe you can hook them up via usb, because of the inability to install drivers and such.

 

[Ronaldst]

I think the USB ports might be limited to external storage.

 

[TheWebTech]

for now I think they are limited to external storage, but I believe Google will eventually resolve that issue. If I'm correct Chromium OS has a linux back-end, most linux distros like Ubuntu have great driver support.

 

[Bling-Bling]

I should hope you can use a printer! I am a little concerned about not having enough USB ports. I mean, if I am carrying the laptop everywhere I go, I may want to connect to some other things, but I guess that's the whole point of it keeping to the basics....

 

[techlink]

Take a look at this printing article from the Chromebook support page:

How to print - Chrome OS Help

Sounds fairly straight forward...but I haven't had a chance to try out these instructions to see how printing actually works (pre-Chromebook purchase).

 

[Lindsey]

Do we know how many USB ports there are? What types of items are not going to be available and compatible with the Chromebook? I'm curious to know what will work and what won't.

 

[Magnum]

From the specs I've seen there will be two USB 2.0 ports on each of the launch chromebooks.

 

[Droymac]

If nobody has figured it out yet, the easiest way to print from a Chrome OS system would be to use Google Cloud Print. You need a Windows or OS X machine to set it up, but once finished you'll have access to any printer on your network via Chromebook.

 

[Clinquant]

This is all going to be new to me - I haven't tried any of the cloud features. I know, I'm late. But better late than never.

 

[tsundere]

Printers will likely work , but other USB devices maybe a problem. If its anything like linux few of the generic MP3 players may connect . Also newer HTC smart phones with their window mobile OS with no external memory slots could be annoying , as it needs Zune if u want to connect to it.

 

[bells-n-whistles]

Surely Google understands the needs of everyone these days to be able to connect all of their devices. I am pretty sure we will be able to do everything on a ChromeBook.

 

[vadawg]

It looks like you can print but it will take some time to get new products to the market to make it effortless as with a MS product today.

 

[arch]

If I win one, I don't think I'll worry about the limitations!

 

[crichton]

Local Network Printer?

I obtained an early Samsung Chromebook from Gilt and am a little disappointed there is no information about using a local wireless network printer. I see the cloud print option, but I would rather just keep the network traffic local to my LAN (and not have to buy something new). Is there a way to just configure my local TCP/IP printer (like we can in Linux)?

 

[getlee]

Will wifi acer load a Virgin Mobile Broadband usb dongal?

 

[SmithChrome]

Not that I know of... We have an older HP wireless printer and a single Windows notebook. I setup Google Cloud print and we can easily print from either of our two Chromebooks as the Windows computer is turned on. If you don't like that I have a feeling you'll be sneaker-netting your documents to another computer. There are wireless printers that are Google Cloud printer ready out of the box and that seems like the route to go when you do a printer replacement. As far as I know there is no way to install local printer or scanner to a Chromebook - storage seems like the only easy device to attach. ChromeOS follows the old KISS approach and I like it that way...