Yeah, I have taken a good hard look at it, and I’m not sure I’m willing to play Apple’s game anymore. My current Macbook Air 11 has a higher base processing frequency (1.4 GHz) than the 12 (1.2 or 1.3 GHz). For a system starting at $1,299 (plus several dongles at $30-$80 apiece), and I’d rather upgrade or replace my desktop. Considering I don’t edit video or photos on the laptop (I save that for the desktop, and even when I need a quick photo edit on the go I just use pixlr), I’m not sure I even need a full featured system. Most of what I do is web-based these days anyway, so what I really need is just a portal to the web. The smaller and less expensive the better. I could buy at least three turbocharged chromebooks for the price of one macbook 12. Then a few bluetooth speakers and power banks for the price of all those dongles.
I’ve also ditched pretty much every piece of software possible in favor of Google Docs. The only exception is Keynote - Keynote presentations are sexier than any other platform. It’s hard to give up MagicMove for sure, but I’m getting used to presenting from google Slides. They have a pretty sweet Q&A feature that lets people interact with you in real time. It’s also real easy to publish and collaborate from there.
This is in stark contrast to Apple’s cloud system, which gets more frustrating and convoluted every day. Add that to the myopic design sense Apple is suffering from right now, their obsession with DRM, and their absurd pricing model and it’s enough to make even the most dedicated Mac fan consider jumping ship.
You are right, though - If I were recommending to someone a primary system, I would not recommend a chromebook. This is definitely a secondary device for me. The lack of storage and limited software availability are huge concerns for anyone that wants to use a chromebook for primary purposes (unless your primary purposes are email and facebook I guess).