Chrome OS devices to cost under $400

Google CEO Eric Schmidt during the Atmosphere Cloud Computing Forum revealed that Chrome OS devices should be relatively inexpensive when they go on sale (video below). He estimated that they will cost between $300 and $400 and that all the cost will be associated with the hardware, since the OS itself is free. The most expensive part of the software is simply developing the web apps, Schmidt said.

Some strict requirements exist for Chrome OS, such as the need for a solid-state drive instead of a rotating hard disk, but the very low footprint of the platform will allow small drives that won’t incur a cost penalty.