14 DAY TRIAL // Day 2 of the 2011 Google I/O conference is all about Chrome and Chrome OS. There should be plenty of announcements coming in just a few hours and a fresh new rumor suggests that one of them will be Chrome netbooks for $20 per month for students.
Google has always said that, when it comes to Chrome OS, the device itself is largely irrelevant.
Everything is stored in the cloud so a user can switch from one device to another and never notice any difference.
In the past, there have been hints of devices that eschew the up-front price in favor of a monthly plan.
While initially, the idea was to have Chrome OS laptops offered along with data plans from carriers, it looks like Google is gearing up for something much more interesting.
Forbes reports that Google is about to reveal that it will offer Chrome OS-powered devices for as little as $20 per month. The program is addressed to schools and students and it will be tied into Google Apps.
The idea is that schools pay the monthly fee for access to Google Apps for Education, which is usually free, along with the devices for students to take home and access the applications.
Google Apps comes with a number of tools, word processor, spreadsheet editor - part of Google Docs, webmail client - Gmail, and plenty of other applications from Google and third-parties.
The program is just a first step though, Google's real plan is to expand it to businesses as well. Plenty of companies would love the idea of replaceable devices that depend completely on the cloud.
For those that have already moved to Google Apps, a way of essentially renting devices catered specifically for it for their employees or a small price hike should be appealing. Google Apps for Business costs $50 per year per user, adding $10 or $20 per month to that to get a laptop as well sounds interesting.