Wednesday, January 11, 2012

How to Install Chrome OS in Windows 7

English: This is a logo owned by Google Inc. f...Image via Wikipedia

Google unveiled Chrome OS in an event yesterday where they demonstrated the upcoming cloud-based OS for the first time in public. Source code of Chrome OS was also released which folks over at gdgt have compiled in a ready-to-install .vmdk file. All you need now is a system running Windows, Linux or OS X with any of the virtualization software like VMware or VirtualBox installed to get Chrome OS running within minutes.

Chrome OS VM running under Windows 7. Click here to see the image in high resolution.

The following guide will help you install and run Google Chrome OS in VirtualBox under Windows 7. VMware Workstation can also be used to install and run Chrome OS VM in Windows 7.

Step 1: Download and install the latest version of VirtualBox for Windows 7. (download link is given below)

Step 2: Download .vmdk file for Google Chrome OS. (download link is given below)

Step 3: Start VirtualBox and click on “New” button. This will start a wizard that will help you create a new VM in VirtualBox.

Step 4: Name your VM “Chrome OS” and select “Linux” from Operating System dropdown menu, and “Other Linux” from Version dropdown menu.


Step 5: Assign your VM some Ram in megabytes. For this tutorial, I have allotted Chrome OS VM 512 MB of Ram.

Step 6: Now Select “use existing hard disk” option and select the .vmdk file of Chrome OS that you downloaded in Step 2.

Step 7: Click Next and finish the wizard.

That’s it! your final VM setup should look something like this:

 Now simply click on the green colored “Start” button as seen in the screenshot above and wait for about 7 seconds for Chrome OS to boot up. You will need a valid Google ID to login into the operating system.

Feel free to ask me any question should you run into any problem in getting Chrome OS VM to work under Windows 7.

You can follow me on twitter or join our facebook fanpage to keep yourself updated on all the latest Google Chrome OS releases.

BlackBerry Storm 2 – Review

Photograph of a Blackberry 7250 CDMA Smart Dev...Image via Wikipedia

BlackBerry Storm 2

This is the week of BlackBerry Strom2 launch. After months of having kept waiting this pre-review is bringing some all rounded launch with some interesting wrapping off to be bringing with the BlackBerry Storm 2. This has come out right after the US carrier Verizon Wireless announcement with the fresh new device. This is also about filling up some of the gaps that the original storm had brought with itself.

It is new and original with some of the greatest improvements coming with the SurePress touch. This technology brings a tactile feedback for those who have been using it. This is also all about smartphones with the latest WiFi coming with a Verizon BlackBerry. The Al Sacco has been one of the greatest releases with the funny catch up coming over with the chronicling past.

Lenovo ThinkPad T410 – A Review

English: The logo on a Lenovo Thinkpad W500 40...Image via Wikipedia
ThinkPad T410

The new Lenovo ThinkPad T410 is the very latest in its range of business notebooks. This 14.1 inch laptop, with its Core i5 CPU and sleek design, promises high levels of performance. The design of this particular laptop is rather nice – the sides are angularly shaped, and there is a new stylish keyboard/LCD light layout. The system, as a result, looks not only attractive but also more modern. This laptop also promises to be more durable, because of the materials used. The lid in the chassis is made from ABS plastic and a strong carbon-fiber reinforced plastic bottom. And if you are worried about your notebook getting damaged, don’t worry as there is an internal roll cage.


This laptop weighs about 5.2 pounds, there is a standard 6-cell battery, in size and weight it’s almost equivalent to the Lenovo ThinkPad T400, but this one is different in the sense that it is more compact, and far easier to carry around. This is probably due to the tapered edges as well as the plastic bottom.

You will see the ThinkPad logo on the black rubberized screen, the shiny matte-black chassis and palm rest are also there – as with previous models, and of course, the strong and visible stainless steel screen hinges are also there. But there are more ports than with previous models, and also some new types of connections. The bottom of the laptop has also changed – there is now a user-access panel which allows you to install more RAM, or even a wireless card, without having to open up your notebook.

Overall, the build still seems more or less the same – but there are a few negative things to say here. Firstly, the screen lid seems a little weak on the left side – thus pressure applied to the lid shows as distortion of the LCD. This is just true for the left side of the screen cover, though. Another point is the access panel at the bottom – this is quite weak because it bows slightly when installed, and flexes much more than any surrounding panel. Perhaps a metal panel might have worked, who knows?

All the T410 models come with LED backlighting now. But there hasn’t been much change in the increase or decrease of display quality, from the previous models. There is good color reproduction as well as contrast, on the WXGA screen, but unfortunately there is a slight blue tint as compared to a neutral white. The speakers are also of pretty good quality – you can easily fill a small room with the sound, but the bass and the midrange seem a little low.

The keyboard is also pretty much the same – but there is a new function key layout, for example the Escape and Delete buttons have been increased in size, and a backlit power button and a microphone mute button have also been added. In fact, if you are one of those people who like the Control key being the last in the row, there is a new feature which allows you to change the Function and Control keys through specific software!