Google Everywhere

Chrome OS is more about "Google-everywhere" than competing with the Microsoft OS in laptops, netbooks, and tablets.  They (Google) telegraph their intentions pretty clearly in the explanation video - Google Chrome OS is "steady-state".

[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QRO3gKj3qw&feature=player_embedded[/youtube]

The consensus is that computer-like features have not gone mainstream in other consumer electronics due to boot times and complicated features.  These also manifest in higher hardware and software costs and component interdependency.  Chrome OS will be ready-to-go at power-up.Remember, at its heart, Google is now an advertising company that is in the search business, not the other way around. In essence, it can be a closed system just like the iPod, funneling users towards Google-only content like search, YouTube, Picasa, and such, plus any content that is reachable via a browser.  When Chrome is the user interface to your DVD player, TV, cable box, book reader, and media player, and all of your data is stored in Google's cloud, they will get all that rich data plus more opportunities to put (more relavent) advertising in front of your eyeballs.