A cloudbook is a thin client notebook computer with a browser operating system (OS) and interface. The devices rely upon cloud storage and cloud services: Files and applications are located remotely and accessed over the Internet.
Cloudbooks offer a number of benefits over conventional notebooks. Keeping local resources to a minimum makes it possible to keep the price low while also increasing battery life. Another benefit is the portability of user data -- files and applications are connected to the user’s account, so they can be accessed on any device, from anywhere with an Internet connection. Furthermore, because data and settings are stored on remote servers, the user doesn’t have to worry about backups, updates and synchronization.
At the Computex 2011 conference in Taiwan, it was predicted that the mobile PC market would split into three form factors: netbooks, tablets and cloudbooks. Examples of the devices include Google’s Chromebook and Everex’s CloudBook.