When it comes to Chromebook releases, there are a few things we expect on a semi-regular basis: unclear launch windows, delayed review units, spotty in-store availability, and few included markets. OK, that’s maybe a bit harsh, but it is mostly-accurate to say that Chromebook releases and launches are far from polished gems. To add a bit of insult to injury, it also hurts that a ton of people get left out of these releases when we start talking about a worldwide audience.
Sure, Chromebooks are a bigger deal here in the US than other markets, but we get a large amount of email from folks outside our country that are constantly wondering exactly when certain Chromebooks will launch in their regions. Unfortunately, we usually don’t have any insight on the available markets for any Chromebook that is pre-launch, but with the Lenovo Duet Chromebook leaking out a bit yesterday, we’ve continued digging around to see who else might be getting it in their vicinity.
It is important to note that we have already identified 5 markets ready for launch via the Energy Star certification we found last week, and those markets are US, Switzerland, Taiwan, Japan and Canada. Notably missing from this list are the EU and UK regions, but we have yet to find anything pointing to a release in those areas for now.
On the other hand, we’ve found two new markets where the IdeaPad Chromebook Duet looks to be launching, and they are markets that tend to lag behind others in getting the latest, greatest Chromebooks. Perhaps it is Lenovo’s large, world-wide reach that is at play or it could be the overwhelmingly popular nature of this upcoming Chromebook, but either way, it looks like China and Australia are both on the radar for getting the Duet. You can see from the listings that both China and Australia have their own Amazon store fronts and both have product pages already up and running for the upcoming Duet tablet.
As Gabriel pointed out yesterday, we should only be a week or two away from a more formal announcement from Lenovo on this device and, along with all the store front arrivals, we’d imagine you’ll be able to order your own Lenovo Chromebook Duet very soon indeed. In case you need a refresher as to why we’re so excited by this little Chromebook, take a look at our hands-on time with it back in January and join in on the anticipation.
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