A Chromebook is a type of laptop that runs a lightweight Google Chrome OS rather than a Windows OS (Windows 11) or Mac OS.  They rely on cloud storage (Google Drive) and web-based applications (Google Docs, Gmail, Google Sheets etc) instead of traditional locally installed software.

This translates to devices that require less resources (CPU, Memory, local storage) and therefore typically makes them less expensive.

For many users, the primary (or only) need for a laptop is to access the internet with a browser to accomplish their needed tasks.

Chromebooks provide a  simpler technology, that does not require additional software to be installed (and maintained) and are typically more secure and less vulnerable to typical attacks from malware etc.

Chromebooks are heavily used in Education, small business and for many individual users.