If people with low IQs tend to use the Internet Explorer more than other browsers, it seems that in the United Kingdom, people are getting smarter by the day as more people switch to Google Chrome.

Recent reports show that the number of Google Chrome users in Britain has swelled to the point that it is now next only to Internet Explorer users. Chrome has in fact bumped Firefox from the number 2 spot, claiming 22% of all UK Internet browser users. Internet Explorer still has a clear edge with 45% of the market, but that isn’t surprising since the browser is pre-installed in most computers when you buy it in the country (and elsewhere for that matter). In spite of this, the downward trend in the number of Internet Explorer users is still very evident, especially if you consider that just about 2 years ago IE still had almost 70% of the market share, while Chrome had but a measly 1%.

This is also not the only headache that Google is giving Microsoft. There’s their increasingly frustrating problem with search as Bing fails to make any real impact despite their marketing efforts. More importantly, there’s the looming problem of the Chromebook. There is the point that we have yet to see how it will be received, but with everyone’s Internet dependence, it wouldn’t be too surprising if a laptop that gives you instant web access and lets you stay connected at all times will be welcomed with open arms.

If you wish to compare the Chromebook though with traditional laptops, you’ll have a hard time just looking at the specs since you won’t find anything about the hard disk. Afterall, the whole point of the Chromebook is that it stores and hosts its data online in a cloud, eliminating some hardware needs. This is also the reason that they should be able to sell the Chromebook at a lower price compared to Windows-powered laptops. Right now the Chromebook is going for $349 (Acer Chromebook) and $429 (Samsung Series 5 Chromebook). Though you will find lots of laptops and netbooks for less, the Chromebook should theoretically be able to outstrip them in performance.