A Chromebook makes a good backup. They are cheap and are fine for browsing and email.
And I would assume they send every bit of data about your browsing habits and any other information you input back to the Google Monster.
Yes, that's good advice. Chromebooks are trouble free, and can be had for $200 or less.
They are good for email, browsing, and watching videos. If you buy a chromecast dongle for your TV, they are great for streaming video from Youtube, and even subscription services like Hulu, or Netflix. Plus Chromebooks are secure and virus free too.