Google's Googlebook isn't a better Chromebook, it's an attempt to rebuild the PC around Android

[Daniel Sims]

Looking ahead: Google has completely pulled back the curtain on its replacement for the Chromebook platform, designed to tackle Windows and macOS head-on. The upcoming notebooks from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo aim to bring the Android software stack to a full-blown PC operating system for Arm and x86 devices.

Pre-orders are now open for the first Googlebook laptops from five manufacturers. Starting prices range from $899 to $1,299.

Google is positioning the notebooks as the ultimate companions for Android phone owners. When a user first signs into a Googlebook, it can instantly import the phone's settings, saved passwords, and Wi-Fi connections.

Similar to how Macs can access all the files and apps on a user's iPhone, a Googlebook can seamlessly summon an Android phone's files and messages. Users can start a task on a mobile app and continue on the Googlebook. The machines combine the Android and Chromebook environments by natively supporting Android apps alongside a desktop-grade Chrome experience, complete with extensions.

Unsurprisingly, Google's AI assistant, Gemini, is at the core of the OS. Wiggling the mouse summons the assistant to answer questions and complete various tasks. A dedicated button, called Rambler, also transcribes spoken words into headers, checklists, formatted takeaways, and other documents. Users can also use prompts to create custom widgets or build apps through the Antigravity AI agent platform.

Each Googlebook includes a year of Google AI Pro and three months of YouTube Premium, Adobe Photoshop, and more. Google promises to provide up to a decade of content and feature updates.

The Dell and HP Googlebooks run on Snapdragon X Elite processors, while Intel Core Ultra 5 chips serve as the baseline for the others, and all of the SoCs include NPUs that achieve up to 45 TOPs. With a 13.4-inch 2.5K LCD touchscreen, Dell's XPS Googlebook is the smallest. The others sport 14-inch 2.8K OLED panels, except Lenovo's, which measures 15.3 inches. Starting models all include 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, and some are upgradeable to 32GB of memory.

Other features include backlit keyboards, haptic trackpads, and Google's Glowbar, which displays patterns in response to boot cycles, battery level, and AI actions. Google's Titan C2 security chip supports fingerprint readers on all models, while the HP and Lenovo notebooks also include facial unlock. The laptops also feature aluminum, magnesium alloy, and carbon fiber chassis.

Googlebooks will be available starting October 4 in the US and October 5 in Canada, the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, and Australia.

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Google's Googlebook isn't a better Chromebook, it's an attempt to rebuild the PC around Android

 

[OortCloud]

Please don't make Windows' replacement be a product by Google. It would be like replacing Satan with Beelzebub, Sepp Blatter with Gianni Infantino or the Kiddy-Fiddler-In-Chief with JD Vance.

 

[LemmingO]

LOLOL. Who wants to buy a device with an entire OS built around tracking everything you do to monetize your personal data?

 

[DEMinSoCal]

If you don't like Windows, get a Mac. If you don't like either, use Linux. Who thinks buying a high end laptop to run low-end Android apps on yet another OS is a good idea?

I predict a fire sale on Googlebooks in a year.

 

[Greggs]

Too little, too late. There's nothing to offer that Windows, Mac, or Linux don't already have.

 

[DEMinSoCal]

Too little, too late. There's nothing to offer that Windows, Mac, or Linux don't already have.

Except 100% Google experience (which, let's be honest, who wants that?)

 

[trents]

I wouldn't dismiss this too quickly. A lot of people's lives these days revolve around their phones. If you offer them a device with a full-size keyboard and larger screen that make doing larger tasks easier, yet works just like their android phone, they will snap it up.

 

[TomWitt2]

If you don't like Windows, get a Mac. If you don't like either, use Linux. Who thinks buying a high end laptop to run low-end Android apps on yet another OS is a good idea?

I predict a fire sale on Googlebooks in a year.

The thing of it is, Chromebooks have the ability to provide a Google curated Linux environment by enabling the Linux Development tools. It provides a fully functional Linux environment on which you can install your favorite Linux apps and do all the apt install goodness you'd expect from your favorite Debian distribution. As this has been a VM environment, there are some rough edges (eg getting a microphone to work with the VM). Googlebooks are going to take this a step further by giving linux direct access to the low level hardware.

The Chromebook Plus' of a few years ago can now be had at bargain basement prices on Ebay. An HP Dragonfly Elite, i7 32GB, (used by employees at Google, the workstation at end of lease/aged out) can be had on Ebay for a little over $200. This makes a FANTASTIC Linux machine.

These new Googlebooks will have an even better version of the Linux development environment, again curated by Google, with all the Android-y Google-y exta special sauce on top as a bonus. This is the main draw of the Googlebook for me.

Go ahead an laugh at me using my "simple" Chromebook. I can do the same software engineering (VSCode, Claude) as you do at a much lower workstation cost. (Yeah, you may have an avantage in using team communcation apps... for now.)

These Googlebooks are going to be amazing from a pure Linux perspective.

 

[DEMinSoCal]

I wouldn't dismiss this too quickly. A lot of people's lives these days revolve around their phones. If you offer them a device with a full-size keyboard and larger screen that make doing larger tasks easier, yet works just like their android phone, they will snap it up.

Most of what people do on their phones doesn't need a $1300 Snapdragon based laptop with tons of cores and RAM. I agree people spend most of their day on their phones, but not doing heavy lifting apps like Mac and Windows are written to do. It seems overkill.

Want a larger screen and keyboard? Get an Android tablet for far less.

 

[airbornex]

Google finally admitting Chromebooks needed real apps this whole time, seven years and several failed Android integration attempts later... on the upside, $899 starting price with 16GB RAM in the middle of a memory shortage seems like great timing.

 

[DEMinSoCal]

Google finally admitting Chromebooks needed real apps this whole time, seven years and several failed Android integration attempts later... on the upside, $899 starting price with 16GB RAM in the middle of a memory shortage seems like great timing.

$900 is average, but the main thing is, if this Google OS peters out, are you left with a boat anchor or can it run any other standard OS?

 

[DEMinSoCal]

The thing of it is, Chromebooks have the ability to provide a Google curated Linux environment by enabling the Linux Development tools. It provides a fully functional Linux environment on which you can install your favorite Linux apps and do all the apt install goodness you'd expect from your favorite Debian distribution. As this has been a VM environment, there are some rough edges (eg getting a microphone to work with the VM). Googlebooks are going to take this a step further by giving linux direct access to the low level hardware.

The Chromebook Plus' of a few years ago can now be had at bargain basement prices on Ebay. An HP Dragonfly Elite, i7 32GB, (used by employees at Google, the workstation at end of lease/aged out) can be had on Ebay for a little over $200. This makes a FANTASTIC Linux machine.

These new Googlebooks will have an even better version of the Linux development environment, again curated by Google, with all the Android-y Google-y exta special sauce on top as a bonus. This is the main draw of the Googlebook for me.

Go ahead an laugh at me using my "simple" Chromebook. I can do the same software engineering (VSCode, Claude) as you do at a much lower workstation cost. (Yeah, you may have an avantage in using team communcation apps... for now.)

These Googlebooks are going to be amazing from a pure Linux perspective.

Linux users are a very small slice of the personal OS pie. The large majority of people with Android phones wouldn't have a clue what to do with Linux or how to install it. So for people like you, it's a specialized tool that fits your needs/wants/desires. But how many do manufacturers have to sell to make it worthwhile to come out with Gen 2?

 

[Mr Majestyk]

Not on a cold day in hell would I buy one of these. Google can't be serious, they make Microshite look like a grade A ethical company.

Linux
MacOS
Windows



daylight


GoogleOS

 

[Theinsanegamer]

This is an epic fail waiting to happen. ChromeOS is a failure of an "OS" and nobody wants android with a keyboard. ChromeOS buyers use them as disposable terminals for web applications.

$900 is average, but the main thing is, if this Google OS peters out, are you left with a boat anchor or can it run any other standard OS?

$900 is cheapest. The rest are $1000+.

And once updates end, you're don't. These don't have UEFI so just getting Linux on these is a patchwork nightmare. My old Acer can run Linux but it has no audio and it was never fixed.

 

[Taroo]

I would rather have an ARM-based laptop running a regular GNU-Linux distro.
Why bother with Google telemetry and intrusive apps when you can just have a similar experience with a privacy friendly alternative ?

 

[DEMinSoCal]

$900 is cheapest. The rest are $1000+.

What I meant was $900 was an average price for a laptop with 16GB in Windows land, not the average price of a Googlebook. BUT, give it 6 months and $900 may be the average price of a Googlebook!

The first-gen Snapdragon laptops for Windows, which many have stellar specs, went on fire sale (many still show up now and then) and you can get some killer hardware for super-cheap.

 

[LordVile95]

LOLOL. Who wants to buy a device with an entire OS built around tracking everything you do to monetize your personal data?

I mean anyone with an android should be able to tell you

 

[LordVile95]

What I meant was $900 was an average price for a laptop with 16GB in Windows land, not the average price of a Googlebook. BUT, give it 6 months and $900 may be the average price of a Googlebook!

The first-gen Snapdragon laptops for Windows, which many have stellar specs, went on fire sale (many still show up now and then) and you can get some killer hardware for super-cheap.

The first gen snapdragon laptops were pitiful. It was faster to run a windows VM on a Mac than it was to run one of those

 

[poohbear]

I wouldn't dismiss this too quickly. A lot of people's lives these days revolve around their phones. If you offer them a device with a full-size keyboard and larger screen that make doing larger tasks easier, yet works just like their android phone, they will snap it up.

I agree. More competition is always welcome, and this is a reminder to Microsoft that it needs to pick up the slack because there are viable alternatives for a huge host of people that use Android everyday.

 

[DEMinSoCal]

I agree. More competition is always welcome, and this is a reminder to Microsoft that it needs to pick up the slack because there are viable alternatives for a huge host of people that use Android everyday.

Use Android for what? What are they doing that needs a high-powered Snapdragon ARM chip or Intel Core Ultra 7? I'm serious asking because while I agree there are a lot of Android users, the vast majority use their tiny phones and mostly for email, streaming, chatting and social media. Or to order food, do their banking and hail an UBER. Those few that need a bigger screen get a tablet and a keyboard.

What sort of real WORK is being done on Android that would necessitate a laptop of this caliber?

 

[LemmingO]

If you don't like Windows, get a Mac. If you don't like either, use Linux. Who thinks buying a high end laptop to run low-end Android apps on yet another OS is a good idea?

I predict a fire sale on Googlebooks in a year.

I eagerly await the opportunity to jailbreak it and install something else.

 

[DEMinSoCal]

I eagerly await the opportunity to jailbreak it and install something else.

No need to waste money on these. There are plenty of deals for this caliber laptop (hardware-wise) with Windows for less money, everyday. These aren't really anything special except for what they run.

 

[Cabuzzi]

The thing of it is, Chromebooks have the ability to provide a Google curated Linux environment by enabling the Linux Development tools. It provides a fully functional Linux environment on which you can install your favorite Linux apps and do all the apt install goodness you'd expect from your favorite Debian distribution. As this has been a VM environment, there are some rough edges (eg getting a microphone to work with the VM). Googlebooks are going to take this a step further by giving linux direct access to the low level hardware.

The Chromebook Plus' of a few years ago can now be had at bargain basement prices on Ebay. An HP Dragonfly Elite, i7 32GB, (used by employees at Google, the workstation at end of lease/aged out) can be had on Ebay for a little over $200. This makes a FANTASTIC Linux machine.

These new Googlebooks will have an even better version of the Linux development environment, again curated by Google, with all the Android-y Google-y exta special sauce on top as a bonus. This is the main draw of the Googlebook for me.

Go ahead an laugh at me using my "simple" Chromebook. I can do the same software engineering (VSCode, Claude) as you do at a much lower workstation cost. (Yeah, you may have an avantage in using team communcation apps... for now.)

These Googlebooks are going to be amazing from a pure Linux perspective.

Fast forward to less than a month later, and the secret is out. The best I could find on eBay (not "for parts") was $399 with "low battery health". One without any issues was $649.

There were several other, older models, with 8 or 16gb of RAM, or i3 CPUs. Bummer!

 

[Cabuzzi]

I mean anyone with an android should be able to tell you

As if Apple devices don't. I'd be willing to bet you can control telemetry on an Android a heckuva lot easier on an Android device, too.

 

[LordVile95]

As if Apple devices don't. I'd be willing to bet you can control telemetry on an Android a heckuva lot easier on an Android device, too.

Nowhere near the same extent or with the same level of personal detail. You’re also not forced to use googles services