chrome os

There is one thing that has remained unchanged in computing over the decades and that is the venerable keyboard. While there have indeed been advancements in technologies, the layout of keyboards has mostly remained the same since the earliest days when they grew out of the typewriter. That also means that many of the conventions still used in keyboards today might already be outdated. The Caps Lock key and Google is continuing its tradition of changing that key's function and name, now known simply as the Everything Button.

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Dark mode was a big thing in the computing industry in the past few years. "Was" because almost all major platforms have already implemented it, one way or another, except Google's Chrome OS. Just like with the Chrome browser itself, Chrome OS's support for light text and content over dark backgrounds has not been consistent or complete. That may no longer be the case soon as Google has started rolling out an in-progress dark mode implementation, now available to more adventurous Chrome OS users.

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Acer revealed new TravelMate laptops, a Chrome Spin, and a Chromebox machine all ready to roll for business in 2020. Three new TravelMate notebooks were revealed with with 11th Gen Intel Core processors, 4G LTE, and MIL-STD 810G military durability standards made with "commercial users" in mind. The Chromebook Spin 513 and the Chromebox CXI4 were revealed with both standard and Enterprise editions.

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A lot of modern technologies are designed for the vast majority of people with more or less capable vision and motor skills. Smartphones, for example, presume everyone has agile and accurate fingers, not to mention good if not excellent eyesight. Even laptops with larger screens take for granted that not everyone sees the same way. To make its web-centric platform more inclusive, Google is pouring some attention on accessibility features for Chrome OS that specifically target those who aren't able to see well.

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Lenovo has introduced a new enterprise-tier Chromebook that packs a familiar ThinkPad design, but with one obvious exception: it features a striking Abyss Blue color instead of the typical black shade we've come to expect from the ThinkPad line. The new ThinkPad C13 Yoga Chromebook packs the design of a ThinkPad, the flexibility of a Yoga laptop, and the lightweight Chrome OS alongside features tailored specifically for enterprise customers.

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Chromebooks started out as affordable low-powered cloud-centric laptops designed more for basic school and office work. These days, however, they've pretty much become powerhouses, especially considering the number of operating systems and apps they can support. Despite all that, Chromebooks aren't exactly seen as fit for gaming, an image that Google wants to change with a new premium gaming section on Google Play Store that highlights the best Android games for Chromebooks.

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Google has launched a new Google Meet video calling setup, though don't get too excited: it's meant for meeting spaces, not your work-from-home video chats. The handiwork of Google and Lenovo, the Google Meet Series One system includes a microphone array with a full eight mics packed inside, a 4K smart camera, and the intelligence, Google claims, to ignore the sound of your sneaky mid-meeting snacking.

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Chromebooks, in part due to the COVID-19, have become an in-demand commodity of late and it might not be unusual for families or people to have more than one such device in their possession. Unlike more expensive laptops, it might be easier to acquire multiple Chromebooks but that doesn't make it easier to manage them all. That may no longer be true, at least when setting up and configuring Chromebooks are involved, thanks to a few small but significant updates to Chrome OS.

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MacBooks and iPhones can easily share data, Internet connections, and even Wi-Fi logins thanks to the fact that only one company makes both the hardware and the software. Google doesn't really have that luxury at least on the hardware front, making it harder for it to push features that bridge its different platforms together. Fortunately, it hasn't given up on that yet and will soon be syncing one small but important kind of data between Android and Chrome OS devices, making it easier for both devices to connect to the same Wi-Fi networks in a snap.

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Chromebook owners can now access NVIDIA's GeForce NOW cloud gaming service, with a beta launch bringing the system to Chrome OS. GeForce NOW has already been available for PC, Mac, Android, and NVIDIA's own SHIELD devices, promising to run gaming PC-quality titles in the cloud so that your local device doesn't need to do the heavy lifting.

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Google has been heavily pushing Chromebooks and Chrome OS almost as the all-in-one computer system you'll ever need, especially with the upcoming support for running Windows applications (at least on the enterprise). As a software platform, however, Chrome OS's story has never really been complete and that is manifested in the lack of quality or even notable apps and games for Chrome OS. Google is finally adding a new chapter to that story with ChromeOS.dev, its new one-stop-shop to help developers get up and running on making software for Google's OS.

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It isn't just work that was suddenly plunged into a new world. Schools are also scrambling to adjust to the "new normal", which mostly means holding lessons remotely without direct teacher supervision. That also means relying more heavily on devices, of which Chromebooks and iPads are fiercely competing in the market. Whichever of the two you choose, there will now be a Minecraft learning world ready for you as developers Mojang (owned by Microsoft) rolls out at long last Chromebook support for its Education Edition.

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