Early indications on Google developer code commits suggest that the early Project Campfire dual-boot solution are dead. They'll be winding down the program immediately. Now it's time to speak about what we'll be able to run instead. We begin with one very helpful sort of keyword: Chrulrabook.
Fuchsia isn't exactly a total secret. It has been spotted numerous times, partially thanks to its open source nature. But while Google hasn't taken pains to hide this third operating system, it also hasn't said much about it. Perhaps for the first time in a long while and in the biggest way possible, Fuchsia's existence and goal has been confirmed by a high-ranking Google official. And not just any Google exec but the very man who heads Android and Chrome OS, the two platforms Fuchsia is expected to unify or replace.
Gone are the days when Chrome OS felt simply like a glorified web browser limited to Google's apps and services. Google says it designed the platform around speed, simplicity, and security but, to be honest, only two of those probably still hold. Chrome OS has grown up to be quite the complicated beast and now Google is revealing what it was all for: Web and Android app development.
Google has been promoting Chrome OS and Chromebooks as the platform to use to get real work done but even its fans will admit it's not there yet. Juggling three platforms in one probably isn't easy so when Google does make strides in all of them, there's reason for Chrome OS users to celebrate. The latest major release, version 74, won't immediately make it the OS to finally beat Windows and macOS but at least now it can be more useful especially for Linux users.
So you'd like to see another Chromebook, would you? Today HP's got a new Chromebook with a 15-inch display that FHD and works with touch. FHD is "full-HD", aka 1080p, which means it has 1920 x 1080 pixels across its full 15.6-inches (diagonally) touchscreen display. This bit rolls with 8th gen Intel Core i processors, up to 128GB SSD, and dual speakers with B&O branding (tuning).
Google just revealed their plan to turn Android phones into 2FA (2-factor authorization, 2-Step Verification) keys using Bluetooth and Chrome. Users need an Android phone running Android 7.0 or newer, as well as a desktop or notebook computer running Mac OS, Windows, or Chrome OS. Users can activate this security method right this minute.
Google is known for making products that they practically abandon after one or two iterations. Sometimes they don't even reach store shelves at all. With the company's downsizing of its projects and teams working on laptops and products, there was some speculation that Google was, in effect, deprecating its Chrome OS line of laptops and tablets. At its Cloud Next 19 conference, however, the company hints that the story is far from over.
Google may be cutting down on its work with hardware products in the very near future, per an announcement made to some employees at the business this week. It's been suggested by several people familiar with the matter that Google's informed "dozens" of engineers and program managers that they should seek employment elsewhere within Alphabet. That doesn't bode well for any sort of major expansion of products in the near future.
Short of Fuschia really becoming a thing, Chrome OS is, for all intents and purposes, the Google OS people have been speculating about years ago. From a limited, web-centric, and almost negligible platform designed for schools, Chrome OS has fully blossomed to become a serious threat to the duopoly of Windows and Mac on desktops.
As Chrome OS expands both its software and hardware ecosystem beyond its humble roots, it has the potential to become the consumption and production platform to beat. That, however, depends on one crucial, missing piece.
Samsung recently announced the Galaxy Tab S5e without much fanfare and it was received with equal amounts of interest. Granted, the tablet sounded more like an "economy" (Samsung will probably call it "essentials") edition of a proper Galaxy Tab S5, but the silent treatment closely echoes the reception of Android tablets of late, even from brands like Lenovo and Huawei.
Android tablets are, for all intents and purposes, dead and there is little to no hope of a revival. Chromebooks, or Chrome OS tablets, do seem to be the way forward but Google and its partners need to be careful lest they repeat the same mistakes all over again.
Although not exactly billed as a mostly consumption platform like Android, Chrome OS's image has mostly been limited to basic computing tasks, especially word processing and Internet-related activities that students and office workers often do. It was only recently that Google made serious efforts to present Chrome OS as a place to get real work done, especially in contrast to iOS on iPads. Its next trick will take it further in that direction, putting it on the same level as desktop operating systems with virtual desktops.
Google Chrome developers are currently testing a mode dubbed "NeverSlowMode" by its creator. This function is not yet live in Google Chrome in any public form, but might soon be - if all its cards are played JUST right. The deal is that this code will flip a switch on the internet, making your internet feel very, very quick! Unfortunately, there's a rather sizable drawback.