Google and five PC makers have unveiled the first Googlebook laptops, priced from $899 to $1,299 and available for preorder now ahead of an October 4th store launch. Each model bundles a year of Google AI Pro with 5TB of cloud storage plus trial subscriptions to YouTube Premium, Photoshop and CapCut, and Google says the machines will receive up to a decade of software updates. The Acer Googlebook 14, a convertible with an OLED touchscreen, starts as the cheapest option but Acer has warned its $899 price is a limited-time launch offer that could rise later.
Android Authority tested Google Photos' new AI-powered digital wardrobe, which scans users' photo libraries to catalog their clothing and lets them virtually mix and match outfits using generative AI. The feature is rolling out gradually to paid Google One and AI subscribers in the US, Brazil, and India, but the reviewer found it plagued by inconsistent behavior, including problems tied to Google Workspace accounts. While the clothing-recognition AI performed impressively, the overall experience was described as unreliable and unfinished.
Google introduced a new laptop line called Googlebooks, built by five manufacturers, running a new Googlebook OS that blends Android and ChromeOS design. The devices sync directly with Android phones, letting users share notifications, files, apps, and even reply to texts from the laptop after linking their Google account.
Apple has begun shipping the redesigned Mac Studio, keeping its 2022-era chassis but adding M5 Max and M5 Ultra chip options in place of last year's M4 Max and M3 Ultra. The top configuration reviewed—36-core CPU, 80-core GPU, 256GB RAM, 4TB storage—runs $12,299, while entry M5 Max and M5 Ultra models start at $2,499 and $5,499 respectively.
Apple has refreshed the Mac Mini with its new M6 chip, alongside an upgraded M5 Pro tier replacing the previous M4 Pro option. The base model now starts at $899, though comparing it to the last actually-available M4 Mini (which cost $799 after Apple discontinued the cheaper $599 configuration) shows the real increase is closer to $300. Despite the higher price, reviewers still consider it the best value in Apple's current Mac lineup given broader price increases across the industry.
Google has introduced its new Googlebook laptop line, built on an OS blending Chromebook and Android elements with deep Gemini AI integration. Five initial models from Dell, Lenovo, HP, Acer and Asus go on sale October 4th, priced between $899 and $1,299, running Intel Panther Lake or Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite chips.
Google is launching Googlebook OS, a new operating system built on Android that will run on five debut laptops, including a Dell-made XPS Googlebook with high-end specs like 16GB of RAM and a Qualcomm chip. Hardware chief Rick Osterloh describes the move as a consolidation effort, ending years of Google maintaining separate ChromeOS and Android platforms for laptops versus phones and other devices.
Fast Company's Impact Council published a reflection tied to the America 250 celebration, examining how the country's founding spirit of risk-taking has driven technological breakthroughs from aviation to computing. The piece argues that sustaining this innovative edge for another quarter millennium requires deliberate policy and industry choices rather than assuming continuity.
Dartmouth College is developing its own AI-based systems, modeled partly on approaches used by companies like Google, to help students and alumni navigate career decisions as artificial intelligence reshapes hiring. The tools are meant to help people identify suitable career paths and job opportunities amid growing uncertainty in the entry-level labor market caused by automation and AI-driven recruiting.
The ESA-JAXA BepiColombo probe separated from its propulsion module on September 3, completing the final phase before entering low orbit around Mercury. The mission, delayed nearly a year after a thruster malfunction forced a slower trajectory, has traveled roughly 9.9 billion kilometers using nine gravity-assist maneuvers around Earth, Venus and Mercury.
A tech commentator argues that while AI tools like Claude, Codex/ChatGPT and Gemini are useful for coding and research, they should not be used to generate written documents from scratch. The reasoning is that writing itself is the process of thinking through a problem, and outsourcing that to AI means skipping the deep thinking required to produce genuinely useful, well-considered content. The author does allow for AI to be used afterward, to polish writing once the original thinking and drafting is complete.
Retroid has introduced the Pocket Duo Lite Plus, a new dual-screen handheld positioned between the standard Pocket Duo and the cheaper Pocket Duo Lite. It pairs the Lite's 60Hz LCD screens and digital triggers with the standard Pocket Duo's Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 chipset and 8GB/128GB memory configuration. The device launches at $219 but is discounted to $199 through a promo code available until the end of October.
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