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Google is positioning its new Googlebook laptops around deep integration with Android phones rather than expanded app support alone. Key features include casting phone apps into resizable windows on the laptop, and transferring in-progress tasks like emails or browser tabs from phone to laptop with a single click.
Aging Chromebooks that no longer perform well can still serve useful purposes rather than being discarded. By installing Linux, users can turn them into file or media servers running apps like Plex or Jellyfin, or into dedicated retro gaming machines using the Batocera emulator suite. Alternatively, ChromeOS's built-in Linux feature, Crostini, lets users run a Linux virtual machine without replacing the operating system, though with more limited performance.
In the season finale of its Version History podcast, The Verge explores how the overhead projector moved from military use into classrooms and reshaped teaching. Host David Pierce talks with Jake Kastrenakes and Stanford professor Antero Garcia about the device's history and why newer tools like PowerPoint, computer screens, and smart boards eventually replaced it. The episode caps a season covering iconic school technology including Oregon Trail, Chromebooks, One Laptop Per Child, LeapFrog's LeapPad, and TI calculators.
Leah Rowe released Libreboot 26.10, codenamed 'Ominous Olive', on 15 October 2026. The open-source BIOS/UEFI replacement now defaults to the EDK2 payload, adding full UEFI support that makes Windows compatible, while keeping GRUB/SeaBIOS as EFI builds for backward compatibility. The release also imports support for 233 Intel/AMD Chromebook boards from the MrChromebox project and introduces a new anti-AI policy file called AGENTS.md.
A reviewer testing new Android-powered Googlebooks from Asus and HP describes setup as fast and simple, taking just minutes to register biometrics, sign into a Google account, and import apps from a phone. But after setup, connecting the laptop to a phone for features like file sharing and app casting proved unreliable, often requiring repeated toggling of settings, restarts, and reconnecting after switching Wi-Fi networks.
The Verge's Version History podcast examines the LeapPad, an interactive electronic 'smart book' from LeapFrog that became one of the best-selling children's toys for several years. Hosts David Pierce, Andru Marino, and Jennifer Pattison Tuohy discuss the device's appeal, its cost, and why LeapFrog struggled to produce a lasting successor as tablets like the iPad reshaped the market.
Google began selling its first Googlebook laptops on October 4th, and The Verge received review units of all five models about a day later. The devices resemble Chromebooks but add new ways to link an Android phone to the laptop, including casting apps, moving tasks between devices, and accessing phone files and notifications directly from the laptop.
Chromebooks ship with built-in restrictions that keep most users confined to apps from the Play Store. Developer Mode is an optional setting that removes several of ChromeOS's default protections, granting root access, allowing kernel modifications, and enabling installation of software outside the Play Store. The guide walks through what the mode does, when it's worth using, and the steps to turn it on.
The Verge's Version History podcast dedicates an episode to the Cr-48, Google's unbranded 2010 test device that preceded the first commercial Chromebooks. Hosts David Pierce, Nilay Patel, and Marques Brownlee discuss the device's plain design and its role in introducing Google's browser-based computing concept, as part of a season examining classic school technology.
Android Authority's Richard Priday writes that Google is launching a new line of high-end laptops called Googlebooks, positioned as a desktop evolution of Android meant to eventually replace ChromeOS. According to the piece, the initial lineup starts at around $1,000, with no cheaper entry-level models offered at launch.
Google confirmed that existing Chromebooks will keep receiving regular updates and security patches under its Auto Update policy through mid-2034. After that, newer commercial Chromebook models with 10-year update support extending past 2034 will be eligible to switch to the newly announced Googlebook OS, though Google says more migration details are coming soon.
Google confirmed via a Help Center post that many of its newest Chromebook models will be eligible to transition to Googlebook OS, the new Android-based laptop operating system unveiled this month. The company hasn't specified which devices qualify or when the switch will be possible, saying details on migration paths and eligibility will come later. Existing Chromebooks will keep receiving updates through their normal support window, and the first Googlebooks are set to go on sale next week.