There’s a show on called BETT at the moment, and though there’s been a few interesting ChromeOS announcements. ChromeOS has pivoted from just being cheap laptops that aren’t very useful, and now represents both a powerful platform in its own right (paired with Android), but a very popular option for the Education sector.
However, this surprising development doesn’t seem to be entirely education focused. Rather, Acer appears to have made a ChromeOS tablet. Tablets have long been kind of a dead concept to me (and many others) as Android on a tablet just feels like it doesn’t quite work. However, having used a Pixelbook since December, ChromeOS on a tablet is an entirely different story. It works really very well, and revives the form factor – I’d argue – making it something more useful.
https://twitter.com/Alister_Payne/status/956625508959227904
What do we know about this mythical beast? Precisely nothing. It’s not an announced product, and appears to be a pre-release unit. The only thing suggested is that this may come with a stylus, and if it’s to be of more serious use as a ChromeOS device, there’ll likely be a keyboard option as well.
ChromeUnboxed have been tracking the development of a ChromeOS tablet through changes in the Chrome code tree and though it’s unclear if this tablet from Acer is the same thing, it certainly looks like it could be.
I for one would LOVE an 8-inch ChromeOS tablet, and I’d use it very, very often. Please please please let more manufacturers develop something like this. A ChromeOS tablet, with Android apps, would be an incredibly powerful thing.
“Android on a tablet just feels like it doesn’t quite work”
I honestly think Google shot themselves in the foot by removing TabletUI.
Android works perfectly well on a tablet, but google screwed it up – first by making the app development for orientations and different sizes a mess, and then by making the UI a mess. They would have been much better off keeping the active elements all on the bottom (as per the TabletUI and where fingers are) and dumping the top bar entirely. I don’t think ChomeOS is going to work well on a straight tablet (given the need for a keyboard) but you could sensibly make a case for a combo Android/ChomeOS 2in1 (Android on chromeOS is imperfect). They… Read more »
Android on ChromeOS isn’t perfect, but it’s pretty damned close. The only thing that bothers me – and this is a function of the UI mishmash that Google’s made for itself – is that some apps coded for phones only don’t work on ChromeOS very well. The scaling is all borked. Mostly, though, I’ve found very few apps that don’t work well.
I was just searching today to see if these existed. Awesome.
Omg yes finally! I’m so over Windows and the standard laptop form factor. A Tab S3 and keyboard dock running Chrome OS would be amazing
Something like this would be perfect to replace my aged Galaxy Tab S2 8.0 which is stuck on Android 7.0 with an April 2017 security patch!
I am very interested in chrome os as an operating system and frustrated by the poor presence held in Oz. I would love to know how ChromeOs is superior to android as I am typing this on my Pixel C, an android tablet which is one of the best products I have ever purchased. If chromeOs is better, it would be great to see how?
Main points are that ChromeOS these days can run android apps so you don’t lose anything there. Plus it offers desktop UI for multiple windows, desktop etc. You also get a desktop browser experience with Chrome extensions and a very power efficient platform. As you’re probably aware, the Pixel C was originally designed to run ChromeOS instead of android. It was only a last minute change.
Can you still use custom launchers on ChromeOS? And other system tweaks like MacroDroid and the like? I haven’t used it yet, though I do successfully use an Android tablet (by dint of patience and it being a 13″ screen)
Android launchers generally don’t work on ChromeOS.. they install, but don’t work and definitely don’t replace the standard Chrome launcher. System tweaks .. haven’t tried tbh
Yes! 8″ with 4g and stylus support would let me drop the Tab I’m constantly having low storage issues with.