Chrome OS is Google's cloud-connected desktop operating system.
This web-apps focused OS powers mostly inexpensive Chromebooks, offering a low-cost laptop option for people of modest means or basic needs.
That affordability, along with tie-ins to Google's online productivity apps, has made the OS popular in the education market.
Chrome OS's Android app compatibility has given the OS new life and millions of new software choices, though the support for those apps is inconsistent.
In any case, Android apps are still mobile apps and sometimes not suited to high-power computing needs.
Still, for the right users, Chrome OS is a strong choice.
Chrome OS has gotten more touch support since our last review update, though it still doesn’t deliver an ideal tablet experience.
More importantly, Android apps are to some extent better integrated into the OS, almost to the point of not needing the increasingly irrelevant Chrome Web Store for the browser-based apps that used to be the only kind the OS offered.
The OS has indeed come a long way since the beginning.
When Chrome OS first launched, it was little more than a version of Ubuntu that ran just one app: The Chrome web browser.
Google's desktop OS has added many capabilities since then, like resizable windows and decent printing options, in addition to the Android app support.
Using a Chromebook while offline was problematic in the early days of the OS, but apps now offer decent offline functionality.
That's not to say my experience with Chrome OS has been completely hiccup-free: I occasionally encountered a blank white app or settings window.
Pricing and Hardware Options
Google does not make Chrome OS installation media available the way Ubuntu and Windows 10 do.
It's only officially available on Google-sanctioned devices, most of which fall into the Chromebook and Chromebox categories.
Since the code of the operating system is open source as part of the Chromium OS project, other developers have produced installers, including (early on) Hexxen Flow and NeverwareCloudReady.
You could, with a bit of gumption, try installing Chromium OS on standard PC hardware as well, since it's freely available, but you might encounter hardware incompatibilities.
The majority of users should buy hardware with the OS preinstalled.
For this review, I tested Chrome OS on a Pixelbook Go, a much better piece of hardware than the majority of Chrome OS users (who are usually drawn in by the low cost of Chromebooks) are likely to have.
Most Chromebooks cluster around the $300 price point.
The Pixelbook Go starts at $649, for a 13.3-inch HD display, 8GB RAM, 64GB storage, and an Intel Core m3.
Google's even-higher-end Pixelbook is a premium piece of hardware with a high-resolution (2,400-by-1,600 pixel) touch screen with stylus input capability, a Core i7 CPU, and 512GB SSD— it retails for a cool $1,649, though the lowest-specced Pixelbook starts at $999 list.
The move to keyboard-less tablets running Chrome OS started with the summer 2018 release of the Acer Chromebook Tab 10 for the education market.
In the fall of that year, Google released its own Pixel Slate, along with some OS updates to accommodate touch-only users.
In his review of the Slate, our hardware analyst Tom Brant says that it offers “superior hardware, but in practice, it falls short of topping the Apple iPad, Chromebooks, or Windows tablets.”
Since Chrome OS is primarily a cloud-connected OS, it's surprising that it’s nearly impossible to find a Chromebook with LTE.
Google's earlier Chromebook Pixel included this capability, but the current Pixelbooks don't.
I couldn't find any LTE-equipped Chromebooks for sale from other hardware vendors, either, though you can get the Samsung Chromebook Plus from Verizon with a mobile service contract.
Thankfully, Google has introduced Instant Tethering, which dispenses with the need for a mobile connection on the computer—you can just use your Android phone's.
Of course, if you use an iPhone, that doesn't help you.
A couple more Chrome OS hardware options are Chromebases and Chromebits.
The former are all-in-one PCs from LG and Acer, though they seem to be no longer in production.
Chromebits are very small units similar to the Intel Compute Stick, designed to be plugged into an HDTV to give it computing capabilities.
Chrome OS and Peripherals
When it comes to peripherals, Chrome OS works with USB keyboards, mice, and hubs, as well as with select Bluetooth peripherals.
The company recently launched the Works With Chromebook program to make it easier for users to find compatible devices, which will sport a Chrome logo and the program's name.
Chrome OS supports monitors connected by DisplayPort, DVI, HDMI, and VGA.
The mouse and display support alone make Chrome OS a better choice for some business users than iPadOS on an iPad—though Apple recently added support (with limitations) for mice and trackpads with iOS 13.4.
Be aware, however, that you may not find Chrome OS hardware drivers for some peripherals that don't have the Works With logo.
Storage. When I plugged in a USB thumb drive (the Pixelbooks only have USB C ports, but luckily I have one USB-C storage key), the OS correctly identified the storage and opened a file-browsing window.
Note that the OS mimics Apple's macOS in that it annoyingly displays a notification whenever you unplug the USB key without first telling the OS you want to eject it.
Windows just deals with the inevitable, without scolding you.
Chrome OS now supports the SMB 3.0 protocol, which means you can use network storage like that found in any of the popular Synology NAS devices, for example.
This is especially important for people or organizations with large media needs like photo, video, and audio files that they want to store locally for fast access.
Monitors. Chrome OS has decent multi-monitor support.
When I plugged the Pixelbook's USB-C port into an HDMI adapter and a widescreen monitor in turn, the system instantly extended the display to the external monitor.
It also lets you mirror or turn off the main screen.
Network Adapters. Most people will set up a Chrome OS computer with a Wi-Fi connection, but it supports Ethernet adapters for those who need a wired connection.
Printers. I had less luck with printers and Chrome OS, though Google has made efforts to beef up printer support.
If it doesn’t find your Wi-Fi printer automatically, you can manually enter an IP address and download a driver.
Unfortunately, a Chrome OS driver is not available for my Brother HL-4150CDN printer.
Chrome OS supports five Internet Printing Protocols as well as Line Printer Daemon.
It also supports Google Cloud Print-enabled printers, though that service is being retired at the end of the year.
But on the positive side, word on the street is that Chrome OS will be getting printer management functionality like that found on other desktop OSes.
What About Multiboot? You can boot Windows on a Mac using Boot Camp and you can boot Ubuntu on a Windows PC (or even macOS if you're very brave and savvy).
Chrome OS doesn't officially support any form of multibooting; CloudReady's Chrome OS distro supported the capability for a while, but retired it in June 2018.
After reports that Google was working on a option for dual-booting Windows 10 in Chrome OS, that initiative is apparently dead.
There are some workarounds and third-party utilities that can produces multibooting, but the capability is not part of the official OS.
Using Chrome OS’s Linux core, however, is in beta (see Linux section below.)
Bluetooth and Miracast. In testing, my Chromebook identified smartphones, PCs, TVs, speakers, headphones and more over Bluetooth.
You can sync a smartphone, as mentioned above, to use for quick two-factor authentication.
Displaying your Chromebook or box's screen onto a large TV is a cinch; just choose the Cast Devices Available option from the status tray menu at lower right.
Getting Started: Setting Up Chrome OS
To get going with Chrome OS, you simply charge your Chromebook and hit the power button.
The first screen has you choose your language and accessibility options.
The latter include ChromeVox (spoken feedback), large mouse cursor, high contrast mode, screen magnifier, and on-screen keyboard.
Connect to the Internet. As with most device setups these days, the first step is to connect to the internet.
After you're connected, you must agree to the license terms and decide whether you want to send usage data back to Google.
I opted out; Google knows plenty about me already.
The setup wizard then checked for, found, and installed updates.
Google Is Watching. Next, you have to sign in to a Google account.
Windows, Mac, and Ubuntu all let you use the computer without an account, but that's just not an option with Chrome OS.
So, if you're hesitant to have all your activity stored on Google's servers, another OS is probably better for you.
After logging into a Gmail account, I saw a message that my settings would be synced and that my browsing history would be used to "personalize Search, ads, and other Google services." You can change these settings on your Google Activity Controls page.
Get Ready for Android. Next comes an Android app feature and accepting Google Play's terms of service.
This involves agreeing to store app data on Google Drive.
It also involves sharing your location with Google location services and allowing apps to automatically download and update.
Next (and something new since my original review) the setup offered to install apps from my other devices, but it was unable to find these, even though I had logged into Android devices with the account I used for this testing.
The Google Assistant setup pops up, which involves a few more privacy permissions.
One is to allow the tool to create a unique sonic model of your voice, using what it calls Voice Match.
Next comes connecting your phone to the Chromebook.
This lets you conduct texting, unlock the computer using the phone, and best of all, get the phone's mobile internet connection on the Chromebook automatically.
After allowing Assistant, Chrome OS takes you through a brief but enjoyable tour of all its charms, highlighting areas of interest along the way.
One feather in Chrome OS's cap is the ease with which you can switch users, though macOS and Windows also make this easy.
Chrome OS also adds the ability to easily log in as a Guest account.
At the bottom of the lock screen are choices for Browse as Guest and Add Person.
Guests cannot install apps, either web or Android, but interestingly, they can download files.
Like some Windows and macOS laptops, a few Chromebooks do support fingerprint biometric login, including the Pixel Slate and the impressive Samsung Galaxy Chromebook (which also sports a 4K touch screen).
You can, happily, use a PIN to unlock the computer, and a beta feature lets you do the same with an Android phone.
But you still must sign in with a full password on startup.
Surprisingly, the PIN and passwords you choose have no security requirements—I was able to set mine as 123456 and 111111.
You'll want to use more secure passwords.
Once you're up and running (and even before that), a well-designed and thorough Get Help app can assist you in moving to, setting up, and using your Chrome OS machine.
Interface and Windowing: Getting Around the OS
As you'd expect from Google, the OS's interface is very search- and browser-centric.
Unlike most desktop operating systems, Chrome OS doesn't let you pin icons for apps and files onto the desktop.
Instead, you use the Launcher or the Dock.
The Launcher, a circular button at bottom left, is similar to the Windows Start button and macOS's Launchpad.
The Shelf. The dock or taskbar along the bottom of the screen, which Google calls the Shelf, only contains some Google apps by default.
In its last major UI update Google changed the shelf icons to be center-aligned rather than left aligned.
After you run a Chrome app, such as Google Photos, from the app panel that slides up when you drag on launcher button, no separate icon appears for it in the dock.
Only Android apps and web apps you pin appear there.
Windows and macOS, by contrast, always show your running apps' icons in the dock/taskbar.
Gmail and Google Drive, however, doget icons by default, and it's not possible to remove the Chrome icon from the Shelf.
Aside from a tiny underline to indicate an app is active, these shelf icons offer no functionality to speak of.
For example, in Windows you can pause or skip back and forward from the Spotify app's taskbar icon, or see the last several documents opened in a productivity app with Jump Lists.
In Chrome OS, the only choices are pinning the app and autohiding the shelf.
I do like that tapping a shelf icon a second time minimizes the app, a convenience not found in macOS but long present in Windows.
Two-finger tapping an app icon in the shelf lets you see its info or uninstall it.
The Launcher. The Launcher is opened via a circular icon at the far left of the shelf.
(I wish they’d moved this to the center, which would conform to the Android launcher and the new center-aligned shelf look.) This tool offers quick access to apps and search.
But Chrome OS's version of the launcher is less functional than Windows' Start, which also gives access to settings, power, and larger tiles for your favorite apps, which is especially helpful with touch screens.
The Launcher is more similar to macOS' Launchpad.
I wish that the Launcher had separate sections for Android apps and web apps, especially for cases where both types exist, such as Netflix and Spotify.
The Files Window. Chrome OS's Files window has improved since my last look at the OS.
Now you clearly see files stored on the local machine in the top section of its left navigation panel, which contains Audio, Images, Videos, and My Files choices.
Google Drive locations are below that.
Previously the only local files resided in the Downloads section, and that was under the Google Drive folder, so it wasn’t even clear that they were actually on the local computer.
There’s also a new Play files folder, where Android apps may store their data in subfolders.
The Files window helpfully shows a Recent section at the top; similar to Windows’ Quick Access folder, which I find indispensable.
The Status Tray Menu. This strip at the right of the Shelf shows the time, Wi-Fi status, and battery status.
Clicking it lets you adjust volume, sign out of...
