Google is said to be working on a new operating system codenamed Andromeda at this point in time. Andromeda, as previously reported, is the coming together of Android the mobile operating system and Chrome OS, the software that runs on Google’s Chromebooks based on the Chrome browser.
Here’s where it gets interesting: apparently, according to 9to5Google, the first two devices to arrive with the rumoured new hybrid operating system are that 7-inch tablet that Huawei is reportedly working on and another device, a laptop. The laptop will reportedly be Pixel-branded and maybe go by the “Pixel 3” name.
According to Android Police, which has been on a roll with scoops regarding this matter, Andromeda will not be an effort to fold Chrome OS into Android by availing Android apps on the platform or just a blind fusion of the two operating systems. Rather, it will be more like bringing more Chrome OS features to Android to enrich the experience Google’s mobile OS already offers.
A Pixel laptop is not a far-fetched idea. Google has already sold two generations of Pixel-branded computers in the Pixel Chromebooks that cost a pretty penny when compared to other Chromebooks in the market. The other already available Pixel hardware, the Pixel C tablet, broke off with tradition by shipping with Android onboard. As per the details outed so far, the rumoured “Pixel 3” may be something like a larger Pixel C with software that is based on Android but with the smarts of Chrome OS. Really, it’s so hard to piece together things at the moment but think of it that way.
32 or 128GB internal storage, 8 or 16GB RAM, an Intel (m3 or i5) processor, a fingerprint scanner, 2 USB Type-C ports, a battery that lasts for 10 hours and may be a stylus are some of the specifications and features being thrown around at the moment regarding the said “Pixel 3” laptop. A backlit keyboard and a glass trackpad are the other features of the “ultra-thin” 12.3-inch laptop. Well, if this is true then this will definitely be something worth looking forward to.
Even as October 4th, when we expect to hear more about this, draws nearer, we may have to wait for a few more months before anything tangible hits the market.
To add to the confusion/anxiety, someone else says that Nexus, which is reportedly dead (since Google has all but confirmed that its launching new phones that won’t be called Nexus), isn’t really dead (makes sense since that Huawei tablet is rumoured to be a Nexus). My head is spinning.
