Google Is Planning a 'Pixel 3' Laptop Running 'Andromeda' OS For Release in Q3 2017 (androidpolice.com)

Google plans to launch a laptop next year with Pixel branding which will run 'Andromeda' operating system, reports AndroidPolice, citing sources. Andromeda is a hybrid of Android and Chrome OS, the report adds. Pixel, Chrome OS and Android teams have been working on this project, dubbed Bison, for years, apparently. From the report: Bison is planned as an ultra-thin laptop with a 12.3" display, but Google also wants it to support a "tablet" mode. It's unclear to us if this means Bison will be a Lenovo Yoga-style convertible device, or a detachable like Microsoft's Surface Book, but I'm personally leaning on the former given how thin it is. Powering it will be either an Intel m3 or i5 Core processor with 32 or 128GB of storage and 8 or 16GB of RAM. This seems to suggest there will be two models. It will also feature a fingerprint scanner, two USB-C ports, a 3.5mm jack (!), a host of sensors, stylus support (a Wacom pen will be sold separately), stereo speakers, quad microphones, and a battery that will last around 10 hours. The keyboard will be backlit, and the glass trackpad will use haptic and force detection similar to the MacBook. Google plans to fit all of this in a form factor under 10mm in thickness, notably thinner than the aforementioned Apple ultraportable.The report, however, adds that it is likely that Google might revise the specifications by the time of its launch, which is slated to happen sometime in Q3 2017.

Comments

Crucial question

[RandomSurfer314]

Can you easily remove this 'Andromeda' crap run an ordinary Linux distribution on it? Then it could be a really interesting machine.

Re:Crucial question

[squiggleslash]

What's interesting about it? Netbook/Tablet hybrids are widely available already! Most of them come with Windows 10, but you can install anything you like on them.

But, FWIW, Chromebooks generally have a feature, sometimes implemented in hardware, sometimes in software, that disables the TPM module so you can either access the operating system as a developer, or wipe the OS completely and put on a more usual desktop system.

Re:root

[amiga3D]

Oh I imagine they'll root us pretty good.

Re:Big mistake

[TheReaperD]

I know that Google has been working on and planning this "marriage" of OSes when they released Android and CromeOS. They said at the time that the hardware and apps just wasn't up to the marriage they envisioned. Apparently, they have decided that now is the time. Most likely, this hybrid OS will run stock Android apps and will also likely replace both of the current OSes in time. This has been Google's vision since the start of these projects. Now, we'll see if they pull it off. I hope they do for the simple reason that one OS from a company is usually better than two; especially when it comes to support.

Re:Reduced OS for short term gains.

[erapert]

I would focus on getting such devices to run on full desktop OS's or we will get in the trouble that we had with windows 3.1-ME

What trouble?

What really did the trick was the move to 64bit.

Did the trick? What trick? And why is 64-bit relevant to the trick?

And the rise of Web Applications, allowing a much smoother transition.

A smoother transition from what to what?

But these OS's designed for mobile, will only get us in trouble once mobile devices are on par with our desktop systems.

What?? Why would there be trouble? What kind of trouble? How would mobile devices be on par with desktop systems?

Unsaid

[ThatsNotPudding]

The report, however, adds that it is likely that Google might revise the specifications by the time of its launch, which is slated to happen sometime in Q3 2017.

The report, however, failed to add that it is likely that Google will grow bored of the project and abandon it and its' customers, which is slated to happen sometime in Q3 2018.

Merge conflict detected

[DrYak]

I don't understand why the linux community is not capitalizing on the situation with the Windows 10 Fiasco and Google and Apple spying on you? This is quite the time to hit them with a secure OS. Start making deals to get Adobe products to work on Linux and others like the old Unix's did before.

Git cherry pick failed: merge conflict detected.
Please resolve manually.

Re:Reduced OS for short term gains.

[squiggleslash]

I'm not sure if you're aware of this, but both Android and ChromeOS (presumably meaning the OS under discussion here too) are full blown modern operating systems with networking, permissions, memory protection, etc. They are both on a par with Unix in terms of features. They both, however, have user interfaces that block user access to certain features of the operating system.

This is nothing like the jump from 95 to NT.