Hasta La Gadget!

We’re getting closer and closer to Google’s planned Chrome OS release this fall, but still the hardware side of the equation is looking a little less shiny. As of today we don’t know exactly who will be bringing Google’s little laptop OS to retail first, but now we have a few more clues. Google’s code repository contains build configurations for Acer, Dell, and HP hardware, suggesting the OS is being tested by those manufacturers, and while this isn’t hard confirmation of device support it does back up what we’ve heard previously. Acer was rumored to actually show hardware at Computex (it didn’t), Dell has already shown Chrome OS running on a netbook, and HP was one of the many that Google indicated was aboard when Chrome partners were announced last year. In other words: no real surprises here, but it’s an encouraging indicator just the same.

Chrome OS build internals confirm Acer, Dell, and HP hardware coming? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 21:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Originally announced with a planned second half of 2010 launch, today Google has narrowed the launch of its Chrome OS to fall. This, according to Sundar Pichai, Google VP of product management speaking at Computex. By our calculation that is sometime between 22 September and 21 December in the northern hemisphere if you want to take the man literally… and you do, don’t you. Wonder if we’ll see a Chrome OS tablet launch at the same time?

Google: Chrome OS launching this fall originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 06:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Interested to know how you were gonna fill up that Chrome OS app page? Google just announced its new online web app store at I/O. So far they’ve shown off Dark Room for image editing, a pretty slick version of TweetDeck, and yes, like every other platform known to man, there’s Plants. vs. Zombies and Lego Star Wars. Paid-for software will be offered — Dark Room is $4.99, if you want to go ahead and put that money aside. No word on a launch date, but we’ll keep pushing for more. We were just shown a demo of Sports Illustrated‘s interactive magazine, and we gotta say, it’s mighty impressive — embedded video, fully searchable, and some pretty clever tricks with geolocation that frankly exceed most anything we’ve seen on the iPad thus far. The web store — for Chrome and Chrome OS — will hit the dev channel “soon.”

Google unveils Chrome web store, Sports Illustrated app impresses originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 May 2010 13:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thinking that early June / Computex will see the launch of Acer’s Chrome OS devices? That’s what we heard yesterday, but after doing a little digging of our own, our advice is simply, don’t hold your breath. A source within Acer has told us that the company has no plans to hold a press conference at the Taipei show, and that a global launch event will be held in New York on May 25. The “significant news” Acer has to share this spring will be revealed then, but it doesn’t seem like it’ll entail Chrome OS devices either.

So, what do we make of all of this? If we had to bet, we’d say that Chrome isn’t quite ready for prime time yet, as others have been reporting. But Acer has been known to show early prototypes of devices behind glass at trade shows — we saw the Android Aspire One under lock and key at Computex last year. Who knows what will happen in the next few weeks with Google I/O, this Acer event and Computex, but we just have a feeling we’ll be waiting a bit longer for the company’s Chrome OS systems to hit the market. Though, that doesn’t mean it won’t launch them in the second half of the year like originally promised.

Acer holding global event at end of May, no Chrome OS devices planned to launch originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 14 May 2010 17:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It’s easy to forget some of Google’s “we will own you and your children” initiatives: there are simply so many of them. One particular gambit that has been flying under the radar is Google’s Native Client, which allows the Chrome browser to execute x86 code natively. This has big implications for moving those beefy, number crunching desktop app holdouts to the browser, which would not only be a boon for Google’s ability to make Microsoft and Apple-beating web apps, but a big win for Chrome OS as well. Right now the Native Client is only working with the developer-oriented Chromium browser, with ubiquitous support a distant dream, but Google has already worked out ARM processor code portability, has plans to be completely processor agnostic in the future, and will be updating the SDK “rapidly” in the coming months. Basically, it’s on. Check out a video demonstration of some “hello world” code after the break, along with a brief demo of a 3D shooter.

Google’s Native Client SDK developer preview provides helpful reminder of plans for world domination originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 13 May 2010 12:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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