One Week with Google Books: Key Insights from Our Experience

Google’s new operating system is facing some significant challenges right out of the gate. The five newly released Googlebook laptops boast hardware that ranges from impressive to outstanding, but the software currently leaves much to be desired. Our team of four has been diving into the Googlebooks, and our internal discussions have largely revolved around shared frustrations and confusion.

The concept of Googlebooks as a sleek alternative to Windows or Mac for Android users is appealing, but there are numerous issues that need addressing. Many of these problems seem to stem from the Android foundation itself.

As we put each Googlebook from various manufacturers through its paces, we wanted to share our collective thoughts on these new devices.

This should be an upgrade from ChromeOS, but it feels like a step back
While I’ve expressed many of my thoughts in our initial hands-on review, I keep reflecting on what a Google representative mentioned during the Googlebook launch: transitioning from ChromeOS to Android would enable faster development. That sounds promising, but why does the Googlebook OS feel like a downgrade from ChromeOS at launch? It carries over some of ChromeOS’s shortcomings, such as the inability to run Chrome with different Google accounts. Many Android apps still feel cumbersome to use on a Googlebook, just as they did on ChromeOS. (Google even included Android’s navigation buttons on the Googlebook keyboard, seemingly as a backup for apps that misbehave.)

Every day, I stumble upon new quirks in the three Googlebooks I’m testing. The Signal app linked to my phone effortlessly, but I have to hit Ctrl+Enter to send messages and can’t highlight text—clicking and dragging just scrolls the page. Photoshop and Lightroom are adequate for basic image editing, but I’d prefer a budget Windows laptop with the full desktop versions over these mobile-centric apps. You can’t drag and drop windows between virtual desktops, and scrolling left reveals a Clear All button that closes all your apps at once. That’s reminiscent of the app switcher on Android phones, but if I’m closing all apps on a laptop, I’m likely rebooting or shutting down.

Even something as straightforward as installing the progressive web app version of Slack isn’t functioning correctly. So, who should I be frustrated with? Slack or Google?

If I had purchased one of these Googlebooks, I’d be annoyed at myself for being a paying beta tester for Google. I understand that early adopters often face these challenges, but my patience is thinner now than when I bought my T-Mobile G1, Nexus 7, and others. There’s definitely potential with Googlebooks, but we need that “faster” development to kick into high gear.

Google has a significant developer issue
One of the main reasons for the existence of Googlebooks is that Android has matured into a versatile platform across various screen sizes. It’s true: Android works reasonably well on phones, tablets, TVs, and even in cars. However, the apps tell a different story. Throughout my testing, I’ve been struck by how many apps seem clueless about how to function on a Googlebook.

Take Netflix, for example. I downloaded it first because I have some upcoming travel and wanted to download movies for the flight. The app works fine (and it does allow downloads!), but it launches in a full-screen, tablet-style format. This is the case for nearly all streaming apps. If you hover over the top bar, the windowing option appears, but it’s not intuitive. Constantly launching and resizing apps becomes tedious.

There are a few apps that are well-optimized for Googlebooks, making the device feel more like a true laptop. However, even these have issues: many don’t display content correctly when resizing the window, which feels broken on a laptop. Some of Google’s own apps exhibit this behavior, while others, like YouTube and Messages, scale more appropriately. Some apps respond well to keyboard and mouse input, while others do not. Most are better suited for touchscreens. A note to developers: if I can’t pause a movie with the space bar, your app isn’t keyboard-friendly.

Overall, I appreciate the Android integration in Google’s laptop strategy. The deep connection to your phone, the ability to run and sync apps, and some of the phone-like interface choices make sense. But every time I open an app, my Googlebook starts to feel like an Android tablet masquerading as a laptop. Google needs developers to step up, or it will remain just that.

Linux apps (probably) can’t save Googlebook OS
A series of minor annoyances has chipped away at my optimism for the new Googlebooks over the past few days. Some are more irritating than others—losing a standard Caps Lock key isn’t a deal breaker, but being limited to mobile browsers could be. Android app compatibility feels like a gamble, and so far, Linux apps don’t seem to offer a viable alternative.

I initially tried installing Slack from the Play Store, but it turned out to be the mobile app awkwardly resized for a larger screen. So, I attempted to install the Linux version of Slack through the Debian virtual machine in the Googlebook’s Terminal app. I managed to get it running, along with GIMP and Steam.

However, the catch is that anything installed in the virtual machine is isolated there. None of those apps have icons in the app drawer like my Android apps, nor do they appear in the taskbar when running. I have to manually switch my mouse and keyboard between the VM and the main Googlebook OS, making it cumbersome to navigate between Linux and Android apps. Since the Linux and Android apps operate in separate environments, they don’t share files or clipboard content automatically.

I’ll have a dedicated write-up on the Googlebook gaming experience later, but the virtual machine hasn’t been great for that either. I got Steam running, but the games I’ve tried (none of which are particularly demanding) have been too laggy to enjoy.

I’ve found some aspects of the Googlebook appealing, but it’s hard to appreciate them when friction arises from both Android and Linux apps.

The best feature of Googlebooks only works half the time
The standout selling point of the Googlebook, at least for me, has always been the “seamless” integration with Android. I’ve had a few moments this week where my phone and laptop worked together beautifully: replying to a WhatsApp message directly from a notification on the Googlebook; casting an app from my phone to use it without digging it out of my pocket; using Quick Share to transfer files between the two devices in seconds.

But even in these moments, the experience is often frustrating. My phone connection frequently drops, and I can’t figure out how to connect a second phone or tablet. I used Quick Share for file transfers because browsing my phone’s drive through the Files app is painfully slow, taking ages to open or transfer a single photo. Opening a notification for the phone-cast version of an app when I have it installed natively feels awkward. Some apps cast poorly: Bluesky renders text unreadably; my banking app won’t cast for security reasons; and my credit card app fails to cast because it just breaks.

Seamless? Not quite. I hope it improves. It has to improve. When the Android integration works, it feels almost magical. But that’s only because it happens so infrequently—Google needs to make this reliable enough that it feels routine.