Google plans to migrate Chrome OS into Android, unifying the two operating systems to better compete with Apple for a piece of the tablet market share. That’s according to a report from Android Authority which cites “a source within Google.”
The Android operating system, which Google acquired in 2005, was designed for smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, TVs, and cars, whereas Chrome OS was made with laptops in mind. While the Chromebook range includes tablets, in our experience Android is the better-suited operating system for those devices.
Android Authority‘s source told the publication that Google is undergoing a multi-year project to fold Chrome OS into Android and punt that as its unified desktop operating system.
Chrome OS gets folded into Android
If Google can pull it off, the sum of these operating systems might be significant enough to upend the iPad’s dominance in the high-end tablet sector. Instead of merging the two into a new whole, the source reports that Google wants to integrate Chrome OS into the more popular and widespread Android.
What this means for the future of Chrome OS and associated devices is still unclear, although speculation says future Chromebooks will ship with Android OS. Google’s rumoured new Pixel Laptop may confirm if future products will run on a new desktop-themed Android OS instead of Chrome OS but it could also be too soon to tell.
Google has yet to make an official announcement, but back in June, it announced that Chrome OS would be made more Android-like by “embracing portions of the Android stack, like the Android Linux kernel and Android frameworks”.
A benefit of this unification is the wider availability of apps on Android. Android has a much larger user and developer base than Chrome OS. More users translates to more money for developers and more money is usually a great motivating factor for future developers. The move also makes business sense, as integrating the two operating systems can concentrate talent and development resources.