Category: Chrome OS

A long awaited feature has finally come to Chrome OS.  In the latest stable build of the platform, Chrome 64, the ability to rename external drives connected to your Chromebook has been enabled.  Now when you are in the File app, you can press ctrl+enter to rename the drive.

The ability to rename external drives is something that I first saw in a commit way back in August of last year.  The commit indicated that this shortcut would be coming but it wasn’t clear when exactly it would land on the platform.  This was not available to me on my Pixelbook under Chrome 63 so it looks like yesterday’s build release enabled it.

After a long delay and well after the Intel m3 and m5 variants were released, ASUS has finally put forth the m7 model of the Chromebook Flip C302.  Identical in every way to the m3 and m5 models, this new model sports the Intel m7 6Y75  processor clocked at 1.2GHz with 16GB of RAM and 64GB of Storage.

ASUS is aiming this variant of the Chromebook Flip at the power user, clearly, as 16GB of RAM is almost unheard of in a Chromebook.  It is debatable if it is needed but it is there nevertheless.  As far as price, this m7 variant is $929 and is available through Amazon.

Nearly three weeks after the initial Chrome 64 release in the Stable Channel, there is a new build that has been released for Chrome OS.  Build 64.0.3282.167 or 64.0.3282.169 (Platform version: 10176.72.0 or 10176.73.0) was released earlier today and it will be rolling out to the majority of devices starting today.  Users can manually check for the update by going to chrome://help on their device and checking for the update.

Generally the Chromium team has been releasing the first update of a new build to non-Android running Chromebooks while the second one in the train goes to those than can run the apps.  That appears to be the case here as reviewing the OmahaProxy shows the vast majority of devices now with either the .167 or .169 build as their stable release.

There is a new commit that points to Chromebooks having the ability to pinch-to-zoom on the touchpad is coming.  Right now, in Chrome OS, the ability to zoom in and out on your touchpad is disabled on the vast majority of devices.  Only high end models like the Samsung Chromebook Pro and Plus, as well as the Google Pixelbook, have it enabled by default.

That is likely to change.  This new commit suggests that it will be enabled by default on any new Chromebooks but will also retroactively be enabled on existing devices.

For the second consecutive week, a new update of Chrome OS is now available to testers in the platform’s beta channel.  Build 65.0.3325.89 (Platform version: 10323.39.0) is rolling out now to those who have their devices in the channel and it marks the second Chrome 65 based build update in the channel.

For those new to Chrome OS, the beta channel is the last channel a new build comes to prior to being released in the Stable channel.  Generally there are anywhere from 2-4 updates to the Beta channel before it makes it out to the general public.

One of the challenges for retailers is showing off a product’s capabilities without leaving it unlocked for random interactions from store visitors.  This can lead to anything from malicious code being loaded up to a porn site loaded up in the browser.  That is where a demo mode comes in handy and, to this point, is something that has not been in Chrome OS.  But that looks to be changing.

A new commit found in the Chrome OS review Gerrit shows that a demo mode could be in the works for the platform.  This would make it immeasurably easier for retailers to setup Chromebooks in their stores that highlight what the platform can do but not leave it open to questionable activity.