what you should Know
- Remember Continuum from Windows Phone? A recent report suggests that Google is trying to do the same (finally) with Android.
- The report suggests that Google is experimenting with using ChromeOS to act as a desktop interface when connecting an Android device to an external display.
- Just like Continuum (RIP), this can be a huge step up in the workplace or for travel, even for Microsoft users.
Spoiler alert: I like Chromebooks. I also like Android, in fact it was working on our sister site, Android Central, that gave me my first break in the industry. However, Windows Phone got hooked and the rest is history. Imagine how much I smiled when a recent report showed, one more timehow our fallen favorite was years ahead of his time.
Android Authority’s Mishaal Rahman detailed an internal Google experiment that allegedly uses ChromeOS (sort of) to act as a desktop environment when a Pixel phone is connected to a display.
Exclusive: Google is experimenting with running Chrome OS on Android What if you could run CrOS on your Android phone? And what if you could connect your phone to an external monitor to project it? That’s exactly what Google is testing. More details👇https://t.co/UhhoRJ7z2ZMay 13, 2024
It’s not quite the same as Continuum, in the sense that when we connected a phone to Windows, we just used the phone and its apps initially. This report suggests that Google has created a special version of Chromium OS (the open source version of ChromeOS) that runs within the Android Virtualization Framework. ChromeOS and Android are different platforms, and Google has previously said it won’t merge them, so this seems like the best alternative.
Android Authority also has a first look at what’s actually running, albeit on the phone’s display only right now. But Google is said to have shown it to partners at a private event recently.
The overall idea isn’t new though, but it feels very Continuum-esque. I also think it’s a much better idea to project from a phone to an external display than something like Samsung DeX. ChromeOS is much better suited for using a larger display, especially with web apps.
We’ve been here before
Yes, Windows Phone is dead, but we all still love to talk about it every chance we get. I’m actually surprised it took Google this long to do something like this. The focus on using PWAs in ChromeOS makes it a perfect, lightweight desktop operating system for less demanding needs. Our very own Ben Wilson recently explored a PWA properly for the first time and he’s hooked. Me too.
Continuum was truly ahead of its time. The idea was crazy, the execution shaky, but it ended up headed for Microsoft’s graveyard. However, the idea of ​​being able to just use your phone as a computer had a lot of advantages, and if Google pulls it off, the same will apply.
The entire Windows Central team managed to use Continuum as much as possible. I remember making it a goal (and mostly successful, I might add) on a trip to Hong Kong and China to use my Lumia 950 XL connected to my hotel room TV instead of a laptop.
The world has changed a lot since those days though, and with PWAs as prevalent as they are now, a ChromeOS based solution with an Android phone would be better overall than Continuum in my opinion. Microsoft has its own plate with the Office suite and they are very good. The company is even working with Google to make setting up Office and OneDrive on ChromeOS easier and more integrated.
For travel or to connect to a display and keyboard in your office, for example, something like this would be a lightweight, user-friendly productivity tool. We may no longer have Windows Phones, but their spirit will live on forever. For those like me who still long for the good old days, it looks like Google may be giving us something to fill another void.
