The move by Google to combine the Chrome OS and Android ecosystems reflects a broader shift towards multi-platform apps and ways of working.
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Before you start looking for download links, make sure your phone will actually work with the Android N beta. For everyone else, we’ve included the official list below and Google states that all of the following compatible Chromebook devices will gain Android app support throughout 2016 – no specific dates mentioned yet. Following the release of the software update for these devices in June, additional Chrome OS gadgets will be updated over the course of the year.
Google Play Store on Chrome OS will be available only on Chromebook Pixel 2, Asus Chromebook Flip and Acer Chromebook R11.
It’s not yet clear if Google intends to build some sort of integrated, standalone “Nexus VR” headset with everything built in, to act as a flagship device for the Daydream ecosystem – in much the same way that its Nexus devices are meant to “lead the way” in other product categories. But if the company does plan to bring apps to the Chromebooks, it could mean that the next models could have built-in memory for files to be stored and apps to be installed. But Google also announced a few new features, especially as part of Android N and Android Wear, that Apple users have not experienced yet.
As Venturebeat reports it, the Google Play icon will be visible at the bottom left corner near the search icon.
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“Chromebooks have always been about making computing more accessible for everyone, and by bringing together the best of Android and Chrome OS, we are taking a big leap forward”, wrote Dylan Reid and Elijah Taylor, Chrome OS Software Engineers, in the blog announcement. They will be able to install the update once they accept the store’s terms and conditions. The OS also adds the ability to reply to messages directly from the notification panel as well as update the recently used app menu such that it only displays the last seven apps to be used on the phone.
