Google Will Probably Fix the Googlebook. It Should Not Have Needed Fixing.

My verdict: the problems a week of real use turned up are annoying and fixable, and they should never have reached a laptop that sells for this much.

A news editor at The Verge, a self-described Android devotee, has spent a week with two Googlebooks, one from Asus and one from HP, and the list of problems is long. Keeping a phone connected requires both devices on the same Wi-Fi network with Bluetooth on, and it took repeated toggling and restarts to get them talking. Moving to a new network broke it again. Opening a 5MB photo from the phone through the file manager took minutes, while the same file moved in seconds over Quick Share. Notifications from the phone and the laptop get mixed up, and some never arrive.

The bigger issue is the apps. Many Android apps still are not built for a laptop screen. The mobile version of Slack is described as unworkable, Adobe’s Android apps as pale shadows of the desktop versions, and apps labelled “Optimized for desktop” often just stretch the phone layout, ignore right-clicks or flip into portrait. Chrome itself lacks profile switching, split view and custom search shortcuts. Bluesky and Okta could not be installed at all, on the Intel-based Asus or on the Arm-based HP. Google has separately acknowledged that some complex Android apps need developer tuning to run well on Intel models. The Verge’s conclusion: it would not buy a Googlebook in its current state.

It is an annoyance, and I expect it to be corrected sooner or later. This is not a small flaw a company can quietly leave alone, because ignoring it would cost Google its customers’ trust. The Verge is less optimistic and points to Google’s reputation for giving up on things. That is a fair worry. My bet is still on a fix.

But a fix later does not excuse the launch. These laptops start at $899, and that is a lot of money to be someone’s beta tester. A new laptop arriving with these problems on day one is a shame. I am not writing the Googlebook off, but it has dropped a few points in my head, and it did not have many to spare after its launch.

If you are considering one, read the full Verge piece and check whether the apps you rely on every day are marked “Made for desktop” in the Play Store before you pay.