
#Google chrome os laptop install#
You’re still going to spend your time mostly in the Chrome browser, but you can install web apps if a site offers them. It’s easy to use, with a Menu button in the bottom corner that acts like Windows’ Start button, and a taskbar that resembles that in Windows 11, or MacOS’s dock. ChromeOS began life as an online operating system, tied to Wi-Fi, the browser and to Google Drive, but it’s evolved since then. Once the installer has done its job, you can restart your laptop, and it will start up as a lovely new Chromebook.Īnything, more or less. This allows you to start the computer using something other than the internal SSD and varies from computer to computer, but Google has a helpful list online. Then you plug that drive into the computer you wish to install ChromeOS on, having checked it’s on the compatibility list, and start it up while holding down the Boot Key.

Best student laptop: buy a Windows PC, MacBook or Chromebook for school, college or uni.There’s a whole set of steps on Google’s site talking you through the installation process, but it involves picking ChromeOS Flex from a list, and waiting while it puts all the installation files on your USB drive – it’s completely free, but you’ll need a Google account to log into your new ChromeOS Flex device with. Open this, and head to the Chrome Web Store, where you’ll need an extension called Chromebook Recovery Utility. Newer Chromebooks also allow you to run Android apps, but this isn’t currently part of Chrome OS Flex.įirstly, you’ll need a working computer that can run the Chrome browser and a USB stick of 8GB capacity or greater. It allows you to run web apps, such as Zoom and Google Docs or Drive, as well as visit any web page. There’s an Apple MacBook Air on the list, for example, that was released in 2012.ĬhromeOS is a complete operating system based on Google’s Chrome web browser. What they all have in common are Intel processors, and that they’re a few years old. There’s even a couple of Microsoft Surfaces on the list. There’s a list of compatible models online, which covers laptops from Acer, HP, Lenovo and, unusually, Apple.

#Google chrome os laptop update#
It’s especially good for reviving machines that are outside the update period for their native OS. Usually, you buy a Chromebook with ChromeOS already installed, but ChromeOS Flex allows you to install it on another computer.
