Are Googlebooks a Windows Laptop Alternative?

Googlebooks are a new category of premium laptops built around Google's Gemini artificial intelligence and designed to work especially well with Android phones. If you're an iPhone user, much of the phone-integration appeal disappears. 

The first models from Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP and Lenovo range from $899 to $1,299, so they're not cheaper than Windows laptops. 

Despite the name, these devices aren't simply more expensive Chromebooks. The question for me is whether this is another tech gadget that's "a solution searching for a problem." 

Chromebooks vs. Googlebooks 
Chromebooks run Google's ChromeOS and were originally designed around the idea that most of what we do can be done in a web browser. 

Today's Chromebooks can do considerably more, including running Android apps, and Chromebook Plus models add faster hardware and more AI features. 

Googlebooks go a step further with the new Googlebook OS, which combines Android technology with desktop foundations developed for ChromeOS. The result feels much closer to a traditional laptop, with Android playing a far larger role. 

The Android Advantage 
If you use an Android phone, one of the biggest attractions will be how closely the two devices work together. 

You can open files stored on your phone, use mobile apps on the laptop and pick up on the laptop where you left off on your phone. 

Think of it as Google's attempt to give Android users the kind of phone-and-computer relationship Apple users have with an iPhone and Mac. 

Googlebooks also start with premium hardware, including at least 16GB of memory and processors that can handle some AI tasks directly on the computer. 

Gemini is woven throughout the operating system. A feature called Magic Pointer, for example, lets you point at something on your screen and ask Gemini about it. 

The Windows Question 
For many consumers, the operating system matters much less than it once did. 

If most of your day is spent in a browser, Gmail, Google Docs, Microsoft 365, Zoom, streaming services and other cloud-based tools, you may not miss Windows at all. 

Skipping Windows becomes a problem if you rely on specialized programs that aren't web-based. If you depend on a particular accounting, business, engineering or photo-editing program, don't assume it will run on a Googlebook. 

The same goes for specialty printers, scanners and other devices that may require Windows-specific drivers. 

Windows remains the better choice for serious PC gaming and offers a much broader selection of computers at virtually every price and performance level. 

Who's This For? 
If you're already invested in Google's services, carry an Android phone and spend most of your computing time online, a Googlebook could be a reasonable Windows alternative. 

If you depend on specialized Windows programs or hardware, Windows remains the safer choice. 

There's one more reason not to rush. Googlebooks are first-generation products, and at $899 and up, they cost the same or more than a well-equipped Windows laptop that will run a much wider range of software. 

Unless you enjoy being an early adopter, I'd give Googlebooks some time in the real world before considering them a replacement for a Windows laptop.