Chrome OS + Android Reported To Combine In 2017

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Chrome OS + Android Reported To Combine In 2017

While there's been signals that Google is interested in merging Chrome OS into Android, there are reports coming out that Google has been making progress on that and the consolidated operating system to suit both Chrome OS and Android devices along with normal PCs will be available in 2017...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=ChromeOS-Android-WSJ-2017

[profoundWHALE]

The question I have, is will they be doing:
1) Some sort of convergence. Plug in mouse and keyboard and you get Chrome OS type desktop
2) Replace Chrome OS with mostly Android
3) Replace Android with mostly Chrome OS

I know that Chrome OS can run Android apps, so I'm curious.

[Damacustas]

Hmmm, with the converged experience Windows offers, a converged experience from Android, KDE and Ubuntu working on mobile as well and Gnome making their interface touch friendly, I REALLY wonder what Apple is going to do. Apple has always had a clear segregation between touch/phone/tablet and laptop/pc. Will they stay where they are now or will they also have a go at convergence?

What I also wonders, is this merger of Chrome OS and Android ACTUALLY a merger? Or is it dumping Chrome OS and making Android a productivity OS (i.e. laptop/desktop) with potentially a few design influences from Chrome OS?

Whatever happens, we're going to see quite some interesting things in the years to come...

[afeder]

I wish they had done this 7 years ago.

[simonalsn]

Convergence seems like a cool concept, and I'd like to test it myself, hopefully with an Ubuntu phone soon.
However I still think it is important to realise that different jobs call for different tools. I'm all for having many possibilities with the phone, but sometimes it seems like they also want to dumb down the desktop experience, and that is not cool.

[user82]

Oh great more chaos instead of bugfixing in Android.
Around 2011 I had hopes it would follow the course of any project and eventually work all the little issues out, but the pressure for innovation coming from Google seems to add more bugs onto the existing pile each version instead of fixing things.

[GreatEmerald]

Yea... If it's ChromeOS replacing Android, it would be real nice. But I highly doubt that would happen, not with the Android developer base being what it is.

[profoundWHALE]

What I also wonders, is this merger of Chrome OS and Android ACTUALLY a merger? Or is it dumping Chrome OS and making Android a productivity OS (i.e. laptop/desktop) with potentially a few design influences from Chrome OS?

It would help explain something like the Pixel C (Premium Google Tablet)

[Jumbotron]

I think Damacustas is on to something with his thought. I also believe that Google is going to fold Chrome OS more into Android than the other way around. I've read many a developer posts in which they say that Chrome OS is too niche to worry with developing an app or program which is why they do so with Android instead.

My first thoughts will be more Chrome OS architecture will make its way into Chrome Browser plus there will be a melding of Chrome OS SDK and Android SDK. And possibly as with Ubuntu, if you use a Chromebook you will still get the Chrome OS desktop experience with Android app experiences when you need touch. However, on an Android phone or tablet, if you were to hook up a keyboard either physically or with Bluetooth, the Android experience will be supplanted with a Chrome OS look and feel, with Android touch capabilities still present if needed.

And of course overarching all would still be Chrome Browser for a consistent web experience with both Chrome OS and Android. There will also be seamless online and offline with persistence experience as well.

The fabled "Year of the Linux Desktop" may actually arrive by the year 2020. But everyone will know it only as Android.

[sarmad]

My guess is that it will be an expanded Android to cover desktop use case. I highly doubt it will be able to run GNU/Linux software. However, it might still be useful to Linux echosystem if it results in better hardware support.