Report: Google could phase our ChromeOS in favor of Android for laptops and tablets

Google has been maintaining two different operating systems for consumer devices since introducing the Chromebook platform in 2011. Originally they were pretty clearly delineated: ChromeOS was for laptops and desktops, while Android was for smartphones. But over time things got blurry: Android now runs on watches and wearables. And both operating systems run on tablets.

Rumor has it that rather than maintaining two different operating systems with overlapping features though, that Google plans to merge ChromeOS into Android and kill off its standalone desktop operating system. According to a report from Android Authority, future laptops that ship with a Google operating system could come with Android instead of ChromeOS.

The move would be a little surprising, given that Google has long insisted that it wasn’t planning to fully merge the two operating systems. But it’s also kind of unsurprising in that things look a lot different today than they did when ChromeOS first launched in 2011.

At the time Android hardware wasn’t powerful enough to reliably handle a desktop-class web browser and multitasking capabilities. But in recent years Google has blurred the lines between the two operating systems by bringing support for Android apps to ChromeOS and, more recently, announcing that it would use an Android Linux kernel and other Android frameworks for future versions of ChromeOS.

Now Android Authority says Google is working to simply fold many ChromeOS features into Android, which would allow the company to develop a single operating system moving forward. That would mean that future Chromebooks would be able to better support Android apps that can sometimes be wonky on ChromeOS devices today. Meanwhile it would bring a full desktop browser to Android tablets and other devices.

According to the report, an upcoming version of the Chrome browser for Android would support browser extensions, something that’s missing from current versions. Google is also said to be working on a Terminal app that would allow users to run Linux applications on Android, something that’s currently possible on Chromebooks.

The end result could be a single platform that would combine the robust app and game ecosystem of Android with productivity features associated with ChromeOS. It’s unclear if all of those features would be available on all Android devices – I don’t know if we can expect a desktop web browser on smartphones or if that’s something that’s just coming to larger-screen devices like Android tablets and laptops.

Keep in mind that Google hasn’t officially confirmed plans to merge the operating systems. So there’s a chance that Android Authority has got some things wrong. It’s also possible that everything in that report accurately depicts the current situation inside Google… but that the company could change plans in the future, which means it’s unclear whether a ChromeOS-ified version of Android will ever see the light of day. Either way, it will likely be years before we see the results of any initiative to merge the operating systems and phase out ChromeOS for good.