Google raised a generation on Chromebooks: now comes the hard part
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For the past few generations of students, Chromebooks are ubiquitous: Google’s handy, affordable laptops have become fixtures in classrooms across the United States and beyond, handling everything from homework to essays to assignments.
But many of those students are now heading to college or entering the workforce, where choosing a laptop is a completely different prospect, something Apple is playing with with the MacBook Neo.
However, Google is not standing idly by and the recent launch of its Googlebooks is a great declaration of intent.
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Far from being the budget Chromebooks familiar to schools, Googlebooks like the Acer Googlebook 14 are premium laptops running a new Android-based operating system, with deep smartphone integration and the company’s Gemini AI.
After years of becoming deeply familiar with Chromebooks and ChromeOS, these students might be tempted to stick with the Google ecosystem as they grow and their computing needs change.
But is familiarity enough? Apple’s MacBook Neo and a wide range of cheaper Windows laptops also offer attractive alternatives, and both platforms are already deeply embedded in work and everyday life.
chrome school
Google launched its Chromebook project in 2011, initially as a general-purpose laptop, but its success really came in the education sector, long dominated by Windows, where Google’s affordable hardware, easy device management, and classroom tools won out.
Michael Boreham, principal analyst at Futuresource, said TechnologyRadar that Chromebooks accounted for only 16% of US K-12 mobile PC sales in 2013, rising to 50% by the end of 2015.
Since 2020, Chromebooks have accounted for between 61% and 67% of annual K-12 mobile PC shipments in the US, a remarkable level of dominance.
The success of Chromebooks has led to millions of students spending their formative years using Google’s operating system and apps, with services like Google Docs and Drive also available on Windows and macOS.
But those laptops were generally chosen by schools, rather than their students.
“As students move from school-issued devices to choosing their own laptops, preferences typically shift away from devices provided by their institution and toward products that align with personal needs and lifestyles,” Boreham says.
Old habits, new laptops
Carolina Milanesi, president and principal analyst at The Heart of Tech, draws an important distinction between students who become familiar with Google’s software and those who actively want to buy its hardware.
“What a decade of Chromebooks has achieved is familiarity with Google tools: Docs, Drive, Classroom, Gmail,” he says. “Those tools run in a browser on any laptop, so familiarity travels with the student wherever they go, even on a Mac.”
“For most students, the Chromebook was a school-issued device, often low-cost and locked, and the association is more with schoolwork than with a laptop of their choice,” Milanesi adds.
Futuresource’s Student Journey research, which surveyed students in the US and UK, found that durability, value for money, storage and battery life were among the top factors influencing their purchases.
“Apple’s appeal is strong for college students given Apple’s unique position as a lifestyle brand and the power of its ecosystem coupled with seamless integration between iPhones, iPads and MacBooks,” says Boreham.
When choosing a brand, students also considered compatibility with their existing devices, brand reputation, and previous experience. Most college students surveyed also reported paying for their devices themselves or using college loans and scholarships, making value for money especially important.
That presents an obvious challenge for Googlebooks: price. Laptops start at £999 in the UK, compared to £599 for the MacBook Neo, or just £499 with Apple’s educational discount, and many of the best laptops for students are considerably more affordable too.
People choose personal laptops based much more on the phone in their pocket than on the computer they used in class.
Carolina Milanesi, President and Principal Analyst, The Heart of Tech
These are different machines, no doubt, but it’s hard to ignore a price difference of up to £500 when value for money is such an important factor.
Milanesi is not convinced it will be an easy sell: “It will be difficult. Younger buyers have a $499 to $599 MacBook on the one hand and Windows laptops of all price points on the other, and a new platform that asks a premium carries more risk for the buyer.”
Then there is the software. Familiarity with Chrome is all well and good, but college students may need specialized apps that their school Chromebooks never had to handle.
“If Googlebooks can replicate or improve the performance of a MacBook or Windows laptop and have access to key applications, such as Adobe’s Photo Editing suite, for example, then they can capture a portion of the student user base as they move beyond high school,” Boreham says.
For Milanesi, Google’s huge user base will only go so far. “Googlebook has to turn that convenience into a purchase, which means making the Google laptop the aspirational choice rather than the default,” he says.
The Android in the room
Google’s biggest advantage might be in the pockets of its potential customers: its Android phones.
“The Android phone base is the biggest opportunity,” says Milanesi. “People choose personal laptops based much more on the phone in their pocket than on the computer they used in class, and Apple has spent years demonstrating the extent to which continuity from phone to laptop drives Mac sales.”
Features like Cast My Apps let users access their phone apps on a Googlebook, while the Files app can bring photos and documents from an Android phone to the laptop. It’s the kind of connected experience that Apple users have enjoyed for years and an important part of Google’s pitch against Windows.
“Against Apple, Google offers parity more than an advantage,” says Milanesi.
While these ambitions may seem good on paper, the experience is still not perfect. When we put the Acer Googlebook 14 to the test, the hardware and AI integration impressed, but connecting an Android phone proved trickier than expected.
Milanesi points out another limitation: “Full phone integration requires Android 17, which reduces the addressable base at launch given how slowly Android updates roll out.”
Each Googlebook already includes a one-year subscription to Google AI Pro, but Milanesi believes that student discounts and more competitive bundles could help bring the overall price closer to Apple’s MacBook Neo. Cheaper models in the future could also help Google reach a broader audience.
Full phone integration requires Android 17, which reduces the addressable base at launch given how slowly Android updates roll out.
Carolina Milanesi
Gemini could be another way for Google to stand out, although Milanesi believes its importance has not been obvious enough at launch. “I would like Gemini to stand out more as a driver of the overall experience,” he says.
Googlebooks, then, may well benefit from the Chromebook generation, but their immediate success will likely depend more on the smartphones those students carry than on their school laptops.
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