Google stops supporting its first Chromebook Pixel

Google’s Chromebooks have often been praised for their quick and seamless update policies which mean users can get most updates as soon as they roll out with little to no interruption of their work. This is also enabled by Google working to create discrete versions of ChromeOS for all devices so as little data is downloaded as possible.

That technique, as user-friendly as it is at first, has a slight disadvantage for users. Due to the amount of work Google puts into each update, it only supports each device (or hardware platform) for up to 6 years, after which it would stop delivering updates. This is 6.5 years from release, not just 6 5 years from the initial purchase.

As a consequence, the firm has now stopped support for the original Chromebook Pixel,albeit a little later than it initially said it would. While Google indicated the Chromebook Pixel would move into an unsupported state from June 2018, the firm has kept the device active all through August and is only now notifying users about the End of Life Status if the device.

In comparison, Windows PCs often support Windows updates indefinitely for years, and the latest updates can still be forced with the right drivers. With ChromeOS, unsupported devices can never get a built of ChromeOS (Chromium is a different, weaker beast).

The Chromebook Pixel will still do much of what it was purchased for, and a savvy reader can discard Chrome OS and adopt Linux going forward.

Source: DroidLife