Weekly Digest From Chrome Unboxed

View this email in your browser The Chrome Cast 239: Google extends Chromebook end of life by 2 years This week on The Chrome Cast, we obviously talk at length about the biggest news of the week in the Chromebook and ChromeOS sphere: Google extending the AUE on Chromebooks by 2 full years. With this move, we now get two extra years of support on all current Chromebooks and a full 10 years of […] Read More Chrome working on a new "Organize Tabs" feature to quickly clear the clutter If you frequently find yourself overwhelmed by a way more Chrome browser tabs than you thought you had because your head was deep in research, then I’ve got a bit of good news for you. The Chrome team is working on a new “Organize tabs” button that will appear on the top left of your […] Read More One of the best deals of the year is back as the HP Chromebook x360 drops to $349 Though we’re all finished with the Back to School deals blitz from a month ago, Best Buy hasn’t taken its foot off the pedal when it comes to Chromebook deals. As we near what we expect to be a push for the upcoming ‘Chromebook Plus’ releases, it seems manufacturers are ready to get pretty aggressive […] Read More Chrome seems to suffer from annoying hidden ad audio that can't be located or stopped Chrome version 116 for desktop has seriously been testing my patience over the last few weeks. Out of the blue, some YouTube video or web ad decides it’s its turn to be the star of my time and attention playing audio in the background that’s both impossible to locate or shut down. I’ve paid for […] Read More Google Messages may finally allow cross-device support by linking your Google Account In the absolute mess that is messaging here in 2023, Google Messages has slowly-but-surely continued to increase adoption numbers, amassing over one billion downloads as of this May. Despite that growing popularity, there’s one aspect of Google’s latest messaging strategy that has been a point of contention for many: the reliance on QR code sign-in […] Read More Monster Hunter NOW is NOW available, and you should go play it right NOW When Pokémon GO released everyone went to GO play the now wildly popular game by Niantic and The Pokémon company. It did something miraculous – it actually got families and individuals alike off of their couch and out into the real world. Now, after a few flops, Niantic has released Monster Hunter NOW, based on […] Read More Google is adding 2 years to Chromebook expiration dates across the board Since 2012, Chromebooks have been leading the charge when it comes to accessible, affordable and efficient personal computing. Budget-friendly Chromebooks not only made technology accessible to the masses, but quickly became the go-to choice for schools looking to save on their IT budgets. Today, Chromebooks stand head and shoulders above the competition as the #1 […] Read More A great deal gets even better on the 2023 HP Chromebook x360 14c Chromebooks deals just keep coming, and the latest one is on the device that is currently under my fingertips right now: the HP Chromebook x360 14c. About one month ago, we saw this new device drop to a fairly-tempting $499, but now it is on sale for an even more appealing price of $479! That’s […] Read More NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube is delivering better subscriber numbers than ever Most people know by now that the NFL Sunday Ticket package has found a new home away from DirecTV for the first time in over two decades. Its new residence is found over on YouTube and YouTube TV, and early indications suggest that this move and the performance of the service is going quite well. […] Read More This Android bug exposes your Google Wallet credit card details in plain sight via NFC A security loophole has been found in Android that potentially puts your credit card details at risk through NFC, and yes, it displays your card number in plain sight! Google says it’s preparing a fix for the issue that was discovered over on GitHub by MrTiz. By using an NFC device called the Flipper Zero, […] Read More It's about time: Sony officially adds PlayStation 4 and 5 game streaming to your 4K Chromecast If you’ve ever wanted the freedom to play your PS5 or PS4 games in another room of the house without uprooting your console, Sony’s got some good news for you on their PlayStation Blog this week. The PS Remote Play feature, which previously allowed streaming of your PlayStation games to devices like Android and iOS […] Read More PSA: You can use your free three months Nvidia GeForce NOW Chromebook Perk to play Starfield Bethesda’s newest title, Starfield, or as some affectionately call it “Skyrim in space”, just released and is sparking conversations left and right. While some are singing its praises, many are pointing out that this is no No Man’s Sky. You can’t take off from or land on planets without excessive loading screens, there are samey […] Read More Our favorite Chromebook tablet is back on sale once again Of all detachable ChromeOS devices, the Lenovo Chromebook Duet 5 is easily the best overall tablet experience we’ve ever had. While Google attempted the Chromebook tablet with the Pixel Slate a few years back, no one has quite hit the overall detachable sweet spot like Lenovo did with the Duet 5. Now, to be fair, […] Read More Google Photos begins rolling out its new Locked Folder feature The Google Photos “Locked Folder” has just begun rolling out to your account. It can be found right above the “Trash” icon in the Google Photos app and lets you store images securely behind a password and 2-Step Verification (2FA). These items won’t appear in the main Photos feed, even though copies, edited versions and […] Read More Google Workspace Business Plus gets a temporary 30% price cut, ad shows in Gmail Google has subtly and temporary announced a 30% discount on its Workspace Business Plus subscription. This wasn’t done through a press release or a grand announcement so far as I could tell. Instead, some Gmail users, myself included, were greeted with a banner advertisement at the top of their Gmail inbox, promoting the deal. Google […] Read More Goodbye Octane: Google finally kills off my favorite Chromebook benchmark tool In preparation for a review we just filmed, I needed to run a few benchmarks to try and prove a point. These days, I rely far less on these types of tools and far more on what the actual end user experience feels like. After all, 10th-gen Intel-powered Chromebooks are still fast enough (especially the […] Read More How to score exclusive deals on Chromebooks and more with new My Best Buy memberships If you’re looking to buy a new Chromebook, one of the best places to look is Best Buy. They consistently have Chromebooks in stock with listings that aren’t confusing like Amazon and they have actual brick-and-mortar stores in many cities where you can go to get hands-on with the device that you are considering buying. […] Read More Don't panic, here's what that Google One cancellation notice actually means for Fi subscribers Some Google Fi Wireless Unlimited Plus subscribers were surprised recently when they started receiving cancellation messages about the Google One storage subscription perk that came with their plan. But, before freaking out, it’s worth noting that this isn’t all that concerning after all and I’ll tell you why. First spotted by 9to5Google, an email Google […] Read More NFL Sunday Ticket goes off without a hitch on YouTube for opening week It’s a new chapter for NFL fans as the Sunday Ticket service – after nearly 30 years with DirecTV – made its much-anticipated debut on YouTube and YouTube TV over the weekend. Sports fans in general tend to be notorious for their reluctance to embrace change, so there were naturally a lot of eyes on […] Read More There are two ways to set a timer on your Chromebook, and the second is not at all obvious Have you ever wanted to set a timer without having to deal with Google Assistant and its ridiculously annoying mishaps? Don’t have Assistant nearby? I mean, depending on who you are, that’s common. Did you know that, despite Google’s lack of advertising it, there are actually two methods for setting a timer on your Chromebook? […] Read More Google Tasks starts asking users if they want to clean up uncompleted tasks older than 30 days In a world overwhelmed by notifications, reminders, and to-dos, Google seems to be leaning into the spring cleaning spirit. If you’re familiar with the new Google Assistant’s tasks web app, a new message is now popping up at the top of that page – a friendly nudge prompting you to consider cleaning up your task […] Read More A new Lenovo Chromebook Slim 3i shows up on sale with some nice enhancements In completely unrelated business, I was on Lenovo’s website to research a few things with their “Pick up at Best Buy” options and as I was perusing their Chromebook selection, I saw one I’ve not yet come across that – had I not been paying attention – I would have likely missed. It is a […] Read More Gmail's Android app to introduce that "Select All" button you've wanted for years If you’ve ever used Gmail’s web version, you know how handy the “Select all” button is, right? It’s that magical button that lets you select every single email with just one click, making your life a tad bit easier when you want to archive, mark emails as read, or do any other bulk actions. In […] Read More We now have a name for Lenovo's addition to the upcoming 'Chromebook Plus' family We’ve been talking a lot about ‘Chromebook Plus’ (formerly ‘Chromebook X’) in the past few months. While not yet rolled out, this move by Google to create a sub-brand of Chromebooks could be a real help to consumers if it all goes according to plan, and the more evidence we see of this roll-out, the […] Read More Check out this deal on the new 15.6-inch HP Chromebook I totally missed Maybe this is a bit of the Mendela Effect, but I can confidently tell you that I’ve not seen this particular Chromebook on Best Buy’s website up until today. Yes, I’ve seen other 15.6-inch HP Chromebooks, but not this particular one. There’s been a version of this Chromebook with the new Intel N200 chip inside […] Read More PSA: Ensure your saved Collection items align with Google's content policies Remember when we talked about Google Collections getting a fresh coat of paint and rebranding to “Google Save” or “Saved on Google”? Well, I’ve got a follow-up tale that’s both intriguing and a little cautionary. A reader recently shared a curious incident in the comments of that article. Instead of using Google Save for bookmarking […] Read More How to change the position of your Chromebook's shelf, and why you may or may not want to Chromebooks are known for their simplicity and now for their user-friendly Material You interface. But let’s talk about one aspect of customization that often flies under the radar: shelf positioning. Most of us are content with the default bottom placement, akin to the familiar Windows taskbar. But have you ever considered shifting it to the […] Read More For some odd reason, ChromeOS doesn't let you drag file pickers to secondary displays Recently, I decided to revisit the world of dual monitor setups with my Chromebook after taking a break from the whole desktop setup fever thing I experienced a few years back. Everything seemed to be going smoothly (for the most part, more on that later) until I encountered an unexpected snag when trying to import […] Read More The Chrome Cast 238: Google's new hardware revealed and Lacros on ChromeOS Flex This week, we begin the conversation around Google’s upcoming hardware event slated for October 4th. We’re just a few weeks away, and now that Google has made all the new stuff we already expected official, we can begin looking forward to the event and seeing how the new Pixel phones and the new Pixel Watch […] Read More Right before the season begins, YouTube offers a free NFL Sunday Ticket trial The much-anticipated launch of NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube and YouTube TV is now only days away, and Google has finally given those interested in testing out the service some very good news: a 7-day free trial is now available. This move allows prospective customers to dip their toes in the water a bit before […] Read More Join our Patreon community and get access to things like behind-the-scenes footage, early access to videos, private Discord server access, an ad-free experience on the mobile and desktop versions of the website, your name listed on all our YouTube videos, and monthly live stream Q&A. 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