Google started its new chapter in the laptop space yesterday by announcing the Googlebook platform. Googlebooks are premium laptops that run the Googlebook OS, which is an operating system that mixes the best parts of Android and ChromeOS, and are designed to work well with Android phones and tablets.

Right now, five brands—Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, and Lenovo—have showcased their Googlebook laptops. Samsung is currently missing from the lineup, but as we reported last night, the South Korean firm is also expected to announce its Googlebook laptop at a later stage.

To qualify as a Googlebooks must meet strict hardware requirements so that they can offer a fast and smooth experience. They need to feature high-resolution touchscreen displays, a backlit keyboard, multitouch trackpad, processors with dedicated NPUs capable of at least 45TOPS of on-device AI processing, at least 16GB RAM, and 16 hours of battery life for web browsing.

Moreover, laptops need be built using premium materials, such as aluminum, carbon fiber, and magnesium alloy. They also need to feature an RGB light strip, which is called a Glowbar.

All the laptops shown by the five brands feature 15-inch or bigger screens with 2.5K or 2.8K resolution. Four out of those latops have OLED panels. Some models use the Intel Core Ultra 5 processors, while others use Qualcomm's Snapdragon X Elite chips. They all have 16GB to 32GB RAM, 512GB storage, HDMI, and USB Type-C ports, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi 7.

Some models (Dell and HP) have just two USB Type-C ports, while ASUS and Lenovo laptops offer HDMI and USB Type-A ports.

Prices start at $899 and go as high as $1,300 for some top-of-the-line models.

Googlebook OS is based on the Android operating system but offers desktop-grade apps, Gemini-powered AI features, and seamless connectivity with Android phones.

Starting with the setup process, Googlebook OS makes sure that you don't need to do much to bring over all your important data and files. It automatically transfers your phone's messages, settings, and saved Wi-Fi networks. You can not only also access files from your phone through the native file manager app, but also use your phone's apps on your Googlebook laptop wirelessly through the Cast My Apps feature.

Googlebook OS syncs your browsing sessions continuously between your Android phone and your Googlebook laptop. You can also instantly pick up tasks from your phone and continue working on them on your laptop.

Gemini is deeply integrated into Googlebook OS. Quickly wiggling the mouse pointer, called Magic Pointer, brings up Gemini, which understands what's on your laptop's screen and offers suggestions based on the context. For example, it can offer you to create a calendar entry in Google Calendar if it regonizes that the email you are reading mentions a meeting.

Located next to the Quick Insert key on the keyboard is the Rambler feature that turns spoken thoughts into a neat and well-formatted notes with headings. It can also remove the umms and ahhs from your dictation and convert it into a proper message draft while chatting with people.

The Create My Widget feature, which first debuted with Android 17, is available on Googlebook OS, too. It lets you describe a custom widget in plain language and instantly generates a widget without any coding. You can add that widget directly to the desktop.

Being a Google platform, Googlebook OS offers desktop-grade apps for Calendar, Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Google Photos, Gmail, Google Chrome, Google Drive, Google Messages, YouTube, YouTube Music, and more. Of course, there are other apps like Files and Voice Recorder.

Then there are apps from third-party brands like Adobe Lightroom, Disney+, Netflix, Notability, Notion, and WhatsApp.

Besides the apps mentioned here, you can download and install all Android apps and games from the Google Play Store.

Samsung is working on multiple models of Googlebook laptops, but it is not yet clear if it will launch all of them. Those devices could feature One UI styling and One UI apps like My Files, Samsung Browser, Samsung Calendar, Samsung Health, Samsung Notes, Samsung Pass, Samsung Reminder, Samsung TV Plus, and SmartThings.

If you are a Samsung Galaxy user, you can expect your phone and tablet to work exceptionally well with the company's Googlebook laptops, offering seamless multitasking, productivity, and data syncing across all your Samsung devices.