Google Tipped to Have Cancelled Nvidia Chromebook Plans

Chromebook patrons and gaming enthusiasts will have to continue using integrated graphics.

Written by Sucharita Ganguly, Edited by Richa Sharma | Updated: 19 August 2023 19:38 IST

Google Tipped to Have Cancelled Nvidia Chromebook Plans

Photo Credit: Google

Google Chromebooks now support streaming Android apps

Highlights

Google could still launch laptops with dedicated graphics
They scrapped Chromebooks powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3
Google was earlier reported to be testing laptops with RTX 3050 graphics

Google has reportedly scrapped its plans to introduce Chromebooks with integrated Nvidia graphics cards. The company incorporated gaming laptop-like features such as changeable RGB keyboards and high refresh rate displays into some of their models last year. But all of these devices come equipped with integrated GPUs and therefore were intended for use with streaming services such as Nvidia's GeForce Now and Microsoft's Xbox Cloud Gaming. Since then, reports suggested that the Mountain-View-based tech giant was exploring the idea of launching Chromebooks with dedicated GPU.

Earlier this year, a Chromebook board with the codename Hades was spotted by 9to5Google with a dedicated GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, similar to the one used in some Windows gaming laptops. This chip could have been used as a basis for multiple PC manufacturers to build Chromebooks on.

Now, according to developer comments spotted first by About Chromebooks on Chromium Gerrit, the Hades board, alongside two other Nvidia-equipped boards, Agah and Herobrine, were cancelled, which indicates that any laptops based on those boards will not be produced.

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It is speculated that Google may release Chromebooks with dedicated GPUs in the future. A recent code patch revealed the existence of a board codenamed Aurora. This board is thought to be for internal Steam testing and not an actual device, but it is marked with an RTX 3050 graphics card. As a result, work to make Steam on ChromeOS compatible with dedicated GPUs may still be ongoing.

Google has also notably reported to have cancelled the development of Chromebooks powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c+ Gen 3 SoC, a project with the codename Herobrine, in addition to ditching the Nvidia-based Chromebook plans. This suggests that no new ChromeOS tablets will be released in the foreseeable future.

Is the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5 the best foldable phone you can buy in India right now? We discuss the company's new clamshell-style foldable handset on the latest episode of Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

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Further reading: Google Chromebook, Chromebook, Nvidia, Nvidia GeForce, Google

Sucharita Ganguly

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Sucharita is a writer with Gadgets 360 and is mostly found playing with her cat in her free time. She has previously worked at breaking news desks across organizations. Powered by coffee, The Beatles, Bowie, and her newfound love for BTS, she aims to work towards contributing to a better media environment for women and queer folk. More