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The Shortcomings of ChromeOS in 2020

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It should not come as a shock that I am a huge fan of ChromeOS/ChromiumOS and while I am clearly a fan, I am also very critical of the operating system and want to see it evolve. A bit over 3 years ago, I wrote a article on my website outlining some of the major shortcomings with ChromeOS in 2017 and I am happy to say that ChromeOS has come a very long way. A lot of new and impressive features have come to ChromeOS since my post including proper SD card support for Android, upgrading the dated Android 6.0 and various other improvements that were not on my radar such as Linux application support. ChromeOS is a great operating system that has been a daily driver of mine for a long time but there are still several major shortcomings that I would love to see resolved in future releases of ChromeOS.

Will 2021 Be The Year of The Android Desktop?

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In the Linux community, there is a longstanding trope aptly referred to as “The Year of The Linux Desktop” in which everyone predicts the year that the Linux desktop usage rates are the majority instead of the minority for typical home users. It is no secret that Microsoft has been hemorrhaging Windows users to MacOS, iPads, Android Tablets and even ChromeOS at a high rate, mostly due to the fact that the typical home users computer needs have vastly changed over the past few years to be more “browser-centric”. Many companies have tried to push Linux desktops as a alternative to Windows however they often failed, ChromeOS was the first consumer Linux distribution to see widespread home usage and widespread education usage. I would argue that 2020 may have been the year of the Linux Desktop, especially with many schools issuing Chromebooks to students for remote learning due to COVID however I feel that Android might be next.

DexOnLinux/DexOnChromeOS – How To (NO ROOT)

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Samsung announced a new feature with the Samsung Galaxy Note 10, the ability to access Samsung Dex on a Windows or MacOS device. This in my opinion was a game changer as it could allow users to use the insane power of their Galaxy Note 10/Note 10+ devices on inexpensive hardware. Samsung released a client for MacOS and Windows but as usual left us ChromeOS/Linux users out in the cold. It turns out that there is indeed a way to use Samsung Dex on Linux and X64 Chromebooks like the Pixelbook (Affiliate Link), Pixelbook Go (Affiliate Link) or even Samsung’s own line of Chromebooks, It does need a bit of inexpensive hardware and WiFi to setup .

Samsung Dex on Windows/MacOS vs Dex Dock

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When Samsung announced the Galaxy Note 10 and Galaxy Note 10 plus, they dropped a massive update to Samsung Dex that allows you to access Dex on your Windows or MacOS PC by simply installing a companion application on your computer and plugging in your phone. For those who are not familiar with Samsung Dex, it turns supported phones into a fully deatured desktop computer. You can launch multiple applications in windowed mode and as long as you have a signal on your phone, you can always be online. While Dex on Windows/MacOS is a impressive evolution of the technology, it is currently not as feature rich as using a Native Dex Dock. Here is how they stack up

ARC VPN Support for Crostini Landing in Next Release of ChromeOS

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The fact that it was not possible to route traffic on a Crostini container over a VPN has been one of the most annoying bugs for developers who wish to use their Chromebooks to work in a corporate environment. Google has been working on a fix since I reported it over a year ago. The community of Chromebook owners were saddened to report that the fix was pushed back to M76 about 2 weeks ago. It looks like Google is going to squeeze it into M75, specifically in build 12104.0.0 which may hit the developer channel any day now.

Instructions to Download Google Play Movies Offline on Standalone Daydream Headsets

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I have been the proud owner of the first standalone Google Daydream headset since it launched – I actually got it at launch day. It is an excellent platform offering support countless hours of entertainment. Sadly one feature that is absent from Google Daydream is the ability to download content offline. This really seems like an oversight on Google’s end as the current Google Play Movies app on Daydream even offers a way to view offline content and manage storage. After hours of browsing the web, I came up with no current method of downloading offline content. I have a trip coming up and I am determined to binge watch content on my Daydream headset – fortunately I have come up with a solution.

The HP Elite X3 Laptop Dock is a Must Have Accessory for Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Owners (Samsung Dex)

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Many people say cell phones are like mini computers in your pocket however as the Galaxy Note 9 is a powerhouse that can run circles around most people’s laptops, I have to disagree and say that the Note 9 is a computer in your pocket. The HP Elite Laptop Dock was a premium accessory for a mobile phone that really did not sell well, this phone was the HP Elete X3. The Laptop Dock was specifically made to show off the Windows Mobile “continuum” feature to allow business customers to access a (almost) full Windows 10 Desktop while on the road by simply connecting the laptop dock to your HP Elite X3 phone via a simple USB Type C cable. As phone did not sell well and has since been discontinued, the price of these laptop docks have fallen sharply and this laptop dock works perfectly with Samsung Dex – if you have a Note 9 or Samsung Galaxy Tab S4.Warning – This only works with the Galaxy Note 9 or Galaxy Tab S4. It will not work with the Note 8, S8, S8+, S9, S9+ or any other model that is not the Note 9 or Galaxy Tab S4. Using the HP Elite Laptop Dock on a unsupported model of phone will not damage it or your phone but you will not get Dex – you will simply be limited to screen mirroring as if it were a HDMI output

T-Mobile 512 GB Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Experiencing Major Shipping Delays

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If you are like me and pre-ordered the 512 GB Samsung Galaxy Note 9 from T-Mobile (and perhaps other carriers), you will by now know that your device has missed the promised shipment date of August 24th. On August 23rd, I got a vague text message from T-Mobile saying that the shipment of my Note 9 has been delayed with no expected shipment date on the message. I reached out to T-Mobile via Twitter and found out some terrible news – the shipments have been delayed by several weeks. If you ordered a 512 GB Galaxy Note 9, here is likely what you can expect – you are likely not going to be thrilled with the news below.

A Warning to Galaxy Note 9 Owners : Beware of Fake MicroSD Cards

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Technically the warning here applies to all phones regardless of manufacturer but I am picking on Samsung specifically as they made it a huge point to say that the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 can be extended to 1 TB of space with the purchase of a 512 GB Micro SD Card… the problem however is that they did not mention the fact that 512 GB Micro SD cards are expensive and sites like Amazon/eBay/etc are full of scam artists that are chomping at the bit to sell their fake MicroSD cards to unsuspecting value hunters.