Android is the best and worst thing about Googlebooks

<figure> <img alt="" data-caption="I’ve been testing two Googlebooks: this Asus model, and HP’s too." data-portal-copyright="" data-has-syndication-rights="1" src="https://platform.theverge.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2026/10/asus-googlebook-android-15.jpg?quality=90&#038;strip=all&#038;crop=0,0,100,100" /> <figcaption> I’ve been testing two Googlebooks: this Asus model, and HP’s too. </figcaption> </figure> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">My first week with the new Android-powered laptops has been <a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/1008563/googlebook-software-impressions-thoughts-roundtable">about as rocky as anyone's</a>, but I've slowly learned to like them, even if love still feels a ways off. Every moment that's impressed me has been thanks to Android, whether I've been accessing a native version of a useful app or quickly checking my phone notifications from the laptop user interface.</p> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">But man, sometimes it just <em>sucks</em>. </p> <p class="wp-block-paragraph">Phone connectivity is flaky, app casting is awkward, and file-sharing seems to be flat-out broken. And that's just the interaction between a Googlebook and a phone - I have a whole other set of gripes about the limitations of native Android apps on a $ …</p> <p><a href="https://www.theverge.com/tech/1008750/googlebooks-android-best-worst-notifications-app-cast-file-sharing">Read the full story at The Verge.</a></p>