Today is the day, folks! Well, it’s the day for some of you, anyway. ChromeOS 130 is rolling out with new updates and features, and while I’ve been using ChromeOS 130 in the Beta Channel for a little bit to sample the new features, I noticed it was rolling out this morning and hopped back to the Stable channel to test out what arrived in M130 in the channel most people will be using.
And as it turns out, that was a mistake. I didn’t do my due diligence to make sure the device I have on my desk at the moment (the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus) actually received the M130 update. After heading back to Stable a bit prematurely, I got set up post-Powerwash (reverting versions means a full reset, unfortunately) and my first test was to see if “Help me read” was available and working as it has been in Beta 130. But it wasn’t there.
My first thought was that it just wasn’t flipped on in settings. But as I went to open those settings, I figured I’d glance at the version of ChromeOS just to be sure. And instead of seeing version 130, I was still on 129. I clicked the “Check for updates” button a few times, and after realizing an update wasn’t in the cards for me, I went over to cros.tech to look at the full list again, and I quickly realized my error.
No update yet for Chromebook Plus
As it stands, nearly all Chromebook Plus models were left out of this update for the time being. The only devices with Chromebook Plus on the lid that are on ChromeOS 130 right now are those with AMD processors inside. That means the Acer Chromebook Plus 514 and ASUS Chromebook Plus CM34 are the only ones that have it.
And that makes me think there’s some issue between one of the new features and Intel silicon. It doesn’t seem to be a generational thing (12th,13th and 14th-gen devices are all left out) and all Chromebook Plus devices (even those that don’t have it on the lid) seem to be held back for the time being. Again, we have no idea why this is the case.
We do have the Acer Chromebook Plus 514 around, and I was able to update to ChromeOS 130 with no issues. “Help me read” is up and running, Studio-style Mic works as intended, and the Recorder App is here as well. All the stuff I was hoping would arrive with ChromeOS 130 looks to be arriving, but it’s just not here for the vast majority of devices that can actually use these features.
As far as what else is new, we don’t know just yet. I’m sure there are some small updates, but I’m also sure that most of the new stuff this time around is likely held for Chromebook Plus. Hopefully, whatever the issue is gets solved soon and you’ll all get to try out these really useful new features. For now, we’re just in a holding pattern.
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