Why Chromebook Plus has me excited to return to the Pixel 8 Pro

If you’ve been around Chrome Unboxed for any stretch of time, you know that part of what started this whole thing in the first place was my propensity to change phones. Over time, my phone swapping was replaced with Chromebook swapping, I started making content, and here we are today. And for the most part, my phone-hopping days are largely behind me. Though my yearly upgrade is still a more-frequent device change than many go through, it’s a far calmer pattern I now find myself in.

But early in 2023, I couldn’t help the urge to give Samsung’s ecosystem a try. There were some sweet deals available on their phones, watches and earbuds, so I went in to try it all out and see how it worked with a Chromebook. Turns out, it was pretty solid, but there have been small, lingering things that I’ve missed along the way.

One of those things is the new App Streaming that is finally live in ChromeOS. For now, that doesn’t work with Samsung devices and, as a rule, those types of exclusions make me wish for a more-cohesive experience with my phone and Chromebook. But the Pixel 7 Pro’s sub-par gaming abilities mixed with its connection issues made me stick with my Galaxy S23 Ultra for the better part of 2023, and it’s been a pretty decent experience.

Enter Chromebook Plus

But with the advent of Chromebook Plus, I’m really feeling the desire to get back to the tightness of Google’s ecosystem. With the Pixel 8 Pro, I’m hopeful that performance won’t be an issue and that connectivity is better, too. And as long as those things hold true, I can get back to a better overall connection between my phone, Chromebook, watch (either the Fitbit Charge 6 or Pixel Watch 2), and earbuds (I have the Pixel Buds Pro back in my pocket, too).

Knowing that Chromebook Plus is set to continue adding features in the coming months that may be Pixel-only (at least at first), I really feel compelled to have a Google-made phone in my pocket once again. I’m excited for all the perks Google announced for the Pixel 8 Pro (the new Night Sight Video, Video Boost, new photo editing capabilties, etc.) and I’m equally pumped for the new stuff on the way with Chromebook Plus – stuff like AI-generated wallpapers, video calling tools, and on-device generative AI throughout.

While the Pixel 8 Pro will really only get me the new App Streaming abilities versus what I get in the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, I have the sneaking suspicion that more cool stuff is on the way for the Chromebook Plus and Android phone experience: and those things tend to hit Google’s phones first. Specifically, with generative AI and the Google Assistant over the next few months, I’m really ready to be plugged into Google’s ecosystem as fully as possible for the next little while. While I don’t know exactly what’s on the way, I feel like the future is very bright; and I want to be first in line to take advantage of it.