Google extends Chromebook support from 8 years to 10 years after mounting backlash – Ars Technica

Google Announce Today it is extending automatic update support for Chromebooks from 8 years to 10 years for devices released starting in 2019 and later. The move follows mounting criticism from consumers, schools and advocacy groups about the many used Chromebooks going up for sale as the death date approaches.

“All Chromebook platforms will now get regular automatic updates for 10 years,” Google’s blog post said. Many Chromebooks released in 2019 were due to expire next year. Now, no Chromebooks will expire in the next two years.

Google’s blog continues:

Starting in 2024, if you have Chromebooks released from 2021 onward, you’ll automatically get updates for 10 years. For Chromebooks released before 2021 and already in use, users and IT admins will have the option to extend automatic updates for 10 years from the platform release when they receive the last automatic update.

Ten years of support is a remarkable achievement for Chromebooks, which are often more affordable. The average Mac receives seven years of macOS updates. Meanwhile, Windows typically receives 10 years of updates, but you can install (and update) Windows on devices as far back as the late 2000s. Chromebooks are unique in that individual models have automatic update expiration (AUE) dates and have faced criticism for this For years.

Elizabeth Chamberlain, Sustainability Director at iFixit, told Ars Technica:

Basing upgrade and service schedules on the first manufacture date rather than the last new sale date is a fundamentally flawed model. It allows for the terrible possibility that someone will purchase a new retail product with expired security support, which should never happen.

Somehow, Google found a way

Google’s announcement comes about three years after it announced an extension of automatic update support for Chromebooks from five years to eight years. It also follows the US Public Interest Research Group’s (PIRG’s) “Chromebook Churn” report in April [PDF] Pointing out that the average Chromebook only has four years of updates left. At the time, 64 Chromebook models were scheduled to expire by the end of summer 2024.

By including interviews with repair technicians, repair activists and US school districts that helped boost Chromebook sales during the COVID-19 pandemic, PIRG’s scathing report details concerns about Chromebook AUEs, including views that they are “arbitrary” and “aggressive.” PIRG called on Google to pledge support for 10 years.

However, Google has already… He said It is not easy to change AUE dates because the dates “rely on multiple non-Google hardware and software providers who work with Google to provide the highest level of security and stability support,” which is why “older Chrome devices cannot receive updates indefinitely to enable features New operating system and browser.

August Wall Street Journal The report quotes ChromeOS product manager Forrest Smith as saying that the AUE dates exist in relation to vendor support for the laptop’s components and that “the dates are not random.”

A Google spokesperson told Ars today that “hundreds of models and thousands of units are tested for each update, including test updates, every four weeks, throughout the entire support period.”

“The increased time certainly represents a significant engineering effort for Google and our partners,” a Google rep said.

But the PIRG report drew a lot of attention to Chromebook lifespans, especially since many public schools and taxpayers have spent money on Chromebook fleets to accommodate remote learning during the pandemic. For example, the South Kitsap School District in Washington made the announcement in January is expected to spend at least $2.8 million to replace 9,483 Chromebooks in 2026. Schools were also concerned about the cost of transporting unwanted Chromebooks, which lack the resale value of other laptops, such as MacBooks.

It’s possible that the extension has something to do with Google exploring decoupling ChromeOS from Chrome, which would allow people to update Chrome (the most important app in any Chromebook), even after the device’s AUE date. However, Google did not advance the project Lacrosse,(toinux aSecond abbreviation CHRome OS), Official.

Regardless of how it turns out, PIRG seems satisfied with Google’s announcement, with Lucas Rockett Gutterman, PIRG’s Design to Last campaign director, saying in a statement that the news will see fewer laptops disposed of.

he added:

Google and other tech companies should continue to innovate ways to commit to the circular economy and stop pressuring us to replace our phones and laptops. The environmental damage caused by industrialization and e-waste means we cannot consume technology at this rate. Long-lasting Chromebooks are an important step toward creating products that are built to last.

Room for improvement

Because Chromebooks have been marketed as an easy and affordable solution for people looking for a low-priced system or a fleet that can be easily managed, Google and its Chromebook partners have endured criticism regarding the devices’ longevity. Today’s announcement addresses Chromebook longevity but doesn’t resolve all concerns.

PIRG’s April report also shared complaints about the costs and scarcity of Chromebook parts, citing poor inventory and repair programs at OEMs.

Today’s Google Blog touched on repairability by discussing ways schools can fix Chromebooks and Google Maps Global recycling drop-off points feature, And the Chromebook repair program.

“Our new repair processes allow authorized repair centers and school technicians to repair Chromebooks without a physical USB key,” the blog adds.

But none of this resolves concerns about repair costs for Chromebooks, which tend to be low-priced and use a plastic chassis.

“[With the] “A typical repair, you need to replace 50 percent of the device and remove it,” Jenny Crowley, director of technology and innovation for Scarsdale, New York’s public school district, said in the PIRG report.

However, this issue will need to be addressed by future OEM releases. Google makes reference designs for the Chromebook, but then OEMs work with Google to modify those designs, so the final laptops are a collaboration.

There are also complaints about refurbishing devices being blocked on Chromebooks linked to another user, an issue that has affected this MacBooks too.

End-of-life Chromebooks also continue to be sold on online marketplaces without warning customers. The Asus Chromebook Flip C302 was released in 2018, so it doesn’t get extended update support. But as of this writing, it still stands Amazon For $387 and Walmart For $603 (link to laptops for illustrative purposes only).

Google can also help Chromebooks last longer with official support ChromeOS Flex runs on Chromebooks. Google hasn’t explained why ChromeOS Flex isn’t supported on Chromebooks and appears to be focusing on getting it on macOS and Windows devices instead. ChromeOS Flex support will provide a Google-approved way to maintain the utility of Chromebooks with expired software but working hardware.

“Even if your Chromebook no longer receives automatic updates, it still has robust, built-in security features,” Google’s blog says. “With Verified Boot, for example, your Chromebook performs a self-check every time it turns on. If it detects that the system has been tampered with or damaged in any way, it will usually repair itself, It returns to its original state.”

But it doesn’t take an IT expert to tell you that software updates are an important part of cybersecurity.

Beyond security, schools reported being unable to access online state testing using Chromebooks running older versions of ChromeOS.

The statement from PIRG’s Guterman said:

There is still room for improvement in other issues identified in the “Chromebook Churn” report, such as standardizing parts across models and manufacturers and ensuring replacement parts are available to all installers. Continuous improvements in technology mean that products should last longer each year.