The new AI-powered features that the search giant announced for its Chromebook Plus line of devices include the writing assistant, wallpaper creator, and access to Google's Gemini chatbot. To recap, Chromebook Plus laptops are produced with productivity at mind; it strictly follows barebones spec requirements. At the same time, new Chromebook Plus models from HP, Acer, and Asus were also announced.

The search giant has added a lot of Gemini-powered features in Maps and calls for spam detection during its Google I/O developer conference earlier this month. Now, Google is placing the Gemini icon on the shelf of Chromebooks for easy access.

Plus, those purchasing a new Chromebook Plus will receive the Google One AI Premium plan for 12 months. That includes Gemini Advanced, 2TB of storage, and Gemini in Docs, Sheets, Slides and Gmail.

Earlier this year, Google launched a writing tool in Chrome to assist individuals in writing or reformatting text anywhere. The company now broadens that capacity in all of Chrome OS on Chromebook Plus devices so users can pick text on PDFs, websites, or web apps to help them reshape tone and length.

To that end, Google is adding a new tool to Chromebook Plus that lets people create wallpapers and video conferencing backgrounds using guided prompts. The company added a similar generative AI wallpaper-making tool to Android 14 last year.

Chromebook Plus devices are getting Google Photos' generative AI-powered magic editor, which allows users to shift or resize selected objects and then relies on AI to regenerate the background based on the modifications.

New features for Chromebooks for all users
New buyers of budget Chromebook and even existing Chromebook users will have new features. For instance, Google has made setting up a new Chromebook device easier. Now when you set up a new Chromebook device, you can scan the QR code from your Android phone, and your phone will share all the important details like your Wi-Fi credentials and Google account details.
But Tasks also will be rolled into the calendar view of Chromebooks. You can tap on the bottom right from your Chromebook to see all your to-do items from all apps of Google Workspace.

The company also will introduce saving screen recording in GIF format, as well as a new Game dashboard that lets you map mobile controls to keys.

What's next:
Finally, Google also teases some features that it would be bringing to Chromebooks soon. Last year, the company introduced the accessible gaming mouse through Project Gameface that will allow players to control the device through face and head movement. Now, it is now working to integrate this into ChromeOS, letting users navigate through the interface using gestures.
Chromebooks are also getting Gemini-powered reading summaries of websites and documents. This will enable users to ask questions about the documents or the articles, for example.

The new feature for continuity allows you to resume tasks like reading an article that you left off on Chrome on your phone. When this feature rolls out, every time you open up your laptop, you will see a screen with windows, apps, and tabs you left open on other devices.
The company is also working on a feature related to focus. The system will enable you to choose a task, a term for completing it and a YouTube Music playlist for listening. It will activate the "Do not disturb" mode, which will block all notifications in this period.

New devices
In addition to feature announcements, Google also launched six new Chromebooks: four Chromebook Plus and two budget Chromebooks from HP, Acer, and Asus. Chromebooks fall in a range from pocket-friendly at $299 to a current most expensive $699 price point.