Googlebook's clumsy launch made me wish that I wasn't a product reviewer. I had to spend two weeks using a laptop with what felt like an unfinished operating system (cue the world's smallest violin), and throughout the entire process, I just kept thinking how nice it would be if Google had taken all of its biggest Googlebook features and slapped them on a mainline Linux distro instead of trying to reinvent the wheel.

Apple is bringing two new technologies for the first time ever in Mac’s history. The brand has unveiled the MacBook Pro with an OLED panel and touchscreen support. These have been around on Windows machines for years, and while Apple is late to the party, it introduces interface changes optimized for touch input and designed to deliver a more immersive viewing experience. That potentially blurs the line between MacBook and iPad experiences.

Apple's new touchscreen MacBook Pro starts at $2,899.

Apple has unveiled its first touchscreen MacBook Pro, reversing a position the company held for more than 15 years that touchscreens were poorly suited for laptops. 9to5Mac reports: The new machine features a light-up Apple logo, tandem OLED, and touch input on the display. It runs on the M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, like the existing MacBook Pro models without OLED touch displays. John Ternus, who is rocking a new profile picture with the new Mac, shared the first look at the new machine on X. Pricing for the new laptop starts at $2899 for the 14-inch model. The 16-inch version starts at $3399. Pre-orders are available starting today with deliveries starting November 6.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Google’s updated Compose adaptive skill helps AI coding agents optimise Android apps for laptops, foldables and larger screens, as Google prepares to give adaptive experiences more attention on Google Play next year.

Gemini Notebook’s mobile app now has a built-in recorder for capturing lectures and meetings as sources. You can record directly where you’ll use the material, skipping the separate recording app and the file upload afterward. Google announced the feature on X, highlighting classroom lectures and team meetings as potential uses. It also works for capturing […]

After years of using touchscreen Windows laptops like the Dell XPS 14 and Asus Zenbook Duo, I'm eager to see Apple's take, provided it keeps the MacBook experience intact.

Ahead of the touchscreen MacBook Pro expected to debut tomorrow, Apple has refreshed its standard 14-inch MacBook Pro with the new M6 processor, promising up to 20% faster multithreaded performance, improved power efficiency, and more powerful on-device AI capabilities. The Verge reports: Announced this morning through a press release, the new 14-inch MacBook Pro features three Thunder 4 USB-C ports that all support charging and DisplayPort connectivity, a MagSafe 3 charging port, full-size HDMI, and an SDXC memory card slot accommodating photographers. Pricing for the new M6 version of the 14-inch MacBook Pro starts at $1,999 with 16GB of memory, the same as last year's M5 model. Preorders start on October 28th and shipping is expected to begin on November 6th. The new M6 processor is Apple's first 2nm chip with a bump to a 12-core CPU, up from 10 cores in the M5, and the company says it offers up to 1.2x faster multithreaded performance when compared to its predecessor. The M6 also features a Dual 16-core Neural Engine to handle heavy on-device AI tasks, plus an upgraded 12-core GPU with a Neural Accelerator in each core. In addition to performance improvements, Apple says its M6 processor is more power efficient.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

The release of any brand-new operating system means the inevitable discovery of bugs and even device-breaking issues, and Googlebooks are no exception. It's simple to factory reset a Googlebook if you simply need a fresh start or are encountering minor problems, but in the event your Googlebook is effectively unusable, a more complete and in-depth recovery may be necessary. If you're in that boat, follow this guide to completely reinstall Googlebook OS and hopefully save your laptop.

I wasn't particularly satisfied with the Googlebook launch. As a tech writer and product reviewer, I was basically obligated to spend two weeks with a product that felt grossly unfinished and super confused about its identity. But one feature, the Glowbar, just can't escape my mind.

Most FEHB plans raised their premiums for 2027, and some are changing benefits in ways that could push your out-of-pocket spending higher.

© Getty Images/iStockphoto/mohd izzuan

Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else. PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to […]

Google's Linux Terminal Preview brings AI agents and developer tools to Googlebook. Explore its features, security controls, and IT limitations.

The post Googlebook Adds Linux Developer Tools: What You Can Do With the New Terminal Preview appeared first on TechRepublic.

Google's Linux Terminal Preview brings AI agents and developer tools to Googlebook. Explore its features, security controls, and IT limitations.

The post Googlebook Adds Linux Developer Tools: What You Can Do With the New Terminal Preview appeared first on TechRepublic.

Amazon has renamed Kindle Unlimited to Kindle+, keeping the $11.99 monthly price while expanding its audiobook catalog with more titles, including some narrated by AI.

Meta must pay $25 billion to New Mexico after a jury found the tech giant guilty of nearly 44 million violations of state consumer protection laws.

The largest fine to ever hit Meta came after New Mexico Attorney General Raúl Torrez declined to join an $18 billion settlement Meta reached earlier this year with attorneys general in nearly all states.

In his opinion Wednesday, US district court judge Francis J. Mathew said there was no “bright line rule” for determining the appropriate penalty for Meta's repeated and willful deception of users since 2010 about their “control of data, third-party data misuse, misinformation, hate speech, and equal enforcement.”

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Google is taking another crack at convincing consumers that it can make compelling laptops for the masses, and the name of this latest attempt is "Googlebook." Chromebooks have officially begun their long decline into obscurity, leaving Googlebooks to bridge the gaps between ChromeOS, Android, Linux, and all the AI features Google wants you to use. At the core of Googlebook OS is the full Google Play Store and its millions of apps, but my time with Android apps on the first-generation Lenovo Googlebook 15 has laid out an undeniable truth: Progressive Web Apps are still superior, and it's not a close fight.

Early Googlebook OS reviews reveal Android app compatibility problems, account-switching limitations, and Gemini features that struggle with everyday tasks.

The post Googlebook OS Early Reviews Reveal App and Gemini Problems appeared first on TechRepublic.

Early Googlebook OS reviews reveal Android app compatibility problems, account-switching limitations, and Gemini features that struggle with everyday tasks.

The post Googlebook OS Early Reviews Reveal App and Gemini Problems appeared first on TechRepublic.

The social media giant is planning a new stock strategy to help power its broad investments in AI models and services.