Together with the software company Parallels, Google brings native Microsoft Office and other Windows legacy applications to Chromebooks. First, companies should benefit from the partnership.
Android apps have been installed on Chromebooks for years, and Linux apps on some devices . Windows applications could only be executed via emulation. According to Google, that will change in the course of September and make Chromebooks more attractive for some companies.
According to Google, Windows apps for Chromebooks are due to Corona
So far, Microsoft’s Office applications can be used on Chromebooks via Android apps, web applications such as Microsoft 365 or alternatives from competitors such as Google Docs in the browser or Libre Office as a Linux application. With Parallels, a full office suite for Windows is coming to Chromebooks this fall.
According to Google, Parallels Desktop is natively integrated with Chrome OS. This is intended to improve performance and enable the offline use of Windows applications on Chromebooks. As the reason for the timing of the announcement, Google cites the corona crisis, which accelerates working in the home office so much that the time is ripe. In the USA, due to the corona situation, a 109 percent year-on-year growth in sales was achieved in the first quarter of 2020, according to Google . In the enterprise sector, the increase was around 155 percent.
Chromebooks with Windows Apps – More Than Office Applications?
Through the integration of Parallels into Chrome OS, other Windows applications should find their way into Google’s operating system in addition to Microsoft’s Office suite. Neither Google nor Parallels mention many details about the implementation, but Google promises to provide more information in the coming months.
It can be assumed that Google will bring Parallels Desktop to Chrome OS devices for private customers after the launch in Enterprise Chromebooks .