With little hard drive memory, Chromebooks look like laptops but feel like tablets.( Andrew Neel via Unsplash /)
Chromebooks today come with support for Android apps–you can load up Instagram, Twitter, Dropbox, and other useful tools just as you can on your mobile phone. But not all Android apps shall be duly revised for Chrome OS–maybe they don’t support the use of a keyboard and trackpad, or perhaps they’ll merely run in a small window.
With that in subconsciou, and to prevent you from diving into a tedious trial and error process, we’re now to guide you towards some of the best Android apps that really make full use of your Chromebook.
Netflix
No more trailer auto-play is enough of a reason to download the Netflix app.( David Nield /)
Video and movie apps are a no-brainer for your Chromebook, but there are a couple good reasons why you would want to load up the Netflix app for Android on Chrome OS rather than simply logging in through a browser tab.
Offline downloads is one: the app gives you save adopted material( including all Netflix Original claims) to your Chromebook for when you’ve got a limited connection or nothing at all.
Besides offline downloads, the tablet-style interface performs it easier to browse through indices of seasons and episodes than it is on the web. Plus, it won’t annoy you by playing trailers automatically as you browse.
Netflix for Android( from$ 9 a month ).
Apple Music
Besides a “Switch to iOS” tool, Apple Music is the only app Apple establishes for Android, so if you subscribe to Apple Music, you’ll still have full be made available to all your motifs on your Chromebook.
The app represents full implementation of the space–you can get album artwork or lyrics that scroll by in real experience on one side of the screen, while you browse playlists and recommendations on the other. The app works with the media playback keys on your Chromebook keyboard, too.
Just like Apple Music for Android telephones, the app can sync books and playlists to your invention, which means your listening can carry on even if you lose your internet connection.
Apple Music for Android ($ 10 a few months ).
Adobe Photoshop Express
Definitely not the same as the full Photoshop software, but it carries most of the tools you’ll need to get your portraits Instagram-ready.( David Nield /)
Though photo editing continued to be one of the weaker distinguishes in the Chromebook productivity workflow, you can still find various tools that will do a good job at this, both on the web and in the Android app library. One of very best is Adobe Photoshop Express.
It doesn’t include all the tools you’ll find in the full Photoshop software, but it has all the basic runs that will help you cultivate and resize idols, add filters and text, adjust brightness and compare, fixing red eye and smudges, and more. There’s likewise a one-tap fix button for automatically adjusting colouring and tone.
The app starts full utilize of the room on a Chromebook screen, very, so there’s plenty of room for your likeness and the various effects and alternatives. You can also easily save your paints to the disk or discuss the matter to other apps.
Adobe Photoshop Express for Android( free ).
Microsoft Word
You might be used to opening up Google Docs when it is required to do some writing on your Chromebook, but we’d clearly recommend get Word for Android lay as well, for a more traditional word processing experience.
You’ll get a full range of text formatting options, the ability to drop in visualizes, figures, and tables, and support for headers, footers, and towers. It’s not quite the powerhouse of a program that Word on Windows is, but it has more than enough for most consumers. You can share and collaborate on documents with others, too.
The only catch is that Word for Android isn’t free on screens above 10.1 inches in size–which most Chromebooks are–so you’ll need an Office 365 subscription( from$ 7 a few months ). This is something that gets you Excel, PowerPoint, and the other Office apps more, across desktop and mobile.
Microsoft Word for Android( from$ 7 a month ).
ArtFlow
ArtFlow can be the key to unleashing all of your aesthetic capacity. Exactly look at that wonderful, reasonable face tree.( David Nield /)
Unlock your ability by installing ArtFlow on your Chrome OS laptop–it’s one of the best drawing platforms for Android manoeuvres, and since Chromebook has a bigger display than a phone or a regular tablet, you’ll get a much bigger canvas to work on.
The app comes with a choice of 20 different derive cleans, as well as an eraser and smudge and load tools. You can be utilized your digit or a stylus to start sketching or decorating, though you’re going to need a touchscreen for this one, which most Chromebooks now have.
ArtFlow aids strata as well, so you can work separately on different elements of your digital classic before blending them. If you want to work with more tools, the characteristics and seams, you can go for a pro license ($ 5 ).
ArtFlow for Android( free or$ 5 ).
Firefox
Using Chrome OS doesn’t mean you have to use Chrome as your web browser–there are plenty of alternatives to pick from in the Google Play Store, including the ever-improving, privacy-focused Firefox.
Take full authority over the ways that websites can and can’t track you, mount swiftly between several tabs, and even install browser increases. If you use Firefox on some or all of your other manoeuvres, then you can also sync your passwords, bookmarks, browsing autobiography, and other data to your Chromebook.
Firefox is equally happy running in full-screen mode or in a smaller window drifting on top of other apps, which is handy if you’re working in parallel with other apps or looking up something on the web.
Firefox for Android( free ).
Gmail
Get that inbox down to zero by swiping and removing.( David Nield /)
Of course, you can load up Gmail in a web browser on your Chromebook and it’ll work perfectly well–with offline substantiate, too–but the Android app will give you access to a few extra tricks for powering through your inbox.
Gmail for Android has a useful tablet-style layout that puts your send schedule on the left, and individual email previews on the right, performing it easier to read contents and filter those that are not worth your time. The app also supports some of the functionalities of Gmail for Android, so you can swipe across emails to archive or delete them.
On top of that, all the usual Gmail goodness is here–support for multiple email details, automatic screen of important and unimportant themes, potent examine options, and more.
Gmail for Android( free ).
Your favorite games
“I prefer my recreations on a smaller screen, actually, ” said no one ever.( David /)
We won’t pick out just one example here, but a Chromebook makes enormous for Android gaming–though procure competitions that work well on Chrome OS can be a bit of a process. Overall, slower, less-demanding games work best.
If you got to find your favorite tournaments roll smoothly on your Chromebook, the benefits are obvious: your plays of option are exposed at a much bigger size and you can control them apply a trackpad and keyboard, rather than tapping on the screen.
Games we can vouch for as provide a good know on Chrome OS include Alto’s Odyssey( free with in-app buys ), Grand Theft Auto: Vice City ($ 5 ), Fallout Shelter( free with in-app buys ), and Crossy Road( free with in-app acquisitions ), but you’ll sure be able to find plenty more.
Read more: popsci.com
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