Chrome Story

Chrome OS To Get “Model-specific” Wallpapers

Here is a small change in Chrome OS that might improve the unboxing – first boot experience on your next Chromebook, model-specific wallpaper. With model-specific wallpaper, you will start seeing a lot of new curated images showing up on Chromebooks as wallpapers.

Chrome OS currently has the option to set an OEM specific wallpaper. So far, I have seen only HP using this feature for their Chromebooks.

Google tightly controls Chrome OS updates and the way the OS looks and works. Unlike Android, it does not allow OEMs to customize their Chromebooks to standout from the crowd. This will also become one of the very few options that OEMs get to customize their Chromebooks.

This featured showed up this morning in Chromium OS code, as Change 419740:

login: Add support for model-specific wallpaper

Allow the default wallpaper to be controlled by the master configuration.

Android Effect?

Android phones and tablets ship with custom wallpapers. Motorola at some point allowed you to choose a wallpaper even before the device was shipped.

Google’s own “Live Case” uses custom wallpaper that comes with an additional element of customization to the user.

We have already seen Android’s wallpaper picker coming to Chrome OS as the default wallpaper app. And now we have this. It is hard to believe that this is not an Android effect.

What is your take on this?

In

2 responses to “Chrome OS To Get “Model-specific” Wallpapers”

  1. DennyL

    The Dell Chromebook 13 uses custom/oem wallpaper too – https://goo.gl/mwrDq5
    They have both the small & large carbon fiber wallpaper that matches the case, it’s very cool.

    Reply
    1. Dinsan – Bangalore, India – Digital Minimalist & Content Developer. Drinks Tea and writes Stuff (mostly about Chromebooks). My views are mostly copied from others.
      Dinsan

      Ah! thanks Denny! That makes it two Chromebooks.

      Reply

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