An anonymous reader shares a report: Google announced it's rolling out ChromeOS M131 to non-beta users, bringing with it a handy "Safety reset" feature that lets Chromebook users reset their laptops without totally wiping them. The update also introduced a new "Flash notifications" accessibility option to help those who might not otherwise easily hear or see them. Like Powerwash in ChromeOS, Safety reset will wipe the slate clean if you're experiencing computer virus-like behavior such as unusual pop-ups. But where Powerwash is a full factory reset, Safety reset preserves local data and apps, as well as things like bookmarks and saved passwords, according to a help document about the feature.

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Alphabet's Chrome browser could go for as much as $20 billion if a judge agrees to a Justice Department proposal to sell the business, in what would be a historic crackdown on one of the world's biggest tech companies. From a report: The department will ask the judge, who ruled in August that Google illegally monopolized the search market, to require measures related to artificial intelligence and its Android smartphone operating system, according to people familiar with the plans.

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According to Bloomberg, the U.S. Justice Department wants Google to sell off its Chrome browser as part of its ongoing search monopoly case. The recommendations will be made official on Wednesday. 9to5Google reports: At the top of the list is having Google sell Chrome "because it represents a key access point through which many people use its search engine." There are many questions about how that works, including what the impact on the underlying Chromium codebase would be. Would Google still be allowed to develop the open-source project by which many other browsers, like Microsoft Edge use? "The government has the option to decide whether a Chrome sale is necessary at a later date if some of the other aspects of the remedy create a more competitive market," reports Bloomberg. Google, which plans to appeal, previously said that "splitting off Chrome or Android would break them." Bloomberg reports that "antitrust officials pulled back from a more severe option that would have forced Google to sell off Android." However, the government wants Google to "uncouple its Android smartphone operating system from its other products, including search and its Google Play mobile app store, which are now sold as a bundle." Meanwhile, other recommendations include licensing Google Search data and results, as well as allowing websites that are indexed for Search to opt out of AI training.

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Google is reportedly working on a multi-year project to migrate Chrome OS into Android, aiming to unify its operating systems and better compete with the iPad. This transition involves incorporating Chrome OS features like extensions and Linux app support into Android, with upcoming updates focused on improving desktop functionality and device compatibility. Android Authority reports: To better compete with the iPad as well as manage engineering resources more effectively, Google wants to unify its operating system efforts. Instead of merging Android and Chrome OS into a new operating system like rumors suggested in the past, however, a source told me that Google is instead working on fully migrating Chrome OS over to Android. While we don't know what this means for the Chrome OS or Chromebook brands, we did hear that Google wants future "Chromebooks" to ship with the Android OS in the future. That's why I believe that Google's rumored new Pixel Laptop will run a new version of desktop Android as opposed to the Chrome OS that you're likely familiar with. While Google hasn't publicly confirmed its intentions to turn Chrome OS into Android, it did mention back in June that Chrome OS would become more like Android by "embracing portions of the Android stack, like the Android Linux kernel and Android frameworks." Chrome OS already makes use of some Android tech, such as the operating system's Bluetooth stack code-named "Fluoride," so the announcement that it would start to use even more of Android came as no surprise. However, Google's announcement didn't tell the full story, as we've since discovered that not only is Google building a new version of Chrome for Android with extensions support but also a Terminal to run Linux apps on Android. The former is intended to achieve feature parity between Chrome for Android and Chrome OS, while the latter is intended to deliver a Crostini-like experience when Chromebooks transition to Android. However, there are still a lot of things that Google has to do to achieve feature parity between Android and Chrome OS. The desktop windowing changes that Google is introducing in the first quarterly platform release of Android 15 are just the beginning, as Google is working on a huge number of new Android features including improved keyboard and mouse support, external monitor support, multiple desktops, and more. All of these changes, we're told, are part of Google's internal Android-on-laptop project, though they'll also obviously benefit tablets like the upcoming Pixel Tablet 2.

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A new update is rolling out that automatically starts Microsoft's Edge browser and prompts users to import their Chrome tabs -- a move that has sparked criticism over its invasive tactics to encourage Edge adoption. The Verge's Tom Warren reports: My colleague Richard Lawler noticed that Edge started automatically on his PC last week at boot and offered up a new prompt to "enhance your browsing experience." The pop-up has a "bring over your data from other browsers regularly" option ticked by default, and encourages people to confirm and continue with a big blue button. If you want to dismiss this prompt there's a tiny white X button that looks similar to the sparkles Microsoft is using in the background of the prompt. If you simply hit confirm and continue then Microsoft Edge will import your Chrome data and continually import your tabs if you have Chrome set as default. The prompt seems to mainly appear on PCs with Chrome installed, suggesting that Microsoft is once again targeting Chrome users. Microsoft confirmed the new "feature" to The Verge. "This is a notification giving people the choice to import data from other browsers," explains Microsoft spokesperson Caitlin Roulston. "There is an option to turn it off."

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It seems that the rumors about new Ricoh GR IV and GR Monochrome cameras got debunked pretty quickly:

“Sorry! The online rumor that the Ricoh GR4 camera may be released in the first quarter of 2025 has been verified by internal channels to be false news. An insider was quoted as saying: “The release date of the Ricoh GR4 is still unknown, but it will definitely not be in the first quarter of 2025". When asked why there were rumors of the release of the Ricoh GR4? The source responded: The Ricoh GR series cameras are highly praised by users and the market feedback is hot. It is not surprising that there have been many rumors about the release of the GR4 last year and this year. It is too early to talk about the specific release date of the Ricoh GR4 camera. The existing GR3 and GR3x series models are still in short supply.”

Rumors about new Ricoh GR IV and GR Monochrome cameras got debunked quickly

Kimio Tanaka: there will be no monochrome Ricoh GR camera

Somebody converted their Ricoh GRIIIx camera into Monochrome (DIY)

Customized Ricoh GRm monochrome camera

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