The idea of Phone Hub for Chrome OS is in no way a new thing. In fact, we’ve been watching this new Chromebook feature since July 2020 and watching it keep evolving. As it picked up features and realized more, it also moved into the development channels of Chrome OS. Due to the fact that it’s available nearby, I’m really using the Chrome OS 89 Beta channel service right now and really enjoy it.
For those who are not aware, the Phone Hub feature bridges the gap between your Chromebook and Android phone a little closer than we currently have, allowing users to mirror notifications directly from their Android device (if remove it on both devices, remove it both) on the hotspot function, mute the phone or find it directly from a Chromebook. There are also some recent Chrome tabs to pick up where you left off in your last browsing session.
I was thinking of sharing the Beta Channel availability with everyone this week after actually using it and got a better idea to expect from Phone Hub, but when I got my thoughts together for the message, a member of our Patreon community shared it. he now sees Phone Hub available on his Chromebook in the stable channel of Chrome OS 88. Although he says that most of the features only worked in a mocking way, it is interesting to see that for some it appears in the latest version of Chrome OS 88.
Phone Hub flags needed in Stable
An important note is the need for flags for Phone Hub to appear in the Stable Channel now. It does not just appear from the sky: you have to flip the flag you find chrome: // flags / # enable-phone-hub to get it going. For what it’s worth, I’m in the beta channel of Chrome OS 89, and Phone Hub simply showed up for me without further action or flags.
While by no means a complete feature, it is a major upgrade from the availability found so far only in the Canary and Developer Channels. With the way we view the feature for some and not for others, I tend to think that it’s being tested on an account-level basis for now. This is the only way to explain multiple users with the same device, the same version of Chrome OS and the different availability of this feature.
Whether you have the new Phone Hub available or are still waiting, its appearance for some users in Chrome OS 89, without the requirement of a flag, tells me that we’ll probably see it roll out to all users in the next release of the operating system, for a release date of 9 March. It’s just over three weeks from now, and I can tell you that this next update could be great. It looks like Phone Hub, Holding Space, and maybe the new media player could all appear in Chrome OS 89, along with a few other upgrades. Either way, we’ll know for sure soon.
