ProductNot yet confirmed elsewhere1 publisher3 min readPublished
Google says Slack's web app fails to install on Googlebook because it is not a compliant PWA
Google and its partners are asking at least $899 for a Googlebook, Android Police reports. The writer sets that against a $699 MacBook Neo and lists app gaps a fleet buyer would need to test first.
The Product Desk
Key figures: Google and its partners ask at least $899 for a Googlebook. The MacBook Neo costs $699 after a $100 increase. The Googlebook costs at least $200 more than the Neo. Better Together features require Android 17 or later, which is uncommon outside Pixels and select flagship Samsung phones.
| Figure | Value | Note | Claim |
|---|---|---|---|
| Googlebook price asked by Google and partners | $899 at least | 1 | |
| MacBook Neo price | $699 | After a $100 price increase | 8 |
| Premium over MacBook Neo | $200 at least | 12 | |
| Android version Better Together requires | 17 or later | Uncommon outside Pixels, some Samsungs | 5 |
What happened
- On a Googlebook, the Play Store steers a Slack installer to the web app, and the install then fails, according to Android Police.
- Googlebook's Better Together phone features need Android 17 or later, a version few phones outside Pixels and some flagship Samsung models have yet.
- Apple's MacBook Neo costs $699 after a $100 increase, with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.
Why it matters
- decision A fleet order now needs an app-by-app test sheet, because the one named failure is a standard business tool, not an obscure one.
- cost Workaround time falls on whoever supports the seat, on top of a premium of at least $200 per laptop over the Neo.
- constraint Phone-side features reach only staff whose phones run Android 17 or later, so a bring-your-own-phone fleet gets a partial platform.
Slack is the mild case: the failure has a stated cause and a promised fix. Google says the cause is that Slack's web app is not a compliant progressive web app [3]. Chromebooks already let users install it manually anyway, and Google promises the same on Googlebooks "soon" [4]. The piece does not include a date. Android Police's writer calls Slack one of the most widely used business communication apps [13].
The harder cases have no fix on the calendar. The writer reports no native desktop app for ChatGPT or Claude on Googlebooks [6]. Their web versions are usable, and Claude Code runs in a terminal [7]. A deployment plan tends to assume the browser covers it. The writer's stated standard is stricter: "I am not going to spend time finding workarounds before I can get started." [11]
Price makes that standard expensive. The floor is $899 [1], and the MacBook Neo is $699 after a $100 increase [8]. That is a gap of at least $200 per laptop [12]. The Neo has 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, which the writer calls inferior hardware, yet he says he can install the Mac versions of ChatGPT, Claude or Chrome instead of wondering whether the Android versions offer the functionality he needs [9]. At $899 or more, he writes, he won't buy on a bet that Google will someday fill in the missing apps and get better support from developers [10].
The phone side adds a second check. The Better Together features, one of the main highlights of the platform, need a phone running Android 17 or later, a version few phones outside Pixels and some flagship Samsung models have yet [5].
This is one columnist's account with one named failing app. The piece has no usage or return data from Googlebook buyers, so it shows where the gaps are and cannot show how many people hit them.
We would hold a fleet order until every app on the list has been placed in a two-question grid. The tradeoff is a slower refresh while Google builds the manual install it promised [4]. The first question is whether the app has a native client on Googlebook. The second, for apps that do not, is whether the web version installs and does the job your staff actually use it for.
- Native client exists: ready to deploy. - No native client, web version installs and covers the work: pilot with a small group. - No native client, web install fails: wait for the fix. Slack sits here today [2]. - No native client, web version lacks the features staff use: keep that group off Googlebook.
Each daily app in the last two cells carries a cost in workaround time per person, and that cost can be set against the premium of at least $200 over the Neo [12].
What to watch
- Whether Google ships the manual web-app install it promised for Googlebooks, and whether Slack then installs.
- Whether OpenAI or Anthropic release native desktop apps for ChatGPT or Claude on Googlebooks.
- Which phone makers beyond Pixels and select Samsung models reach Android 17, the minimum for Better Together.
Clarity's read
What the record supports and how the coverage leans. The claims behind it follow.
Reality
- Evidence40
- Adoption
- Insufficient
- Hype gap
- Insufficient
- Incentives
- Insufficient
- Confidence45
Claim ledger
Ranked by verification strength, evidence, and original report placement.
- [1]
Google and its partners want at least $899 for a Googlebook, a new laptop category running an Android-based desktop OS.
- [2]
When a user goes to the Play Store to install Slack on a Googlebook, the store recommends installing the web app, but the installation then fails.
- [3]
Google says the Slack install fails because Slack's web app is not a compliant progressive web app.
- [4]
Chromebooks support manually installing the Slack web app anyway, and Google promises to bring the same feature to Googlebooks soon.
- [5]
The Better Together features, described as one of the main highlights of Googlebooks, require Android 17 or later, which is still uncommon outside Pixels and select flagship Samsung phones.
- [6]
There is no native desktop app available for ChatGPT or Claude for Googlebooks.
- [7]
For AI apps like ChatGPT or Claude, the web versions can be used on Googlebooks, while tools like Claude Code can run in the terminal.
- [8]
Even after a $100 price increase, Apple's cheapest MacBook, the MacBook Neo, costs $699, with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, which the writer describes as inferior hardware.
- [9]
On the MacBook Neo the writer can install the Mac version of ChatGPT, Claude, or Chrome instead of wondering whether the Android versions offer the functionality he needs.
- [10]
At $899 or more, the writer says he won't buy a Googlebook on the promise that Google will eventually close the app gap and secure better developer support.
- [11]
I am not going to spend time finding workarounds before I can get started.
- [12]
The Googlebook price floor exceeds the MacBook Neo price by at least $200.
- [13]
Slack is one of the most widely used business communication apps.
Sources
1 independent publisher whose own reporting we read for this story.
- androidpolice.comGooglebook is asking for MacBook money before earning my trust
1 article · October 12, 2026
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