Just bought a Pixelbook

[ocnbrze]

hey guys,
looks like this section of the forum is a little slow. i have no questions here, but i thought that i will make a thread where we can talk about the pixelbook. We can talk about tips and tricks for it. I can post some of my experiences with it. we can talk about accessories, if there is any. as well as any improvements that can be made on the next release.

so please feel free to post something.

 

[psionandy]

Wow.. congratulations on your new shiny thing...

I've always been tempted by those things.. what do you use it for?

 

[codesplice]

Congrats! I've had a Pixelbook since launch. I use it every day and I love it. It's pretty awesome to buy a laptop that actually gets better with time!

The ability to run Linux apps is a huge boost to Chrome OS's capabilities. I can run web apps, Chrome apps, Android apps, and Linux applications - those last two really give it the broadest software library of any computing platform.

I even leverage the container mechanism used for providing Linux support to host 8 different containers of varying configurations so that I can test scripts against multiple servers in an ultra-portable offline lab environment. Seriously, contrary to popular opinion I can get so much work done with the Pixelbook!

 

[ocnbrze]

Wow.. congratulations on your new shiny thing...

I've always been tempted by those things.. what do you use it for?

So far just surfing the net. I'm not into coding or anything like that. Just every day use. Maybe doing some word docs or excel spreadsheets. I just wanted something that looks top notch and something that's fast and reliable. I like the fact that I can use android apps and I have always used chrome as my web browser

 

[ocnbrze]

hey anybody have issues pairing and connecting bluetooth devices? i'm trying to connect a bluetooth mouse and i am having issues where it fails to connect.

 

[codesplice]

Bluetooth can be a bit flaky sometimes, though I believe that sounds be fixed (or at least significantly improved) in the best future.

Are you able to see the mouse in the Bluetooth menu? Does it connect and immediately disconnect?

 

[ocnbrze]

Bluetooth can be a bit flaky sometimes, though I believe that sounds be fixed (or at least significantly improved) in the best future.

Are you able to see the mouse in the Bluetooth menu? Does it connect and immediately disconnect?

yeah it sees the mouse, but when i hit connect a pop up window says that it failed to connect. my bluetooth headphones are working fine. the mouse originally connected with no issue, until today.

 

[codesplice]

I had that at one point with a Microsoft Are mouse I was using. Have you tried forgetting the mouse from the Pixelbook and seeings it up again?

If that doesn't work, you might but up chrome://flags and enable the #newblue flag for the new-and-improved Bluetooth stack that's been under development for a little while.

 

[ocnbrze]

I had that at one point with a Microsoft Are mouse I was using. Have you tried forgetting the mouse from the Pixelbook and seeings it up again?

If that doesn't work, you might but up chrome://flags and enable the #newblue flag for the new-and-improved Bluetooth stack that's been under development for a little while.

i have not tried that yet. i'll try that tomorrow. hopefully that will work

 

[ocnbrze]

I had that at one point with a Microsoft Are mouse I was using. Have you tried forgetting the mouse from the Pixelbook and seeings it up again?

If that doesn't work, you might but up chrome://flags and enable the #newblue flag for the new-and-improved Bluetooth stack that's been under development for a little while.

ok so i tried this and i am still having issue with the mouse. its a logitech m535.

 

[ocnbrze]

ok after forgetting the mouse in my bluetooth settings. it still did not see. however, after an hour or so i tried to connect it again and.......boom connected. not sure what worked, hopefully it will work now. i guess we shall see.

 

[codesplice]

Welcome to Chrome OS's Bluetooth stack.

That's definitely the one weakness I've encountered with my Pixelbook (and with my Pixel Slate as well, since it uses the same Bluetooth hardware).

 

[ocnbrze]

ugggggg

so this bluetooth issue is still happening. though i can connect now to my bluetooth devices. the issue i'm having now is it keeps disconnecting and the only thing i can do to reconnect is to complete power off and then turn it back on.

i just got in contact with the pixelbook support team. the dude told me that i will have to powerwash it and then do a factory reset.

i need to back some stuff up and try this tomorrow.

i still love it by the way. if i can get this fixed then all will be great.

 

[codesplice]

If you're considering a powerwash (which is a factory reset) then you might as well try out the beta channel. I think that there are some Bluetooth fixed included in the latest v74 release - or at least it's been pretty stable for me lately.

You can switch to a newer build (stable -> beta) without requiring a powerwash, but downgrading (beta -> stable) does require one.
https://support.google.com/pixelbook/answer/9134682

 

[ocnbrze]

If you're considering a powerwash (which is a factory reset) then you might as well try out the beta channel. I think that there are some Bluetooth fixed included in the latest v74 release - or at least it's been pretty stable for me lately.

You can switch to a newer build (stable -> beta) without requiring a powerwash, but downgrading (beta -> stable) does require one.
https://support.google.com/pixelbook/answer/9134682

thanx i will look into it. i was just about to do that, but i just saw your response.......not sure why i did not see a notice about your response.

much appreciate it as i will look into trying the latest beta.....thanx

 

[ocnbrze]

ok running on beta lets see how that does.

i'm excited about this though:
https://www.aboutchromebooks.com/news/google-stadia-turns-every-chromebook-into-a-pc-gaming-rig/

 

[codesplice]

ok running on beta lets see how that does.

i'm excited about this though:
https://www.aboutchromebooks.com/news/google-stadia-turns-every-chromebook-into-a-pc-gaming-rig/

Yeah, I can't wait for that to go live. I had a blast playing Assassin's Creed on my Pixelbook during the Project Stream test.

 

[ocnbrze]

ok so looks like i might have to powerwash. i switched over to the beta version and bluetooth randomly just truned off. it just happened. however i did get a full day and a half without an issue........so i think i will give it a few more days on this one and then try the powerwash.

 

[codesplice]

Were you able to turn Bluetooth back on or did you have to reboot to get it back?

 

[ocnbrze]

yeah the issue is that it will connect after i reboot it. but i should not have to do that. when it happens, i can trun bluetooth off but the option turn it back on is greyed out.

 

[codesplice]

Agreed, that shouldn't happen. Have you tried toggling chrome://flags/#newblue off or on to see if it makes any difference?

 

[ocnbrze]

ok beta and a powerwash did not do the trick. bluetooth is still randomly going in and out. Its getting a bit frustrating. they want me to do a system recovery, but i can't get the flash drive to be recognized by my pixelbook. i'm using an insignia usb type c to flash drive converter. it might be a cable issue. i'm in talks right now with the pixelbook team. they have escalated it to a higher tier. not sure what that means. i will say that the chat feature they have to help trouble shoot is pretty top notch.

i'll keep y'all posted as soon as i get a resolution on this.