X

Inside Google's London Chrome Zone Chromebook shop

Join us on a photo tour of Google's Chrome Zone in central London, designed to showcase its Chromebook laptops.

Luke Westaway
Luke Westaway is a senior editor at CNET and writer/ presenter of Adventures in Tech, a thrilling gadget show produced in our London office. Luke's focus is on keeping you in the loop with a mix of video, features, expert opinion and analysis.
Luke Westaway
p1060123.jpg
1 of 8

Google's bursting out of your computer screen, shoving you off your chair before running off down the road to install itself in a shop. Specifically, the 'Chrome Zone' section of PC World on London's Tottenham Court Road, where punters can now get a hands-on look at Google's Chromebooks.

We took a brisk constitutional down to the Chrome Zone to check it out -- click through our photos above to ogle affairs from the comfort of your seat. 

Devised as a shop-within-a-shop, the Chrome Zone is daubed in signature Google colours, with comfy novelty chairs and an array of laptops for you to test out. It's not very big, comprising just two benches of products, but it's fun to see Google putting its name to an actual physical space.

For now at least, the space only showcases Chromebooks, the browser-based laptops that run Google's Chrome OS. We didn't think much of the first Chromebook we saw, though in-store Chrome specialist Latoya told us that the Zone had been "really, really busy" since it opened last week, especially over the weekend.

If you don't live near London but do live near Essex, you'll be chuffed to know there's another Chrome Zone opening today in the Lakeside Currys PC World shop.

It's interesting to see Google moving into retail, but we want more -- we're thinking a five-floor Google-themed shopping centre with a massive Android slide in the middle, and plush Android robots available to purchase. Oh, and framed Google doodles.

Should Google open its own shops, or does the very idea feel unnatural and deeply wrong? Let us know in the comments section below, or on our Facebook wall.

p1060125.jpg
2 of 8
A glass Chrome logo. Classy.
p1060118.jpg
3 of 8
The shop-within-a-shop has been set up to explain what Chromebooks are. And sell them, natch.
p1060126.jpg
4 of 8
Samsung's Chromebook is the only one on offer right now, but an Acer model is en route, we're told.
p1060129.jpg
5 of 8
Chromebooks are a pretty cool idea, but we're not totally in love with them.
p1060131.jpg
6 of 8
The whole kaboodle is daubed in Google's signature bright colours.
p1060134.jpg
7 of 8
Google. It's not just on the Internet any more!
p1060132.jpg
8 of 8
Comfy, colourful seating -- it's the future!

More Galleries

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera
A houseplant

My Favorite Shots From the Galaxy S24 Ultra's Camera

20 Photos
Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra
magic-v2-2024-foldable-1383

Honor's Magic V2 Foldable Is Lighter Than Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra

10 Photos
The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum
Samsung Galaxy S24

The Samsung Galaxy S24 and S24 Plus Looks Sweet in Aluminum

23 Photos
Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design
The Galaxy S24 Ultra in multiple colors

Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra Now Has a Titanium Design

23 Photos
I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites
img-0368.jpg

I Took 600+ Photos With the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max. Look at My Favorites

34 Photos
17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About
Invitation for the Apple September iPhone 15 event

17 Hidden iOS 17 Features You Should Definitely Know About

18 Photos
AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?
img-1599-2.jpg

AI or Not AI: Can You Spot the Real Photos?

17 Photos