The big selling point for Googlebook is that it’s a desktop platform that deeply integrates with your Android phone but, at launch, those “Better Together” sync features are in a messy place. Google is now rolling out updates, including the bafflingly-missing support for Samsung devices.
There are several core features that work between Android phones and Googlebook including app streaming, notification sync, “Continue On” for compatible apps, and more. But, at launch, not everything works as expected. Some features, like Instant Hotspot, seem to work widely, but others are either inconsistent, slow to activate, or simply unavailable. One of the problems is that it takes a bit of work to fully activate these features.
In a post on Reddit, Google explains that it has started rolling out “smoother first-time setup” for these features, reducing the needed steps to actually set up these cross-device features. A bug where the QR code used to pair your phone continues to show even after Googlebook pairing is complete is apparently also fixed with this update. Google Play Services 26.37 (on the phone) is the version you’re looking for. You can check for Play Services updates through the Play Store. Cross-device Services also needs to be updated to 1.0.1346, again through the Play Store.
Apparently, these updates also seem to enable support for Samsung devices.
Missing Galaxy smartphone support was perhaps the biggest gap in Googlebook at launch, at least in terms of compatibility. Google originally said this would arrive “in the coming weeks,” a phrase that continues to be incredibly vague.
Here’s Google’s full breakdown of everything you’re looking for:
Some Samsung Galaxy users have already confirmed that “Better Together” features are working on their Googlebooks following these updates.
Missing Samsung support was initially attributed to missing updates on Samsung’s end by some, but it sounds like everything is worked out at this point. You’ll still need One UI 9, though, which is only rolled out to a small portion of Samsung’s device catalog at this point.
Sound off in the comments below if you’ve been able to use any of these new Googlebook features, or if you even bought a Googlebook in the first place.
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