If you’re running a device with Android 5.0 Lollipop on board and you have a Chromebook that is on a dev channel build of Chrome OS, then it looks like you now have the ability to set up the smart unlock feature to unlock your Chromebook whenever you have your unlocked Android device in the general vicinity. This isn’t the first we’ve heard of the feature but it is the first that anyone with a Lollipop device and a Chromebook with this specific build setup of Chrome OS has gotten the chance to use the proximity feature instead of typing in their password.
We realize that not many people will be using Lollipop devices at this point in time, especially with the combination of those who also own a Chromebook, and even less who are brave enough to venture into the Chrome OS dev channel builds for the bleeding edge Chrome OS experience. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be excited though because now that Google’s smart unlock is available to all through the dev channel, that means it’s well on its way to all users in a stable status and a full launch of this feature shouldn’t be too far in the future.
If you’re wanting to set this up, you won’t have to search far and wide for the steps to get things moving. The first step is to get your Chromebook set up on the Chrome OS dev channel, and we’d recommend reading up a little bit on how to do this if you’ve never done so before. If you’re already using the dev channel on your Chromebook or you had just switched things over, open up Chrome and type chrome://flags into the address bar and hit enter. Scroll until you see the the experimental features for Easy Unlock and Easy Sign-In, and check to enable those two. Now restart your Chrome browser and go into settings, then into advanced settings where you should now see the smart unlock feature and there will be a button to turn it on. That’s pretty much it. Everything at this point should work as it was intended, and when your Android 5.0 Lollipop device is nearby and the screen is unlocked, there will be a button that pops up asking you if you want to unlock the Chromebook instead of typing the password. Feeling adventurous? Give it a try and let us know how things work. Still in need of a Chromebook? Check out our ultimate holiday guide for the top 10 best Chromebooks.