Release: Eight newly expired Chromebook models still available on Amazon

Thirteen different Chromebooks recently lost support from Google, but eight are available for sale, including two listed as “new.”

For immediate release: Tuesday, August 2, 2023

Media contacts: Lucas Rockett Gutterman, Designed to Last Campaign Director, 347-466-9947, [email protected]

NEW YORK — As of August 1, 13 different Chromebook models lost security support, despite the June letter from parents and environmentalists that asked Google to extend their “death dates” in order to support students and prevent e-waste. It’s not as if these computers are particularly old: Eight of these models are still available for purchase on Amazon, with two of the laptops listed as “new,” and five eligible for Amazon Prime shipping.

Unsuspecting consumers can purchase these laptops without any indication they will no longer receive support. Now past their expiration, these laptops won’t receive updates from Google. This lack of support could render them vulnerable to attacks and unable to access secure state testing websites.

“Parents and teachers buying back-to-school laptops don’t expect devices to have a ‘death date,’ and sellers don’t advertise the lack of support,” said Lucas Rockett Gutterman, Designed to Last director with PIRG. “It’s absurd that a new laptop, with all the features students need to do basic school work, is already unsupported. Students, and the planet, deserve better.”

13 Chromebook models expired this summer

Advocates urged Amazon to clearly indicate the Automatic Update Expiration (AUE) date on listings for Chromebooks to provide consumers with necessary information. They also urged Google to extend support for the recently expired models named by parents.

Parents, teachers, and PTAs joined other signers in the June 20 letter warning that, “In the United States, we generate about 6.9 million tons of e-waste each year which is equivalent to throwing out 120 Chromebooks every second. We can’t afford to keep replacing technology at this rate. Google has the power to lead the industry towards a circular economy with longer lasting laptops.”

An April report by PIRG, “Chromebook Churn,” found many schools purchased the laptops when they switched to remote learning due to the pandemic. Schools could save $1.8 billion if Google were to double the life of Chromebooks, assuming no additional maintenance costs, the report found. Beyond the added financial burden on already-strapped school districts, the environmental costs of short-lived laptops also concern PIRG and the letter’s other signers.

“We want to teach students how to have a sustainable relationship with technology, where they gain digital literacy while also understanding how to take care of technology and avoid being wasteful. Chromebooks need to last longer and become easier to repair,” read the letter.

36 organizations and more than 10,000 PIRG members signed the letter. Reporting by Mercury News found, “over the next five years, Oakland Unified estimates 40,000 of its Chromebooks will expire.”

“Google should restore updates to these laptops that still work,” said Gutterman. “They should also act to extend support for the 51 models expiring next summer to save schools money and prevent e-waste.”

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The U.S. PIRG Education Fund (Public Interest Research Group) is a 1 million-member national consumer advocacy organization that stands up to powerful special interests on behalf of the public. We solve problems no one should tolerate in our age of abundance and technological innovation.