Not even a week after the Cr-48 Chrome netbook was announced, criticism is already flying its way, and from an unlikely source. Former Google employee and creator of Gmail Paul Buchheit, had this to tweet “Prediction: Chrome OS will be killed next year (or “merged” with Android).” That is a little cold-hearted considering his former employer just released the pilot program for Chrome OS last Tuesday. But he could be right. Chrome and Android are both Linux based, so it is not surprising that there maybe similarities, but Buchheit went on to post on his FriendFeed:

“Chrome OS has no purpose that isn’t better served by Android (perhaps with a few mods to support a non-touch display).

I was thinking, ‘is this too obvious to even state?’ but then I see people taking Chrome OS seriously, and Google is even shipping devices for some reason.”

They are both Google’s operating systems, and Google has assured that they address different markets, tablets and smartphones for Android, and netbooks or desktops for Chrome OS. They will remain distinct despite the conjunction of the devices that they run on, but with Androids track record and current hold on the market there maybe no room for a new kid on the block.

[BGR via Tech Crunch]