According to unnamed sources close to Pocket-Lint, Google is currently working on retail deals with manufacturers and suppliers. Thus far the three companies testing the new OS on a factory level are Acer, Asus, and Samsung, two of which supposedly claim that Google’s platform is an “optimized experience” for netbooks with both 3G and Wi-Fi options.

When Google’s operating system eventually arrives, it will come in two flavors: Chrome OS and Chromium OS. The former is the closed, commercialized version that will only be available to manufacturers for their specific netbooks, notebooks or whatever else they choose to sell with the software installed. However, each device will come packed with a disc containing Chromium OS– the open-source development version of Chrome OS– for installing on any other machine.

The first Chrome OS appeared back in December 2010 with the launch of Google’s Cr-48 Chrome notebook pilot program. A limited number of applicants received a free Chrome OS-based notebook/netbook in return for user feedback. However Google has since halted shipments and revealed little else about its upcoming software since.

Google’s Chrome OS is set with a launch date pinned on the second quarter of 2011, possibly as early as June, just in time to crash the party of Microsoft’s Windows 8.

SOURCE via Pocket-Lint