Google Chooses Kendo UI-Powered Camera App As Default For Chrome OS

The latest version of Google’s Chrome OS now features a Camera app. That by itself wouldn’t be all that interesting, given that operating systems like OS X have long included built-in camera apps, but Google’s app for its web-centric OS, of course, only uses HTML5, JavaScript and CSS to deliver a Photo Booth-like experience.

The other interesting fact about this app is that it was built by third-party developer Telerik. To develop the app, Telerik used its Kendo UI front-end framework and Google’s relatively new Packaged Apps Platform, which allow developers to create standalone apps for Chrome OS.

kendo ui logoAs Telerik’s vice president for HTML5 web and mobile tools Todd Anglin told me last week, the team worked very closely with Google to develop an app that could be used as an example for other developers who are interested in writing advanced apps for Chrome OS using the Packaged Apps platform (and, of course, the Kendo UI library). As this is a pretty new platform, Google and Telerik will also team up to co-host a webinar about building Chrome Packaged Apps with the Kendo UI on Wednesday, December 5 at 2:00pm ET (and they are giving away 10 Chromebooks at the event).

The Camera app itself offers 24 real-time photo effects like pinch, bulge, and mirror. It also features custom effects and basic face tracking. As this is a packaged app, users can access it whether they are online or offline. Even though the app uses web technology, the nice thing about the platform is that it looks just like a regular desktop application.

“The Camera app on Chrome OS is a great example of what can be achieved with Chrome packaged apps,” said Josh Woodward, product manager on the Google Chrome team, in a canned statement today. “It showcases the power of packaged apps to create fast and fun apps for everyone, and it also demonstrates to developers the ability to leverage familiar frameworks, like Kendo UI, to quickly build and publish apps for Chrome and Chrome OS.”