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A new web browser called Chrome was launched into the world today. It’s built by Google, is completely open-source, is currently only available on PC and is aimed to “make the web faster, safer, and easier”.
From a design perspective, one of the first things you’ll notice is the minimalist styling. Similar to google.com, Chrome’s design is striped down, fast and functional with very few bells and whistles. I have never seen a browser like this, and I actually like it a lot.
But Chrome is probably more about what you don’t see
It’s built largely upon the open-source WebKit, has its own JavaScript virtual machine called V8 to run JavaScript faster with more stability and security. Google has even built in its own Google Gears!
Another ‘under the hood’ feature is how Chrome handles each tab. In a nut shell, Chrome assigns each tab its own process - so if one tab is hung on loading something or even crashes, your other tabs should be running just fine without being effected at all.
So lets cut to the chase
Currently Chrome has a lot of ground to make up - it doesn’t have built in bookmark management, no RSS feed reader and no add-ons. But remember this is only the first version. Chrome has built an excellent foundation - which could be the beginning of a new Rome.
Still, there’s something in the back of my head that keeps saying ‘do we really need another web browser?‘. Personally, I think the web browser world needed a shake up, and I like that it came from Google. Competition is healthy and it should equate to a better web experience for designers, developers and users.
Google Chrome Logo
Screen shot of Google Chrome tabs and windows
4 months ago
Hey Leon,
Nice writeup. I’ve been using Chrome for the last few days and I like it a lot. The minimalist style is really appealing. A lack of plugins I can’t live without is probably the only real barrier to giving up Firefox though. I wonder if they will ever support an adblock/flashblock plugin - since Google makes all its revenue off ads?
I agree with you about not really needing another web-browser though - like what is the niche user market for Chrome - if the Geeks swear by Firefox or Opera and the majority just use whatever their default OS browser is…
4 months ago
Hey Sean!
Good point re: adblock/flashblock plugin. I can’t see why something like that would ever be blocked - after all, it is an open-source browser.
I did have a similar thought: when I installed Chrome I was expecting to see more ‘Google only’ restrictions. For example- a search that can only use Google, or adverts for other Google products (GMail etc.), but I didn’t see anything like that.. It appears to be very clean and liberal.
Google said that Chrome is an attempt to gain some of the market Mircrosoft has with their IE browsers (something like 75%), but in reality I think that Chrome will (sadly) only reduce Mozilla’s market share (about 20% currently).
At the end of the day Chrome has raised the bar, and I’ll support them for doing so.