Google Chrome for Android has been officially updated with a number of convenient improvements and handy patches. For those of you on an Android device, you may want to head over to the Google Play Store and grab this latest Chrome update.
The update is for Chrome 25, specifically for version 25.0.1364.123, and it introuduces a variety of new features & bug fixes, with the most notable being:
1. Improved scrolling performance
2. Increased responsiveness to pinch-zooming on pages
3. Faster interactive pages thanks to the latest version of the V8 javascript engine
4. Audio now continues to play while Chrome is in the background
5. Expanded support for HTML5 features* Audio playing in Chrome will now pause when the phone is in use. This requires an additional permission.
According to the Google Chrome Official Releases blog, Google Chrome 25 also picks up other important stability and performance fixes since the last release, along with some minor UI adjustments.
Chrome’s most prominent update is undoubtedly be the addition of background audio, a feature which Android users have been crying out for. Those using Google Chrome for Android can now play audio in the background, whilst Chrome runs in the background. This means you can stream anything from YouTube videos to your favorite radio station without having to keep the app open.
Music being rudely cut short thanks to simply minimising Chrome, is now a thing of the past.
However, Better touch-screen responsiveness, paired with faster interactive pages should not only speed up the browsing process, but make it a lot less frustrating on script-heavy websites. It’s the small background improvements such as these which will help Google Chrome for Android oust its rivals.
Unfortunately, Google refrained from detailing their expansions & improvements to HTML5 for Google Chrome for Android, but we’re certain they’ll improve browsing capabilities in a noticeable way, due to Google mentioning it as a specific improvement to Chrome 25.
How are you finding the latest version of Google Chrome for Android? Are there any other noticeable improvements? Let us know in the comments section below!