Google will release Chrome version 79 this week. The firm’s Chrome Platform Status page says the update will start rolling out to all users on December 10. Chrome 79 has been in beta since the tail end of October, so we already have a pretty good idea of what to expect.
Chrome is notorious for gorging away at your computer’s memory, CPU and battery life. Well it looks as though Google is making some serious efforts to mitigate such problems with Chrome 79.
A new feature called tab freezing will be introduced in Chrome 79 that should intelligently stop pages from performing tasks if they’re in the background for over five minutes.
Of course, Google has made sure this doesn’t apply to background audio or video. So you won’t have to worry about anything valuable being cut off in the background if you don’t pay it enough attention.
The end result of tab freezing should be a smoother Chrome experience that gives your computer more room to breathe when performing other tasks.
The tab freezing feature will be available for Windows, Mac, Linux and Chrome OS. Unfortunately it won’t launch on smartphones with Chrome 79.
Elsewhere, users will be able to take advantage of a cross-platform clipboard in the new version of the browser. In a nutshell, that means you’ll be able to copy and share text between devices as long as you’re signed in.
Better yet, Chrome’s clipboard is end-to-end encrypted, so you won’t have to worry about anyone else snooping in on what you’re copying.
Google’s newest iteration of Chrome also ups security standards across the board. That means it’s possible you’ll see the browser’s “not secure” logo appear on some sites that were previously deemed secure on Chrome 78.
Finally, there’s also a number of neat additions for developers in Chrome 79. Namely a new application programming interface for virtual reality that should allow for the creation of more AR and VR web-based programmes.
Chrome 79 will start rolling out on Tuesday, December 10. It’s likely Google will gradually deliver it to users, meaning you shouldn’t be worried if you can’t immediately access it on the day of release.
Windows, Mac, Linux, Chrome OS, Android and iOS will all be granted the new Chrome version