Chrome may have been your go-to browser for years, but it has some hidden features you may have never used before. Here, we’ll look at some rarely known features to enhance your Chrome browsing experience on a mobile device.
1. Tab Grid Layout in Chrome
Chrome comes with a tab grid layout feature, where open tabs appear in a grid view. It makes managing tabs easier. With a clear view of the page title, page source, and website’s favicon, switching between a list of open tabs is easier. The interface is more intuitive and streamlined for the user.
After Chrome 88, this feature comes enabled by default in all Chrome versions. Those using older versions of Chrome can enable it in the following way:
How to Enable Grid Layout in Chrome
Go to Chrome flags page. Type tab grid layout in the search box at the top of the screen. To enable the Tab Grid Layout, change its settings from Default to Enabled. Restart the browser by tapping on Relaunch to apply the changes you’ve made.
2. Tab Groups in Chrome
What could be better organized than a bunch of related tabs in a single tab group in Chrome? Organizing tabs in the Chrome browser is a breeze with Tab Groups. With a simple drag-and-drop interface, you can make multiple tab groups, with each having tabs for that specific project.
A bottom tab bar containing all tabs within a tab group appears when browsing across any tab within the same tab group. It is much easier to switch between similar tabs this way when working on multiple projects at once.
Similar to Tabs Grid View, this feature is also by default enabled in Chrome 88 and its newer versions. In case you’re still using an earlier version, here’s how you can enable it:
How to Enable Tab Grouping in Chrome
Go to Chrome flags page. Enter tab groups in the search box that appears at the top of the webpage. Tab Groups and Tab Groups Continuation–tap both boxes and change their settings from Default to Enabled. Relaunch the browser once to apply the changes.
3. Scheduling Downloads in Chrome
The prices for Wi-Fi and WLAN services are lower compared to standard data packages. A large number of people use mobile data when they are away from home. Using mobile data to download files can be expensive.
On a family vacation or tour, it is better to schedule the downloads for large files. Even though Chrome does not have a built-in feature for scheduling downloads, you can do so by enabling one of its experimental features.
With this feature, you can schedule downloads in advance so that you don’t have to find and download files again.
How to Enable Download Later in Chrome
Go to Chrome flags page. Type enable download later in the search bar. Change the settings for Enable Download Later flag from Default to Enable. Relaunch the browser once to let the changes take effect.
4. Muting Website’s Auto-playing Audio:
Most websites use auto-playing audio or video to engage users with content, which can sometimes be irritating. Thankfully, Chrome allows you to silence the auto-playing audio or video content to have a peaceful browsing experience.
You can also add specific websites where you intend to mute the sound in the Add Site Exception option.
How to Enable Download Later in Chrome
Go to the website where you want to block the sound. Tap on the three vertical dots in the top-right corner. Navigate to Settings > Site Settings. Tap the Sound option after scrolling down.
Move the toggle to turn off sound for every website you visit, or add specific sites to the Add Site Exception list.
5. Making a Chrome Profile and Syncing It
As you navigate between different devices, keeping track of your saved passwords, bookmarks, settings, and enabled extensions can be challenging and frustrating.
By syncing your profile, you can make the changes you make on one device consistent on other devices. So, as long as you remain logged into Chrome, any change you make on one machine will also be applied to Chrome on other devices using the same account.
RELATED: How to Manage What You Sync in Google Chrome
By syncing different profiles, you can quickly switch between them, and Chrome keeps a record of extensions, apps, settings, history, themes, and bookmarks tailored to each user.
6. Removing Saved Passwords in Chrome
Almost all browsers will save your passwords for your convenience. The browser will automatically save your username and associated password, so you won’t have to enter them each time you log in.
While that may seem convenient, it can be dangerous if someone gets access to your computer and checks all of your passwords in Chrome. If you plan to give your phone to a friend who will use it for a while, you may want to remove all saved passwords. With Chrome, you can do that instantly.
How to Remove Saved Passwords in Chrome
Launch Chrome and click on the three dots in the top-right corner. Navigate to Settings > Passwords. On this page, you’ll find all the saved passwords for the account you’re currently signed in to. Tap on the website name and click the recycle bin symbol on the top right of the Saved password window to remove any password.
If you aren’t comfortable deleting your saved passwords, you can log in with another profile, having no saved passwords or browsing data, before handing over your phone.
RELATED: How to Sign Out of a Google Account
Improve Your Browsing Experience With Chrome’s Hidden Feature
Try out Chrome’s hidden features mentioned above to see how they affect the way you browse. Each of the features listed above may be useful in some way. Depending on your taste, they may also negatively affect your browsing experience.
If any of the listed hidden features slows down your browser performance, you can disable them at any time. If your Chrome is always laggy, you should try hard refreshing it once to see if that makes any difference.
