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There’s a new hidden feature in Chrome on Android that you need to try

Published Jul 7th, 2021 3:39PM EDT
Chrome Google Search Bar
Image: Teerasan/Adobe

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Google Chrome might not be the best browser to surf the web from your mobile devices and protect your privacy at the same time. But there’s no denying that Chrome is one of the best and most popular internet browsers out there. It’s also one of Google’s best products, one that the company keeps improving. The newest find is a Chrome feature that might make Chrome even more helpful on mobile devices. A brand new Chrome Google Search bar is available right now to people interested in trying it out.

Google is running a feature test on Android phones where it’s placing Google Search results at the top of the page. A single tap is enough to move to the next result if the first one wasn’t satisfactory. It’s a brilliant feature that can save precious time wasted in Search while moving back and forth between results.

You have to enable the brand new “Continuous Search Navigation” Chrome feature manually to try it. As 9to5Google explains, you’ll have to head to chrome://flags to enable it on Android. That’s the only way of testing the feature on your Android devices right now.

Chrome’s Google Search bar

The new Chrome feature puts Google Search front and center, which makes plenty of sense for a Google product. Google Search is the most important Google product, and it’s integrated with plenty of other Google apps and services. Making Search results available to users immediately is a priority for Google.

Also, Chrome’s new Google Search bar provides an advantage over other browsers. In turn, this feature might convince more people to surf the internet using Chrome on the go. After all, we’re more likely to search for stuff online from our mobile devices. The Google Search results bar at the top of Chrome will improve the entire experience.

The new Google Search bar, seen in action in the video at the end of this post, caches the results “to permit a more seamless search experience.” The result is improved navigation between results. You’ll no longer have to tap the back button only to select a different website for the same search. You also won’t have to open various results in the background.

The Google Search bar will provide instant access to any result it surfaces. Tapping the Google “G” on the left side will get you back to the Google Search page. You can also close the Google Search bar by tapping the X on the right.

There’s no question that the new Search experience might take some getting used to. But it should become second nature if you can shake off your current Search habits.

It’s unclear when or even if the new Google Search feature will roll to all Chrome users on Android. Also, it’s unclear if it’s coming to iPhone soon or whether it will support search engines other than Chrome.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.