Google rarely makes major changes to its Chrome browser due to the huge user base. The tech giant has been experimenting with different new tab page designs for its Android browser.
According to a report , the latest change shows that Chrome browser will adopt a carousel that lists websites the user has visited recently.
Currently, the new tab page in Chrome on Android — the company logo and search omnibox — includes URL entry and shortcuts to recently visited sites.
The most visited sites have their icons arranged below the search bar in a 4×2 grid. However, this design is now expected to change for Chrome on Android.
What will the new design look like?
The report states that the tech giant is testing a new carousel design that includes up to 12 websites and their icons. However, users will only be able to see four or five of them at a time instead of seeing eight.
Users have to scroll and click icons to visit the page rather than being able to select an option without scrolling (as it is now available to most users).
The shorter size of the site code section will marginally help other sections like Discover and Follow/ RSS Feed.
Availability of this new design
The new library on Chrome’s new tab page is currently not available to all users. However, the report notes that this new design is appearing on more devices that have updated their Chrome browsers to Chrome 102.
Other changes to the new tab page in Chrome
This new design was first introduced in an earlier attempt at a Chrome redesign that improved the new tab page.
Aside from the circle displaying the recently visited site, the previous design also added another “Continue Browsing” circle that showed open tabs and replaced the tab grid.
However, this design was not released widely, but it was important to break Chrome’s navigation paradigm and also helped elevate the new tab page above the tab switcher.
