Google has released an update for Chrome that optimises the web browser’s power and resource uses. The two new features, aptly named Energy Saver and Memory Saver were announced last year and are now starting to roll out globally for macOS, Windows and Linux devices running Chrome 110.
The Memory Saver feature removes currently inactive tabs from memory, giving the tabs you’re currently working on more resources and headroom for better performance. Any old tabs that might’ve been inactive can be reloaded as many times as possible by simply switching to them.
Users can also mark specific sites as exclusions to the feature so that they’re always running at full performance regardless of whether the tab is active or not.
Next up, the Energy Saver mode limits unnecessary background activity such as smooth scrolling on animation or videos or any automated animations that might eat up the battery quickly.
The feature can be set to kick in when your laptop’s battery is at 20% or lower or the instant you disconnect from the wall adaptor. While it should help save battery life, Google hasn’t stated just how much battery you’ll be able to save when using the feature.
It’s worth noting that both these features already exist in some other browsers, most notably, in Microsoft’s Edge. The features are called Sleeping Tabs and Efficiency Mode there and work exactly the way Chrome’s Memory Saver and Energy Saver features do.
It has taken Google quite a while to get these features to Chrome, but just how well they perform remains to be seen.
Chrome has been slowly chipping away at its bad reputation of being a memory hog and Google understandably wants to cover the performance and battery life difference that Edge and other low-power consumption browsers have pulled out.
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