14 DAY TRIAL // Google has just announced that a new version of its Chrome mobile browser has been released in the Google Play Store. Those who often use Chrome on their Android smartphones/tablets can now download version 56, which has been confirmed to add a couple of new features and major improvements.
Among the most important new features implemented in Chrome 56 is related to the reloading function of the browser. Google has already described the improvement in a previous post on its blog, and announced it will be included in an upcoming Chrome release.
“Users typically reload either because a page is broken or the content seems stale. The existing reload behavior usually solves broken pages, but stale content is inefficiently addressed by a regular reload, especially on mobile. To improve the stale content use case, Chrome now has a simplified reload behavior to only validate the main resource and continue with a regular page load.”
That “future” Chrome release is version 56, which is now rolled out in stages to Android devices. Keep in mind that it might take a couple of days for the new browser to reach all supported phones.
Aside from the improvement to the reload function, Google also confirmed Chrome 56 adds a coupled of new features, such as the possibility to quickly use emails, addresses, and phone numbers in web pages by tapping on them.
In addition, Chrome users will now be able to easily access downloaded files and web pages from the new tab page. The new version of the browser allows users to long-press article suggestions on the new tab page to download them.
According to Google, this release also contains performance and stability fixes. If you're a heavy user, you'll notice some visual changes as well, such as the “Touch to Search” tab that will allow users to open the search page on its own tab much faster.
There are many other under-the-hood improvements and bug fixes included in Chrome 56, but for the full list of changes you'll have to check the Git log.