14 DAY TRIAL // Google is expanding the new tab page search experiment in Chrome to more users. After several months of testing the feature in the dev and beta channel, some stable users will see the redesigned new tab page with Google Search built in.
"If you use Chrome’s Developer or Beta installs, you may have already seen this in action. Many thanks for your feedback, which has helped us continue to hone the look and feel, and improve average time from query to answer — meaning you can find what you're looking for even more quickly than before," the search giant explained.
The test has been running for many months now, but it has only been enabled by default for some users. However, the experiment, labeled as the Extended Instant API, has been available in the chrome://flags section to anyone interested in it.
"These early results are encouraging but we're still turning dials under the hood. While we work we'll be expanding to a small set of people using the stable channel of Chrome on Windows, Mac and Chromebooks, who have Google set as default search engine," the company announced.
It's clear that the company is confident enough that the feature is almost ready, as stable channel experiments are rare. There have been a number of variations of the layout and feature set, but it seems that a finalized look has been settled on.
The final version of the new tab page with search includes a dedicated apps button, but no app shortcuts, a list of most visited sites, and the Google search box and logo, with doodles shown when they're available.
The integrated search experiment is paired to the experimental Google site with the black navbar missing. Instead, the most used Google sites and products are available from another app panel, accessible via a menu button next to the user profile box and Google+ notifications.