While a vast multitude of features have been added down the years, the main Google Search page has remained the same; results served up vertically in order of relevance.
However, the latest experiment for Chrome on Android promises to change all that. It’ll make it possible for users to easily explore the top results via a horizontal carousel directly below the URL bar, as well as the traditional vertical results.
This feature, which can be sampled by turning on the experimental flag in Chrome, enables users to thumb through the main results without having to press back to get back to the main search page.
After sampling the page, users can hit the Google icon or tap the x button to return to the full page of results. In theory, this could be one of the biggest changes to search navigation in years and perhaps a better experience for those not sure what they’re looking for.
In order to try the Continuous Search Navigation flag feature you can browse to chrome://flags/#continuous-search in Google Chrome for Android. From there you’ll need to enable the feature and restart your browser.
In a report, Android Police says that while the feature is available within the current version of Chrome for Android, it performs better in Chrome Canary 93. It’s likely the consumer version will catch up sooner rather than later.
By the same token, Google could also decide to drop the feature completely or bring it back in a different form. In the meantime, if you’ve always wondered what it’d be like to browse Google Search horizontally, now’s your chance.
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The major 2021 updates to Search, revealed at Google I/O. include the new About This Result feature. It “provides details about a website before you visit it, including its description, when it was first indexed and whether your connection to the site is secure.” You can hear about some of the other new features in the video below.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
