While much of the Mac community uses Safari, Google Chrome is very popular (and it’s the most popular browser in the world). Google is making a more compelling case for Chrome on the Mac with two new features that make it more efficient with battery and memory usage.
Energy Saver is a new mode that kicks in when a MacBook’s battery reaches 20 percent. When that happens, Chrome limits its background activity and the visual effects of animations and videos on a website.
Memory Saver is a handy feature for when you have multiple tabs open. When in Memory Saver mode, Chrome frees up the memory that inactive tabs are taking up, that way the tabs that you are actively using can run smoothly. If you switch to a tab that was inactive, Chrome will reload it into memory and reload when needed. Google says the feature is “especially useful if you’re running other intensive applications, like editing family videos or playing games.”
Energy Saver and Memory Saver are options that the user can turn on or off in Chrome’s settings. When each feature is active, an icon indicator appears in the toolbar.
Memory Saver frees up memory that’s being used by inactive tabs.
Earlier this year, Google Chrome boasted the highest Speedometer score ever on an Apple silicon Mac but was superseded by Safari a few months later.
Both new features are gradually being rolled out to users in version 108, so it’s possible that you may not see the update immediately. To update Chrome, go to Chrome > Preferences > About Chrome, and if the update is available to you, it will load and the browser will need to restart. According to Google, the new features will be available globally in the coming weeks.