Chrome For Android Now Loads Videos Faster And Uses Less Energy

Chrome for Android is now up to version 52, and with it comes a handful of benefits, not the least of which is demonstrably faster video load speeds. Per a demonstration video Google posted, the browser now loads a YouTube video five times faster than before, and the playback is smoother than it was in the previous version. As well, video playback is now more energy efficient, meaning you won't see your phone or tablet's battery die so quickly.

The update is all about videos this time around, and that's a good thing considering how massive video consumption is on mobile devices. Whether you're streaming from YouTube, Netflix, Amazon, or any other number of web destinations, those videos are usually pretty resource intensive. You may find your phone getting warm after a while and your battery draining almost as quickly as your high-speed data.

All of that should change at least a little bit with Chrome 52. In addition to the aforementioned changes, this new version also adds video support to the Data Saver Mode, meaning you'll see data savings when watching videos the same way you do browsing the web. According to Google, using it causes a "lightweight" video to load and can save up to 50% of the data you'd otherwise use.

You're most likely to see these various improvements when watching short video as opposed to longer ones. Assuming you use Chrome on Android, head into your device's application manager and update Chrome. Once updated, you should notice speed benefits and, over time, improvements in both battery and data usage.

SOURCE: Chrome Blog