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Chrome tabs in Android will eventually chew less of your phone's battery
- Chrome battery life on Android will likely be better in the future thanks to a new feature in the beta version of the browser.
- Tab throttling could improve performance, save memory, and extend your battery life.
- This new feature will likely be in an upcoming stable version of Chrome for Android.
Google is still trying to make Chrome less of a battery hog on your phone, and it might have a clever solution for that: neuter the tabs you aren’t using.
The company has introduced a Chrome beta channel update that throttles tabs that have been sitting in the background “for a long time.” The move not only provides more computing power and memory to the tabs you’re using but promises to improve your phone’s overall battery life and RAM usage.
The feature is coming to Android as well as all other Chrome platforms.
Better Chrome battery life
The move came alongside a broader Chrome update for computers that improved tab loading up to 10%. It also added collapsing tab groups and introduced touch-friendly tabs for Chromebooks and other PCs with tablet modes. Android users also get link sharing through QR codes and the ability to switch to open tabs by searching for them in the address bar.
Read more: The best Android web browsers
It will take some weeks before tab throttling reaches the regular, more stable version of Chrome for Android. You might not want to use this if you depend on Chrome for work or other critical tasks. When you’re ready, though, it could significantly improve the longevity and responsiveness of your phone — especially if you’re the sort who regularly keeps legions of tabs open “just in case.”