Google has introduced new swiping gestures for back and forth navigation its Android Chrome browser. Left or right swipe on Chrome will let users go back or forward their browsing history. The flag is available in the Dev and Canary channels as well as on Chrome Beta and stable version of the browser. The flag for the former two is under a different name and the flag for the latter two is under a different name. Google is also testing a new poly-art style profile pictures in the latest Chrome Canary channel for Linux, Mac, and Windows.
First spotted by Android Police, the swiping gesture on Google Chrome is named ‘Overscroll history navigation’ with the URL as chrome://flags/#overscroll-history-navigation on the Dev and Canary channels. In the Chrome Beta and Stable versions, the flag shows up under a different name – History navigation with gestures. Its URL is chrome://flags/#enable-gesture-navigation.
Enabling this flag will help users access the swiping feature, although it would require ‘overscroll’ sideways a little more than what would feel normal. According to the report, a swipe from left to right will let users go back to the previous page in the tab’s history, while a swipe from right to left goes forward.
Moreover, Chrome Canary v75 for Linux, Mac, and Windows also replaces the default blank heads for profile pictures with 11 new poly-art style animals, brought over from Chrome OS. This includes a cat, dog, dragon, elephant, fox, monkey, panda, penguin, butterfly, rabbit, and even a unicorn. These new options are live in the latest Canary channel and are expected to make its way to the future stable versions of Chrome. Earlier, Chrome let users choose between emojis for a profile picture, nevertheless, the new options are more refreshing. This was first spotted by 9to5Goole.
The new features are only available when users are signed out in Chrome, and all those who have signed into the browser will see their Google account’s profile picture only. Users who are signed out and do not wish to see the blank head can head to chrome://settings/manageProfile, to choose from one of the 11 new choices.
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