It’s now easier to download pages from the web in Chrome for Android.
Image: Google
Google has rolled out several new features in Chrome for Android that make it easier to save pages for offline viewing.
In December, Google rolled out a new Download icon that lets Chrome mobile users save any content to the device and view it later from a ‘Downloads’ screen. An update rolling out now offers more convenient shortcuts to save stuff and view it later.
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Instead of having to tap the More menu to access the Download icon, Chrome users can now simply long-press any link, which displays a menu with an option to ‘Download Link’ alongside other options like ‘Open in new tab’. The long press also works for article suggestions on the new tab page.
There’s also a one-touch option to automatically save content later if the device lacks a network connection. So now, when Chrome displays its offline dinosaur, there’s a blue button to ‘Download Page Later’ that saves the page when a connection is back.
Accessing downloaded pages is now simpler too. Previously, to access downloads the user had to swipe open a menu to view a ‘Downloads’ screen. But now a list of downloaded pages will appear in new tabs. Each link downloaded is also marked with an offline badge.
According to Google, Chrome users now download 45 million webpages every week so the quicker-saving options should help keep users on the browser instead of third-party apps like Mozilla’s Pocket.
The new download features are available in the latest version of Chrome on Google Play.
