Latest news with #addressBar
Forbes
26-06-2025
- Forbes
Google Arrives Late To Its Own Party With Essential Chrome Update
Google Chrome for Android is finally getting a bottom address bar. Browsing the web on Android just got a little more convenient, especially for those with larger phones or smaller hands. After toying with the idea for years, Google is finally rolling out a long-awaited change to Chrome for Android: the option to move the address bar to the bottom of the screen rather than the top. Several competing Android browsers already offer this feature, including Firefox, Microsoft Edge and Samsung Internet Browser. Apple moved Safari's address bar to the bottom on iOS 15 in 2021, before quickly adding a switch to revert to the top after negative user feedback. Even Chrome on iOS already supports the option. Now, finally, Chrome users on Android get the same choice, although the rollout hasn't been without hiccups. Google Chrome Update: How To Move The Address Bar Chrome users on Android can now place the address bar at the top or the bottom of the screen. The update doesn't force this change on you—the address bar remains at the top by default, but moving the address bar to the bottom is simple: Just long-press on the address bar, tap 'Move address bar to bottom,' and you're done. Alternatively, you can access the new function from Chrome's settings menu. If you don't see the feature yet, just keep your Chrome app updates, as it should roll out to everyone soon. Google Chrome Update: Why The Fuss Over A Bottom Search Bar? Mobile browsers initially followed their desktop counterparts by placing the address bar at the top of the screen, but many users, especially those with large phones, small hands, or both, can find it more of a stretch to access interface elements located at the top of the screen. Placing the address bar at the bottom brings it comfortably within thumb's reach, making navigation easier. Google Chrome Update: Why Did It Take So Long? For such a seemingly simple feature, Google's delay in implementing the feature raises questions. The idea of a bottom address bar was floated within Google as early as 2016 as part of the Chrome Home project. Having been made available for a short time in beta versions of Chrome for Android, the feature was ultimately shelved. Chris Lee, former Staff Interaction Designer at Google Chrome, explained the decision. 'The feature gained a cult following among the tech community, but for many mainstream users, the change felt disorienting. Chrome serves billions of users around the globe with varying tech literacy. Over the course of many iterations, I became increasingly convinced that launching Chrome Home would not serve all our users well.' Google continued to experiment with a bottom search bar in 'Dev' releases of Chrome for Android but hasn't, until now, made the feature available to everyone in the standard release version. This delay has left many users wondering why it took Google so long to catch up to its competitors, having tested the feature so long ago. Apple's experience may have something to do with that. The company controversially moved Safari's search bar to the bottom of the screen in iOS 15, but was met with significant user resistance, prompting Apple to add an option to move it back to the top. The default setting, however, remains for it to live at the bottom of the screen. Firefox introduced a similar feature in 2020, while Microsoft Edge rolled out a bottom search bar option earlier this year, leaving Chrome for Android as the only major browser without what has now become an expected feature available from all major rivals. This has effectively compelled Google to finally take a decisive step and release the feature to all Chrome users. Chrome's New Bottom Address Bar: Issues Remain It's great to see Chrome finally implementing a bottom search bar, but response from users has so far been mixed. Recent Reddit posts reveal reactions ranging from 'Omg finally. I've been wanting this for years,' to 'Decided to try it out. Set it to the bottom, it's still at the top.' Some users report that the search bar switches erratically between top and bottom positions, as well as other UI inconsistencies. Google has acknowledged some of these issues and is already working on a fix. Despite Google's delay in implementing this feature, Chrome remains the dominant mobile browser, enjoying around 68% of global market share. Ensuring Chrome doesn't become the only player not to offer a bottom search bar, will help Google maintain this lead, but If you try it, be prepared for some early teething problems. Follow @paul_monckton on Instagram.
CNET
24-06-2025
- CNET
Here's How to Move the Chrome Address Bar to the Bottom of Android Phone Screens
Depending on how you use cell phones -- and maybe even your hand size, Google's latest tweak just might be a very welcome change. Starting Tuesday, Chrome for Android users can now place the address bar at the bottom of their phone screens, a move that finally comes nearly 17 years after the first Android phone hit the market in 2008. Users can still keep the address bar at the top, but being able to have it at the bottom might make sense for folks with a certain hand size or phone size. In a blog post Tuesday, Google said that "one address bar position may feel more comfortable than the other. We designed this update to give you the flexibility to choose your preferred location — so you can browse with more ease." To move the address bar from top to bottom, Google instructs to "long-press on it and select the 'move address bar to bottom' option. Or just navigate to the settings menu and select 'address bar' to choose your preferred spot." All the options will travel with the address bar, including the tab switcher, three-dot overflow menu and other shortcuts. And you can keep the address bar at the top if you prefer. Google said that the option to move the address bar will eventually be available to all users in the coming weeks. Giving users the address bar option comes a few years after Apple did the same thing with its Safari search bar with the iOS 15 rollout. In response to years of users complaining about the search bar being at top by default -- sometimes cutting off web page content -- Apple enabled the top-bottom option in late 2021.
The Verge
24-06-2025
- The Verge
Google finally lets Android users put Chrome's address bar on the bottom
Google is starting to roll out a feature for Chrome on Android that lets users move the address bar to the bottom of the screen. It's something that iOS Chrome users have been able to do since 2023, and it could help make the address bar more easily accessible, especially if you are using a phone with a bigger screen. 'Depending on the size of your hand and your device, one address bar position may feel more comfortable than the other,' Google's Nick Kim Sexton says in a blog post. 'We designed this update to give you the flexibility to choose your preferred location — so you can browse with more ease.' To move your address bar to the bottom (or back to the top), press and hold on the bar and select the option to move it. You can also make the change from the settings menu. Personally, I much prefer having the address bar on the bottom of the screen. I made the switch with Safari in iOS 15 and haven't looked back.
TechCrunch
24-06-2025
- TechCrunch
Chrome for Android now lets you move the address bar to the bottom, too
Google Chrome's web browser for Android devices is finally catching up to the notable design change that Safari made with the 2021 introduction of iOS 15: it's offering a way to move the address bar to the bottom of the screen too. The company announced on Tuesday that the latest version of its Chrome for Android browser will now allow users who prefer the modernized experience, designed to be easier to use on mobile devices, to opt to set their address bar to appear at the bottom of their screen instead of the top. The feature was previously available on Chrome for iOS, following Apple's lead in the space. Having learned from Apple's prior challenges, Google is not forcing the change on all its users, however. Instead, it's adding a new feature that lets users configure the address bar's location to their liking. Image Credits:Google To move the address bar to the bottom of the screen, you'll long-press on the bar and then select the option to move it to the bottom. You can also configure the location of the address bar in Chrome's Settings menu. Users often prefer the option as it places the address bar closer to where they're holding their phone, allowing them to type more comfortably. When Apple first rolled out the update, some users rebelled against the change, complaining that the placement of the bar, which initially floated atop the page's content, was problematic as it made some websites nearly unusable. The bar would block out various elements that users needed to tap on, they said, which required them to swipe the bar down and out of the way. Others simply didn't like the change. In response to user feedback, Apple moved the bar to the bottom, below the page content, and made it an optional choice as opposed to the default. Techcrunch event Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW Google is approaching the design update in the same way by allowing users to make the decision. The company said the feature will begin to appear on Android devices starting today and will roll out to all users over the weeks ahead.
Android Authority
24-06-2025
- Android Authority
Chrome on Android is finally making a long-awaited UI change over a year after iOS
TL;DR A browser with its address bar at the bottom of the screen is a desirable layout for mobile devices. Chrome on iOS got this option back in 2023, but has so far lacked it on Android. Today, Google finally starts giving Android users the choice, as well. Smartphones may be pocket-sized computers, but there are a million and one good reasons why we wouldn't want to use the same exact apps we do on our full-sized machines. Just the very fact that we're interacting through a touchscreen means that developers need to make some thoughtful decisions when it comes to input and usability. This week, we're getting some long-overdue good news for Chrome users on Android, as Google's browser finally makes an important mobile-first change. Having the address bar where a website displays its URL up at the top of your browser window makes enough sense on a PC screen, and even since the early days of NCSA Mosaic, browsers have tended to leave them up there. But while that's fine on desktop computers or laptops, it hasn't been our favorite choice when it comes to smartphone displays. If you're regularly interacting with the address bar, having it down at the much more reachable bottom edge of your screen feels like superior placement. But so far, we haven't had that option on Android. Frustratingly, Google got the ball rolling with screen-bottom address bar placement for Chrome on smartphones with its iOS release, which has had it for well over a year now. Ever since, we've been patiently (and sometimes not so patiently) waiting for Google to port the same feature over to Android. Back in April, we finally saw some momentum upon reports of it starting to show up on Android, but apparently that rollout never quite got off the ground. While it's once again taken longer than we'd like to get here, today Google finally announces that Android Chrome users are getting the option. No one will be forced to change the way they interact with Chrome's address bar on their phones, and if you've gotten fully accustomed to having it up top, you're free to keep it there. But if you have been pining away for the option to move it down below the web page you're viewing, that chance is finally arriving. Google says that Android users should start seeing the choice in Chrome beginning today, though it may still be another couple of weeks before the option hits your browser. Considering how long we've already waited, we think we can manage a few more days. Got a tip? Talk to us! Email our staff at Email our staff at news@ . You can stay anonymous or get credit for the info, it's your choice.
