After skipping version 82 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, Google has now released the Chrome 83 bringing in several new features. The new version of the popular browser is now available for Windows, Mac, iOS, Linux, and Android.
It also implements DNS-over-HTTPS (DoH) which is a way to prevent domain-name queries from being observed on the network, between the browser and the DNS server. It is a way to improve privacy and security by wrapping TLS encryption around the DNS queries.
The browser now has a redesigned privacy and security settings on desktop with simplified language and visuals for Cookie changes, Site Settings, You and Google, and Clear browsing data. There’s also a new feature using which you can control what data your extensions can access on sites you visit.
Google is also offering Enhanced Safe Browsing which is a step forward for the Safe Search Browsing feature and now it offers more proactive and tailored protections from phishing, malware, and other web-based threats.
Here’s a list of user-centric features introduced in Chrome 83:
- New Tab Groups
- Redesigned Privacy and Security Settings
- Incognito Mode Cookie Blocking
- New Safety Check Option
- Enhanced Safe Browsing Mode
- New Web Forms Control
- New Extension Data Control Button
It also comes with several developer-specific features such as trusted types for DOM manipulation, latest V8 JavaScript engine, ARIA Annotations, Barcode Detection API, CSS Color Adjust, among others. The company has also deprecated experimental WeakRefs and FinalizationRegistry APIs.
Another change is that with Chrome 83, in Incognito mode, the browser also blocks third-party cookies by default but you can allow third-party cookies for specific sites. The feature is currently rolling out gradually across Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android.
While the new version of Chrome is now available for download on iOS via Apple App Store, the Android version is rolling out slowly through the Google Play Store. However, change-log for the application on the both the platform is not yet available.
