Google Chrome Adds Advanced Picture-In-Picture Feature

Google is getting ready to launch a significant update to its Chrome browser as the competition in the browser market heats up due to advancements from startups like Arc and others. The company revealed today that it will be launching a new feature named “Minimized Custom Tabs” that will enable users to tap to switch between their web content and native apps. When you do this, the content of the native app appears underneath the Custom Tab, which shrinks to a tiny picture-in-picture window.

The new feature focuses on using Custom Tabs, a functionality provided by Android browsers that enables app developers to incorporate a personalized browser experience into their applications. Custom Tabs allow users to continue surfing within their app, without the need to open their browser or use a WebView, which is limited in its functionality. Custom Tabs can lower the chance of users quitting an app and never coming back, which is good news for developers.

Switching to the web experience may feel more natural and like you’re still in the native app by making the Custom Tab into a picture-in-picture window. Because the update makes switching between the website and the native app easier for users, developers who are sending users to a website to register for accounts or subscriptions may find it helpful as well.

The Custom Tab can be pushed off to the side of the screen when it’s minimized to the picture-in-picture window. Once the page has been maximized, the user can return to the picture-in-picture window by tapping the down arrow.

The launch of the improved web experience aligns with Google’s efforts to further integrate online access within Android. People can use gestures like highlighting or circling objects to navigate the web with tools like Circle to Search and other AI-powered connections.

The update is being sent out in the most recent version of Chrome (M124), and it will be installed automatically on all devices where developers have previously enabled Custom Tabs in Chrome. Although the update only affects Chrome browsers, Google expects that other browser manufacturers will implement a similar feature.