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Google Chrome tests a new design for bookmarks and downloads

The main reason for being of Google Chrome Canary is to test things before they reach all users. Two of these tests refresh the appearance of two of its sections: downloads and bookmarks.

Besides being setting the stage for Material You, other design changes are coming to Google Chrome. Markers increase in size, while the downloads are displayed in a floating notice, instead of being at the bottom of Google Chrome.

Markers redesign

The new layout of the markers (left) and the old one (right)

In Android 12, some interface elements are increased in size to make them more readable, and it seems that Google Chrome could follow the same path. In the redesign that can already be tested in Google Chrome Canary, the size of the bookmarks preview it is much larger, also adopting the shape of a square with rounded edges.

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This change is already present in Chrome Canary, although not active from the factory. If you want to try it, you must activate the Chrome Flag #bookmarks-refresh, whose description is “activate the visual refresh of markersWith that name it seems more like a preview than an experiment, although everything could change before it reaches the final version.

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Redesign of downloads

The new design (left) and the old one (right)

On the other hand, Google Chrome Canary can also give your downloads a coat of paint. The main change here is that, instead of displaying all the information as in a panel at the bottom of the interface, it shows in a window.

If you’ve ever started downloading something and didn’t even notice progress was showing at the bottom of Google Chrome, this redesign will make it harder for you to go unnoticed. The messages are literally displayed in the middle of the screen, and download progress floats to the top.

The new design (left) and the old one (right)

The download progress is much more visible and you can slide it aside so that it stops showing. This change is not active from the factory either, but you must activate Chrome Flag #download-progress-message and restart Chrome Canary to access the new layout.