Okay, so we’ve all heard about multiple tabs on Chrome. This wasn’t a feature initially. Then it was tested on Chrome Canary — which is where Google tests out its most user-friendly features — and now, it is a staple of Chrome. Well, Instance Switcher is taking things beyond that soon-ish. At least allegedly, as there hasn’t been an official announcement yet, even though ChromeUnboxed managed to get their hands on it early.
But let’s get into the nitty-gritty and explain what this feature is about. It’s rather simple actually: it lets you run multiple instances of Chrome on your phone. Do you remember app cloning? Like that, but actually endorsed by the big G and made with you in mind.
Example snaps of the feature in action, provided by ChromeUnboxed.
You have now gained access to the ability of having two sets of the Chrome app, each with its own tabs. Both of them can run simultaneously as separate floating windows, or you can utilize split screen to have both of them remain static.
Neat! So what now? A simple example is if you use your phone for work at home, you can have a work-Chrome and a personal-Chrome. Another, more pedestrian example would be utilizing them to watch a video in one window, while reading on the topic on another. Naturally, this is applicable in the rare instance where you can’t do that via typical split-screen, but you get the point.
As of now, it is uncertain what is the method to the rollout, so not everyone has gotten it. If you are excited about stepping up your productivity game throughout the year, then this might be a golden opportunity. If that is the case, yet you’re still not seeing the option, just make sure to check every now and then until it does arrive.
