Chromium browser for tablets shown in video demo
A video has surfaced that shows a touchscreen version of the Chromium Web browser. Could a tablet version of Chrome OS be on the cards?
Chromium, the open-source browser that forms the basis for Google Chrome, has been demoed in a video that shows an interface built for touchscreen devices. It gives a hint of what Google's Chrome OS -- currently stewing inside a host of new netbooks -- could look like on a tablet.
We've embedded the video below so you can view it for yourself, but it looks rather interesting, and seems more sophisticated than the Safari browser on the iPad, or the Honeycomb browser, with a complex-looking settings menu and the ability to duplicate or pin different tabs.
The touchscreen interface, which Liliputing says was discovered when a Web developer compiled the latest software build, boasts large, chunky buttons and gives a hint that Google's Chrome OS operating system could find its way on to tablets in the future. It's clearly unfinished, however, as menus display keyboard shortcuts.
But would it be wise to stick this on tablets at all? We're not convinced. Firstly, we've not been too impressed with the Chrome OS netbooks we've seen. Chrome OS is basically just Google's Chrome Web browser, and as such is very much hobbled when not connected to the Internet.
Secondly, Google already has a finger in the mobile pie with Android. Having more Google-branded products on tablets that perform similar tasks is likely to confuse consumers.
The Honeycomb browser is like a sized-down version of Chrome already, so we'd love to see some of the more complex features from Chrome and Chrome OS built into Android. Tab management would make browsing on a tablet much easier, for example.
The Chrome browser itself is going great guns -- it recently overtook Firefox as the most popular browser in the UK.
Do you love Chrome? Or would you rather Google stuck to Android? Let us know in the comments section below or on our Facebook wall.