Google Chrome Instant Pages & Print Preview

In Google’s latest update to its Chrome browser, they’ve added two new features.  The first is instant pages via Google search and the other is print preview.  We look at both and give you some insight.

Instant Pages

Google search with instant pages is supposed to load pages faster when you click them from Google search results.  The process is somewhat guessing as to what Google search thinks you’re looking for and then preloading the result before you click it from the search page.  In Google’s video demonstration of the instant pages feature they show results with 0 second load times and overall superior speed when loading pages they believe you are searching for.  A close look at the video shows the example results are clicked roughly 5 seconds after the search results are displayed which would obviously allow pages those same 5 seconds worth of preload assuming Google Instant Pages guessed correctly.  To say it’s instant with a 5 second buffer is a stretch in that respect.

To be fair, we tested this ourselves.  We tried with sites that traditionally load quickly as well as sites that are slower to load whether it be due to video, flash or heaviness of the page.  We also alternated between instant click on search results and a 5 second pause after results were displayed. With each test, we saw no difference in comparison to click-through on previous versions of Chrome.  If there was a difference it wasn’t noticeable and while we accept that circumstances vary, the feature is intended to work for all users and we clearly did not see an improvement.

Print Preview

The other feature which is, in our opinion, the more exciting feature is the addition of ‘Print Preview’ to Chrome’s print functions.  Now when you press ctrl+p or select print you’ll be given a print preview of the webpage so you can see how it displays and whether or not you want to make adjustments such as zooming in or out.  It’s a nice addition to make printing webpages less aggravating.

Your Thoughts

Are either of these features helping you browse the web?  Is Google Chrome your browser of choice or do you use something else?  Let us know in the comments!