3 hidden Chrome settings that instantly speed up Android browsing
Chrome is no longer my default web browser, but I haven't been able to quit the browser altogether. I keep coming back to Chrome for some of its excellent features and the Google ecosystem.
However, I don't use Chrome in the default setup. I never did it, even when it was my default web browser on both mobile and desktop. I use specific settings to improve its performance across devices.
I especially love tweaking Chrome's settings to speed up browsing on my phone. Some of these tricks are easy to find, while others are buried deep inside settings.
However, Chrome has more hidden settings than easily accessible ones for speeding up browsing, and that's the fun part of using the browser. It makes you feel like you have an entirely different version of Chrome, one that's better than what most people use.
These are the three hidden Chrome settings that will instantly speed up Android browsing.
Extended preloading can significantly improve your browsing speed
Google Chrome isn't slow in its default setup, but you can significantly improve its browsing speed on Android by tweaking only one feature in Chrome Settings.
Of all the features that speed up browsing, Preload pages is the one that's easiest to find in Settings.
The Preload pages feature does exactly what its name suggests. When you open a website, Chrome predicts what web pages you are likely to visit next and preloads them in the background.
This means links to various web pages on those websites are preloaded even before you tap the link. When you click a preloaded page, it opens instantly, significantly boosting the browser speed.
This is enabled by default in Google Chrome, but the Preload pages setting is set to Standard preloading, which makes some educated guesses about what you may open next and preloads accordingly.
However, Extended preloading is better than Standard preloading, as the former preloads a broader set of web pages that you'll likely click.
It increases the chances that the web pages you plan to click are already preloaded.
To set it to Extended preloading, open Chrome, go to Settings, tap Privacy and security, select Preload pages, then tap the Extended preloadingoption.
Cut connection delays with the QUIC protocol
Developed by Google, QUIC (Quick UDP Internet Connections) is a more modern Internet transport layer protocol than the traditional TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) connections.
It's designed to replace TCP, allowing compatible websites to load faster and feel more responsive.
However, QUIC isn't enabled by default in Chrome, so you need to enable it manually to boost your browsing speed. But unlike in the case of Extended preloading, the QUIC protocol is available behind a flag.
To enable the QUIC protocol, open Google Chrome, tap the URL bar, type Chrome://flags/, type Experimental QUIC protocolin the search bar, tap the Defaultoption, select Enabled, and relaunch the browser.
You may not notice the difference in browsing speed if you use a high-speed internet connection, but on a slower network, QUIC can load compatible websites noticeably faster.
I enabled the flag in Chrome because I don't want websites to take forever to load when I'm on a slow or unstable network, which is quite often, especially when I travel.
GPU rasterization for a smooth browsing experience in Chrome
GPU rasterization is another flag that I use to speed up internet browsing on my Android phones. It doesn't improve your internet speed, but it makes web browsing feel a lot smoother.
When enabled, Chrome uses the graphics processor to take over some rendering tasks that would otherwise be handled by the CPU.
Since a GPU is designed to handle thousands of graphics operations in parallel, it can render web pages more efficiently than the CPU, resulting in a smoother browsing experience.
This means the CPU has more resources available for other tasks, which can improve the overall responsiveness of the website.
To enable the feature, type Chrome://flags/in the URL bar, tap it, type GPU rasterizationin the search bar, select the drop-down menu, change it from Defaultto Enabled, and relaunch the browser.
Both GPU rasterization and QUIC protocol are available in Chrome across multiple platforms, including Android, ChromeOS, Linux, Windows, and Mac.
You don't need a new phone to make web browsing on Chrome feel faster
Chrome doesn't load web pages as fast as Brave or Samsung Browser on the default setup, so you need to make necessary changes to its settings to speed up browsing right off the bat.
If you have an older phone, it's easy to blame the hardware, but the browser's default setting also plays a major role.
So, a few tweaks here and there can make a difference.
None of the above is a paid feature, so you can speed up browsing on Android without spending your hard-earned money.
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