Battery life has long since been an issue what with all the applications we have and use on our devices. Device makers have had to keep in step with these developments by offering features like quick charge, higher capacity batteries, and power saver modes on devices. Google Chrome is among those apps that require more computing power and by extension power in the battery, in order to operate. This may soon change as Google is apparently working on a feature that will allow websites to switch to on an energy-saving feature.
How does it work?
To answer this we will have to start from our own devices. Be it a computer or mobile device there is some battery saving function, feature or mode. These tone down the power demands from a number of apps in order to save battery. In a perfect world, websites should be able to adhere to these settings as well but that isn’t the case. This is where this proposed feature is set to come into play
In a report by The Windows Club, Google is apparently experimenting with a meta tag. This tag will be added to a site’s code and when battery saver mode is engaged on a device, the website will also do this same. Websites will reduce power demands by lowering the frame rate and slow down script execution. In other words, reducing the demands a website is making on your device.
This will definitely help in cases where you may be on a long video call (which are the norm these days) and your device is running low on battery. This could also help with those of us who have a number of tabs open better manage battery life.
This feature could also mean that Progressive Web Applications (PWA) will have an inbuild battery-saving mode. The hope is that eventually, Chrome itself will be able to tone down the demands of websites automatically without websites having to add additional code.
When will this be available?
It looks as though this feature may be some way off. Google is reportedly going to experiment with this feature in versions 86 and 87 of Chrome. The silver lining in all of this is that Google has realised that their program is a battery hog and they are trying to address it. As good as Chrome is to use when one is low on battery it’s the last browser anyone will want to use. Hopefully, this feature is a reality in the not too distant future.
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