ChromeOS M124: Faster Split Screen and Web Traffic Prioritization Feature

Introduction

The latest version of ChromeOS (M124) has been released by Google, adding several notable upgrades to enhance user experience. Among these upgrades, users can expect a faster split-screen setup, a new web traffic prioritization feature, a refreshed settings user interface, and updated gesture controls.

Faster Split Screen Setup

Judging from screenshots published by 9to5Google, the new “Faster Split Screen Setup” feature will bring familiarity to Windows users. Previously, users had to navigate to the other app and repeat the side-by-side pinning process. With this new update, however, after an app is snapped to one side of the screen, previews of other apps pop up on the other side. Users can easily select an app from the previews, which will then pin to the other side of the split-screen layout. This feature aims to improve multitasking and enhance user productivity.

Wi-Fi Quality of Service

Google has introduced Wi-Fi Quality of Service (QoS) to ChromeOS, mirroring routers’ similar feature. With QoS, Chromebook users can experience prioritization of bandwidth for activities like video calls and online gaming when their Wi-Fi network is congested. This enhancement is expected to result in higher-quality video calls, reduced streaming buffering, and smoother online gaming experiences.

Carrier Locking Support

In an unexpected move, ChromeOS now supports carrier locking, meaning that wireless companies can sell Chromebooks that can only be used with their service. Chromebooks will be unlocked upon contract completion or when the laptop is paid off. However, the success of carrier unlocking is yet to be tested, and potential issues may arise during the unlocking process.

Redesigned ChromeOS Settings

With this update, ChromeOS presents a redesigned settings app following Google’s Material You design, resembling settings menus commonly found on smartphones. Additionally, Chrome Unboxed reports a new gesture using a two-finger trackpad swipe to dismiss notifications. Furthermore, ChromeOS now supports digital panning, tilting, and zooming on webcams, even those that do not originally support Super-Res Zoom.

Availability and Updates

Google rolls out ChromeOS updates gradually, and version M124 will be made available to compatible Chromebooks over the next few days. To check for the update, users can look for the “Update available” notification or go to Settings > About ChromeOS > Check for updates.