Nov 18, 2020 Google has released a native version of its Chrome browser for the new Apple Silicon Macs. Microsoft has also confirmed that its support for the new architecture is well on the way.
Following today’s launch of M1-powered Macs, Google has quietly released a Mac version of Chrome that is optimized for Apple Silicon.
- Chrome is well renowned for being a CPU and RAM hog, and now that Apple has released their own silicon with the M1 MacBooks, it will be interesting to see ho.
- Google Chrome has known to be a HUNGRY Browser on any device! So how does it fair up on the new Baseline M1 MacBook Air with 8GB. If I open 16 Google Tabs.
Update 11/18: The Apple Silicon version of Chrome for Mac is now available for download. As of this morning, those on M1 devices with the Intel variant of the browser are not automatically getting updated yet. Therefore, an uninstall is required to get the optimized version immediately.
To download, visit google.com/chrome and click the blue “Download” button. If you’re using an M1 computer, you should be given the option to select between “Mac with Intel chip” — which is labeled as being “most common” — and “Mac with Apple chip.”
This change to the installer page has yet to fully roll out to all new MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Mac Mini devices. The new download prompt is shown below.
Update 11/17: Google has pulled the Apple Silicon-optimized version of Chrome due to “unexpected crashes.” Users that were able to install are advised to follow this workaround to resolve the issue:
- Open System Preferences.
- Navigate to Security & Privacy.
- At the top, select Privacy.
- From the left, select Bluetooth.
- Below your approved applications, select add application (+).
- Select Google Chrome.
- Restart Chrome.
An alternative is uninstalling the new version and downloading the regular Intel variant until an update is released.
The Intel/x86 version already works thanks to Rosetta 2, but there should be further optimizations in this update geared for the new processor.
Meanwhile, some users report that the Intel version of Chrome for Mac is automatically updating to the Apple Silicon variant. Since the latest release of Chrome launched later in the afternoon, some new Mac owners already downloaded the previous release this morning. You can visit chrome://settings/help to manually initiate the update process.
This support for Apple Silicon is rolling out with Chrome 87, which features a slew of other performance enhancements. Namely, an up to 5x reduction in CPU usage and a 1.25-hour increase in battery life thanks to background tabs throttling. The Google browser opens 25% faster, while page loads also see some speed improvements.
The latest release also features an app icon optimized for macOS 11 Big Sur. The Chrome logo is placed against a white, rounded square background that better fits with the latest operating system’s design direction. It also matches the Chrome for iOS icon.
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Chrome for Apple’s M1 Macs has been released, a specially-developed version of the browser for Apple Silicon, a day after Google had to pull down its first attempt over stability issues. Attempts to download Chrome now bring up two different options: you can either have Chrome for a Mac with an Intel chip, or Chrome for a Mac with an Apple chip.
The native app promises performance improvements, rather than relying on Apple’s Rosetta 2 emulation as the x86 Intel version would require. Apple has made some big claims about Rosetta’s capabilities – including suggestions that emulated apps can actually run faster on M1-based Macs than they do on Intel versions – but the company’s clear hope is for native software to become the norm.
Macbook Air M1 Sale
Google’s Chrome team was early to that process, quietly pushing out a native M1 version of the browser yesterday. Quickly spotted by Chrome users, it ended in an aborted rollout after reports of unexpected crashes on M1-based models like the new MacBook Air, MacBook Pro 13, and Mac mini. The Chrome team promised a second attempt today, and that’s now been launched.
Those who have one of the newest Macs, and who use Chrome, shouldn’t really see much in the way of differences beyond speed. Both versions will benefit from Google’s latest improvements in performance and memory utilization, Chrome 87 being pushed out earlier this week with some significant promises.
Macbook Air M1 Google Chrome Download
Chrome’s CPU usage could be cut by a fifth, Google’s team said at the time, while battery usage could see a 1.25 hour improvement. Desktop Chrome starts faster, and loads pages faster, Google promised, while new actions had been added along with improvements to how tabs can be managed.
Macbook Air M1 Google Chrome Extension
The challenge, of course, is Safari. Apple’s browser has the benefit of its developers being in-house with the designers of Apple Silicon itself, and the Cupertino firm hasn’t been shy in promising advantages in performance and memory use when Mac owners stick with the homegrown software.