TL;DR
- Chrome 155 lets Googlebook users install any webpage as a web app, even if the site lacks an installable web manifest.
- Installed web apps can open in their own windows, appear in the app launcher, and be pinned to the taskbar or homescreen.
- The update also moves Chrome Settings into a separate tab and is rolling out through Google Play over the next few days.
Googlebook OS is barely out of the starting gate, but early adopters have already given Google a fairly clear homework list. Apps have been one of the biggest talking points, from some Android apps behaving differently across hardware to major Google services running as web experiences instead of native Android apps. Google now appears to be moving quickly on some of that feedback, and its latest Chrome update addresses one particularly annoying limitation.
With Chrome 155, Googlebook owners can install any webpage as a web app, even when the website wasn’t specifically designed to be installable. Previously, sites without the necessary web app manifest could only be saved as shortcuts that opened in regular browser tabs.