Chrome on Android now blocks autoplaying videos with sound by default

Google's super-popular Chrome browser will no longer autoplay videos with sound by default thanks to version 66 which is rolling out now to users. This is following the earlier release of the same feature to all the other platforms that Chrome is available on.

While Chrome 64 introduced new, more restrictive media autoplay policies back in January, version 66 of the browser further tightens down the way media is autoplayed and will only let videos play automatically if any of the following conditions are met:

• Content is muted, or does not feature audio
• Users previously tapped or clicked on the site during the browsing session
• On mobile, if the site has been added to the Home Screen by the user

However, will these might seem harsh for content-heavy websites, Google is introducing new changes that will potentually save users tons of bandwidth. Google is lifting the video autoplay restriction in both regular and Data Saver modes with the hopes of stimulating developers to use muted videos instead of the much-heavier and morally-old GIFs. This change will save tons of bandwidth and will put yet another nail in the coffin of GIFs, which have less and less merits to them compared to the much superior WebM and MP4 file formats.

Another welcome change that Chrome introduces is the Export passwords function, which allows you to share your passkeys to any app. Of course, you will be prompted to re-authorize your identity via a fingerprint or a system PIN code. Also, the Material Design appearance of Chrome still lives on as an experimental flag in the browser's settings.

Finally, the experimental Chrome Duplex gets introduced, while the beloved Chrome Home layout which moved the navigation bar to the bottom of the display gets nixed. Chrome Duplex allows you to swipe up the browser page to quickly access your bookmarks, but the feature would certainly need a couple of revisions before it's ready for the primetime.