Jump to content

Google experiments with 'lazy loading' to speed up browsing in Chrome


sincity

Recommended Posts

Google is experimenting with a new way to speed up web browsing in Chrome: lazy loading. Rather than loading an entire webpage at once, the browser only loads the parts that are currently displayed on the screen. The rest (everything 'below the fold') is loaded as you scroll.

Lazy loading isn't a new concept, but until now, it's been down to web developers to implement it on pages themselves. Adding it to the browser means you'll benefit from faster speeds on all sites – including those where the creators haven't implemented it.

Made for mobile

Google is currently testing lazy loading in Chrome Canary – an early-release version of the browser intended for developers and early adopters. To give it a try, download Canary, then enter chrome://flags/#enable-lazy-image-loading and chrome://flags/#enable-lazy-frame-loading.

With these flags active, the browser won't load any images or iframes that aren't currently visible. Not only does this speed up page load times, it also reduces bandwidth use, making it a particularly useful feature for mobile browsers.

According to BleepingComputer, Google initially designed lazy loading for Chrome on Android, and planned to start trials with the desktop browser if tests on Android proved successful. Clearly, they have.

Before you grab Canary, bear in mind that it's not a stable release and might be prone to crashes, so it's best not to make it your default browser.

INr7zm7p0b0

View the full article

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Unfortunately, your content contains terms that we do not allow. Please edit your content to remove the highlighted words below.
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.