// ZDNET — MOBILE & WEB
Is Chrome’s settings menu getting a search bar? What we know
I’m a longtime Chrome user, but I’ve never been a fan of the browser’s user settings menu, which has grown into a dense collection of nesting submenus that can be difficult to navigate. That may be changing soon.
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X (formerly Twitter) user, Leopeva64, posted a short video and several still images showcasing a potential new feature in Chrome Canary, which Google uses to test new Chrome web tools and features. The posts show the search bar pinned to the top of the settings menu for instant access. By entering the name of the submenu or feature you want to access, the new search bar could save a lot of time normally spent clicking around, trying to remember exactly where it’s located.
In Chrome Canary, Google is testing removing the scroll arrows that let you automatically scroll to reveal hidden items when you hover over them in the 3-dot menu. They also added a scrollbar, and the search box at the top and the footer are now pinned so they are always visible: https://t.co/Plx6BgKfJN pic.twitter.com/D7TxDkCtmP
According to Leopeva64, other possible new features include a visual update that groups similar menu options into tiles for faster navigation of your most-accessed settings, as well as pinning the menu footer to keep it visible as you click through.
Chrome Extensions is also up for a possible refresh with a move to a dedicated submenu called Manage Skills to help keep all of your installed extensions organized and make it easier to remove ones that are no longer needed.
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Google Lens may get a new submenu, called “Ask Google about this page,” for searching for items you see across an entire page, not just in a single image.
There’s no official word yet on when these features will leave Canary’s testing environment and become available in the regular Chrome menu. I’ve reached out to Google for a comment, but at the time of writing, I have not received a response.
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