Google previously announced that the Chrome browser will support memory-saving and energy-saving modes, and now these two feature modes are widely available for Mac, Windows, Linux, and Chromebooks. Google Chrome’s Memory Saver and Energy Saver modes are enabled by default and can be toggled on/off from Chrome Settings > Performance (in the sidebar).
Memory Saver Mode automatically “frees up memory from inactive tabs” to make more resources available to other pages and applications on your computer. Inactive pages will remain visible in the tab strip and reload immediately when navigating to it.
In the address bar, Chrome will indicate with a speedometer icon that the tab is frozen and supports “active again”.
If users are having trouble saving memory, or don’t like waiting for tabs to refresh after stepping away from their device, Chrome allows users to manually add webpages to the list of always keeping those sites active.
IT House learned from Google that using the memory saving mode, the memory used by the Chrome browser can be reduced by up to 30%, which can be used to keep active video and game tabs running smoothly.
Then there’s Chrome Energy Saver, “Chrome conserves battery power by limiting background activity and visual effects.” This includes animations and smooth scrolling, as well as reducing the video frame rate. Users may “notice changes in game and video performance” when activated, which is represented by a leaf icon to the right of the Omnibox and can be quickly disabled.
In addition to On/Off, there are two options that support auto-enabling.
Memory Saver Mode and Energy Saver Mode roll out broadly with Chrome 110 on Mac, Windows, and Chromebooks. If it is not online yet, users can use the following flag to enable it.
chrome://flags/#battery-saver-mode-available
chrome://flags/#high-efficiency-mode-available