Google Launches Chrome Remote Desktop App for iOS - MacRumors
Skip to Content

Google Launches Chrome Remote Desktop App for iOS

by

Google today launched a Chrome Remote Desktop app for iOS, which allows Chrome users to access their Mac or PC desktop computers remotely using an iOS device. Google has had an Android version of the Chrome Remote Desktop app for several months and has finally brought the tool to iOS.

To access a PC or Mac remotely with the new app, users will first need to install the Chrome Remote Desktop on their computer, which is a free download from the Chrome Web Store. With both the desktop browser app and the iOS app, it’s possible for users to access their computers on an iOS device through the Chrome browser with a few simple taps after verifying through a generated code.

chromeremotedesktop

Securely access your computers from your iOS device.
- On each of your computers, set up remote access using the Chrome Remote Desktop app from Chrome Web Store.
- On your iOS device, open the app and tap on any of your online computers to connect.

In addition to allowing access from an iOS device with the new app, Google’s Chrome Remote Desktop feature also allows computer-to-computer access, which Google suggests is useful for securely accessing files on one machine from another or giving a friend temporary access to help solve a computer problem.

The Chrome Remote Desktop app can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Tags: Chrome, Google

Top Rated Comments

147 months ago
The fact that apple doesnt have this built in to any iOS device is behind me.
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ArtOfWarfare Avatar
147 months ago
Do you believe that Apple doesn't spy on you at all? Proof?

The proof is it would be all over the news if they did, which they don't, so it hasn't happened. Every little thing that puts the slightest dent in Apple's image as the best tech company in the world (that is how they're viewed whether its true or not - their brand is the most valued in the world) ends up on the front page news.

Bendgate, a manufacturing defect that impacted 1 out of 1 M iPhone 6+s, for example. That wouldn't be anywhere in the news at all if it happened with a Samsung (actually, the S5 has a tendency for its screen to shatter in your pants. I've seen it happened on two separate coworkers - so far more prevalent, and yet precisely zero news articles on it).

If you want to make accusations like this, you really should have some evidence. You need to prove something has happened - it'd be retarded for us to have to prove something hasn't happened. A lot of us here are pretty tech savvy and would be capable of noticing the network traffic that would be generated by our own Apple devices spying on us.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
seamer Avatar
147 months ago
If you're already using Chrome, Google theoretically already sees what you're doing. I think the novel you're writing via free public wifi at Starbucks cafe is safe, though.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
ArtOfWarfare Avatar
147 months ago
And Apple doesn't? Typical.

----------



And Apple doesn't spy on you? Classic!

Why would Apple spy on you? Whereas Google's sole source of revenue is intelligently serving up ads based on your interests, Apple makes most of their money off of hardware they sell and stuff purchased from their online store. They don't do much targeted advertising, and they don't sell info on you the way Google does.

Furthermore, it's not a conspiracy theory or something that Google spies on you and their users. Google exploits bugs in browsers specifically to track you - there's news on it and they've been sued over it.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
oneMadRssn Avatar
147 months ago
The fact that a Chrome Webstore App allows someone to reach into and control my computer through only a browser is a bit scary. That is not an App I want installed.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Reason077 Avatar
147 months ago
Install Chrome Remote Desktop so that Google can spy on everything I do on my Mac?

Err, no thanks!
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

google chrome vertical tabs

Google Brings Vertical Tabs and Improved Reading Mode to Chrome

Tuesday April 7, 2026 1:27 pm PDT by
Google today updated its Chrome browser with support for vertical tabs, which are displayed in a sidebar instead of at the top of the browser. The tab layout can be changed by right clicking on any Chrome window and choosing the "Show Tabs Vertically" option. Sidebar tabs feature full page titles and make it simple to organize tab groups. Google has also added a new full-page interface...
Chrome Feature 22

Gemini in Google Chrome Gets a Skills Library for Saving Custom AI Prompts

Tuesday April 14, 2026 10:00 am PDT by
Chrome has been updated today with a Skills library that's designed to let Chrome users turn AI tasks into repeatable skills that can be used on any website. Useful prompts you create for Gemini in Chrome can be saved as a Skill that can be accessed later with a single click. If you're shopping for skincare and ask Gemini about the ingredients in a product, for example, you can save the...
gemini for mac app google

Google Launches Native Gemini AI App for Mac

Wednesday April 15, 2026 10:46 am PDT by
Google is bringing Gemini to the Mac with a new native macOS app that's available starting today. Gemini for Mac can be activated with a keyboard shortcut, and it has built-in tools for generating images, analyzing what's on your screen, reviewing files, and more. Gemini is the last of the three major AI services to have a dedicated Mac app, because OpenAI and Anthropic have had Mac apps for ...