Chrome Ditched Redesign That Was Similar to Safari in iOS 15, Says Former Google Employee

Apple introduced a sweeping overhaul to its Safari browser's interface on iOS 15, iPadOS 15, and macOS Monterey, with a redesign that includes an address bar that floats at the bottom of the screen, changes to the way users switch tabs, and more.

safari
Apple says this new-look Safari has been "reimagined for the way we browse today." In iOS 15, for example, Apple says the new floating address bar means Safari "maximizes your screen space and stays out of the way as you scroll and explore." However, some of the changes on both desktop and mobile have been heavily criticized by some users.

It turns out Google tried something similar in 2016 for its own home-grown browser. According to Chris Lee, a former Google designer, Google began developing a redesign for the Chrome mobile app called "Chrome Home" that was very similar to the one Apple is currently aiming at for Safari.

Lee was a staff interaction designer at Google at the time, and on his personal blog (via 9to5Google), Lee says he created the "original concept and pitch" for an "ambitious redesign of mobile Chrome's main UI."

It brought Chrome's toolbar to the bottom of the screen and turned [it] into a peeking panel that could be swiped to expose additional controls.

Swiping up on the address bar displayed the Discover and recent sites, Downloads, Bookmarks and History, while other features were accessible in a menu via an ellipsis (three dot) icon, which consolidated key browsing options and simplified one-handed operation in an era of growing screen sizes.

Lee says Chrome Home "caught traction internally, eventually becoming a Chrome org priority." However, after live beta tests and sustained experiments, the team received "a mixture of reactions."

The feature gained a cult following among the tech community, but for many mainstream users, the change felt disorienting. Chrome serves billions of users around the globe with varying tech literacy. Over the course of many iterations, I became increasingly convinced that launching Chrome Home would not serve all our users well.

So just as I strongly as I had pitched the original concept, I advocated for us to stop the launch - which took not a small amount of debate.

Ultimately, the redesign was killed off in 2018. Lee suggests that though Chrome Home was short-lived that doesn't mean it was a wasted effort, but rather a lesson about "the intentionality needed to innovate within a product of massive scale."

For Safari users, the question now is whether Apple's mixed feedback from its beta testers will be enough to steer the browser's redesign towards an end result that's more broadly acceptable to its user base, or if the company's intention lies in forcing through a change that it believes will grow on people given time.

Updates to iOS 15 Beta 3 and macOS Monterey Beta 3 suggest it could be the former: Apple has walked back some of the design changes it had in mind for Safari on both desktop and mobile, but we won't find out what the finished article will be like until both operating systems are released in September.

Tag: Safari
Related Forum: iOS 15

Popular Stories

iphone 16 pro ghost hand

5 Reasons to Skip This Year's iPhone 17 Pro

Thursday July 10, 2025 4:54 am PDT by
Apple will launch its new iPhone 17 series in two months, and the iPhone 17 Pro models are expected to get a new design for the rear casing and the camera area. But more significant changes to the lineup are not expected until next year, when the iPhone 18 models arrive. If you're thinking of trading in your iPhone for this year's latest, consider the following features rumored to be coming...
apple wallet drivers license feature iPhone 15 pro

Apple Says iPhone Driver's Licenses Will Expand to These 8 U.S. States

Tuesday July 8, 2025 11:26 am PDT by
In select U.S. states, residents can add their driver's license or state ID to the Wallet app on the iPhone and Apple Watch, providing a convenient and contactless way to display proof of identity or age at select airports and businesses, and in select apps. Unfortunately, this feature continues to roll out very slowly since it was announced in 2021, with only nine U.S. states, Puerto Rico,...
macbook pro blue green

M5 MacBook Pro No Longer Coming in 2025

Thursday July 10, 2025 12:38 pm PDT by
Apple does not plan to refresh any Macs with updated M5 chips in 2025, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Updated MacBook Air and MacBook Pro models are now planned for the first half of 2026. Gurman previously said that Apple would debut the M5 MacBook Pro models in late 2025, but his newest report suggests that Apple is "considering" pushing them back to 2026. Apple is now said to be...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

Leaker Reveals Amount of RAM in iPhone 17 Through iPhone 17 Pro Max

Wednesday July 9, 2025 8:08 am PDT by
Three out of four iPhone 17 models will feature more RAM than the equivalent iPhone 16 models, according to a new leak that aligns with previous rumors. The all-new iPhone 17 Air, the iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Pro Max will each be equipped with 12GB of RAM, according to Fixed Focus Digital, an account with more than two million followers on Chinese social media platform Weibo. The...
apple tv 4k new orange

New Apple TV Expected Later This Year With These New Features

Saturday July 12, 2025 3:09 pm PDT by
A new Apple TV is expected to be released later this year, and a handful of new features and changes have been rumored for the device. Below, we recap what to expect from the next Apple TV, according to rumors. Rumors Faster Wi-Fi Support The next Apple TV will be equipped with Apple's own combined Wi-Fi and Bluetooth chip, according to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. He said the chip supports ...
iPhone 17 Pro in Hand Feature Lowgo

iPhone 17 Pro to Reverse iPhone X Design Decision

Monday July 7, 2025 9:46 am PDT by
Since the iPhone X in 2017, all of Apple's highest-end iPhone models have featured either stainless steel or titanium frames, but it has now been rumored that this design decision will be coming to an end with the iPhone 17 Pro models later this year. In a post on Chinese social media platform Weibo today, the account Instant Digital said that the iPhone 17 Pro models will have an aluminum...
Foldable iPhone 2023 Feature 1

Foldable iPhone Display Production Begins Ahead of Launch Next Year

Wednesday July 9, 2025 10:59 pm PDT by
Production of foldable OLED displays for Apple's first foldable iPhone have begun ahead of its expected launch next year, Korea's ETNews reports. The first foldable iPhone's displays are being produced by Samsung Display, who are establishing a production line dedicated to the upcoming Apple device its A3 factory in Asan, Chungcheongnam-do. The production line will make displays exclusively...
iphone 16 pro pro max

iPhone 17 Pro Models With BOE Displays Will Be Sold in China Only

Thursday July 10, 2025 11:59 pm PDT by
iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models with displays made by BOE will be sold exclusively in China, according to a new report. Last week, it emerged that Chinese display manufacturer BOE was aggressively ramping up its OLED production capacity for future iPhone models as part of a plan to recapture a major role in Apple's supply chain. Now, tech news aggregator Jukan Choi reports...

Top Rated Comments

Apple Mac Daz Avatar
52 months ago
Hate the Safari on iOS 15 on my phone. that floating bar at the bottom is horrendous

Never mind swipe down to refresh. If on forums not good either if you wanna refresh to check for new posts
Score: 24 Votes (Like | Disagree)
contacos Avatar
52 months ago
Apple needs to rethink this abomination too. I am no longer using Safari on my iOS 15 testing device. It is annoying and not intuitive at all. How is anyone supposed to know you can press and hold on three different areas of the address bar to get different menus with additional options that are not part of the "..." so stupid.

I do not know how Apple is using the internet "today" but that is not it. Usually I scroll and read from the top downwards with most information being provided at the bottom because websites tend to have the navigation on top anyway. However, now that stupid address bar bubble is covering that very content I am trying to read!

Also the argument with the "maximised content" is such BS because now you got this big white space between the notch and the website content instead
Score: 18 Votes (Like | Disagree)
makitango Avatar
52 months ago
The problem is that the prior bar was condensed into the top combined bar w/ the notch (even smaller when scrolling down) and you received the full screen all the way down from there. Now you lose all that acreen estate that the iPhone X was advertising for.

Big design flaw.
Score: 14 Votes (Like | Disagree)
LawJolla Avatar
52 months ago
No one discusses the real issue... it's a complete mess for website that use bottom/footer navigation. Good luck clicking that chat icon for help.
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
grr74 Avatar
52 months ago

Hate the Safari on iOS 15 on my phone. that floating bar at the bottom is horrendous

Never mind swipe down to refresh. If on forums not good either if you wanna refresh to check for new posts
I think the redesign is fantastic. The New York Times app made similar changes, moving controls to the bottom of the screen, which also improved the experience.

But perhaps Apple could give users the option of going with the new design or the old for those who don't want to change.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
creeman Avatar
52 months ago

No one discusses the real issue... it's a complete mess for website that use bottom/footer navigation. Good luck clicking that chat icon for help.
This is the most annoying part. Apple expects the Internet to redesign for them.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)