Google has been quietly turning Chrome from "just a browser" into a small productivity suite. The newest What's New page — the one that opens after an update — puts four features front and centre. Three of them are as good as they look. One of them needs an honest warning label. Here is each one, what it actually does, and where it stops.
1. Send to your devices: pick up where you left off
Chrome has let you send a tab from one device to another for years, but the page always opened at the top. Now, Chrome saves the exact state of the tab when you send it — your scroll position and even partially filled-in forms travel with it. Google announced this in September 2026 as part of a study-focused update, and the pitch is simple: start reading a long article on your laptop, send it to your phone, and continue mid-paragraph on your commute.
How to use it: on your computer, open the three-dot menu, go to Cast, Save, and Share, then Send to Your Device and pick the device. On your phone, touch and hold the address bar and choose Send to your device. The one requirement is the boring one: you must be signed in to Chrome with the same Google account on both devices.
2. Vertical tabs: your tabs move to the side
Vertical tabs stack your tabs down the side of the window instead of across the top. That gives every tab title far more room, and tab groups become much easier to manage when you have twenty-plus tabs open — which, let's be honest, is most of us. Google began rolling vertical tabs out on desktop in April 2026.
How to turn them on: right-click the tab strip and select "Show tabs vertically". You can switch back the same way. Note that vertical tabs on Android tablets are a different story: code for a "Tab position" setting has been spotted in Chrome 156, but Google has not launched it there yet, so treat tablet vertical tabs as coming soon, not here.
3. Gemini in Chrome: it can now understand media, and quiz you
Gemini in Chrome already answered questions about the page you were reading. It now goes further: media understanding means you can ask questions about audio or video you have played in a tab — a podcast, a recorded lecture, a video that isn't on YouTube — and Gemini can pull out key takeaways, find a specific moment, or explain a confusing part. Separately, Gemini can now turn the content of an open tab into an interactive quiz, aimed at students revising notes, papers, or videos.
Two honest caveats. The quizzes rolled out first in English on desktop in the US and India, with other regions and mobile promised in the coming months — so if you don't see it yet, that is why. And if you don't want any of this, you can disable media understanding under Settings, then AI in Chrome, then Gemini in Chrome. Availability of Gemini in Chrome itself still depends on your account, country, and device.
4. PDF annotations: the feature that needs a warning label
Open a PDF in Chrome and you will now find an Annotations option: pick a pen or highlighter style and colour, highlight text, draw on the document, add text, fill out a form, and sign it — then save. For signing a form or marking up a document, that is genuinely convenient. No printing, no separate app.
But here is the part the What's New page doesn't spell out: this is annotation, not editing. Everything you add sits on top of the PDF as a layer. What you cannot do in Chrome's PDF viewer:
- Change the PDF's original text — fix a typo in a contract, rewrite a sentence, correct a date
- Move, resize, or delete the objects already on the page — a logo, an image, a stray line
- Reorder, delete, or insert pages, or restructure the document
In other words, Chrome lets you write on the PDF. It does not let you change the PDF. The moment your job is "fix this document" rather than "sign this document", the browser tool stops and a real editor starts. Chrome's own Save to Drive option for PDFs has limits too — it does not work in Incognito mode or a Guest profile.
Need to actually edit a PDF?
Use our free PDF Editor — it edits the document itself: change text, move and delete elements, build forms, merge and tidy pages. For surgical fixes to a single page, Edit PDF does the same job page by page. Both run in your browser, no install, no sign-up.
Bonus: split view is still there
Not on the newest What's New page, but worth remembering: split view, announced in February 2026, shows two websites side by side inside one Chrome window. Right-click a tab and choose "Add tab to new split view", or drag a tab to the left, right, or bottom edge of the window. One pane is active at a time — marked by a thicker border — and the address bar, back/forward, and Translate apply only to that pane.
The honest verdict
Three of Chrome's four new headline features do exactly what they promise: send-to-device now preserves your place, vertical tabs genuinely help tab hoarders, and Gemini's media understanding is useful if you are eligible for it. The PDF feature is the one to be careful with — it is a fine annotator and viewer, and a poor editor. Use it for signing and marking up. The moment you need to change the document itself, switch to a real PDF editor.
Frequently asked questions
Can I edit a PDF in Chrome?
No — not in the real sense. Chrome's PDF viewer lets you annotate: highlight, draw, add text boxes, fill forms, and sign. It does not let you change the original text, move or delete existing objects, or manage pages. For real editing, use a dedicated PDF editor.
How do I send a tab from my phone to my computer in Chrome?
Touch and hold the address bar on your phone and select "Send to your device", then choose your computer. Make sure you are signed in to Chrome with the same Google account on both devices. Your scroll position and partially filled forms now carry over.
How do I turn on vertical tabs in Chrome?
On desktop, right-click the tab strip and select "Show tabs vertically". Right-click again to switch back to horizontal tabs.
What is Gemini media understanding in Chrome?
It lets Gemini in Chrome answer questions about audio or video you have played in a tab — such as a podcast or recorded lecture — including summaries, key takeaways, and finding specific moments. You can disable it under Settings, then AI in Chrome.
Can Chrome's PDF tool save to Google Drive?
Yes, Chrome offers a Save to Drive option for PDFs, but it does not work in Incognito mode or in a Guest profile.
Sources: Google's Chrome announcements (September 2026 study features; February 2026 split view and PDF annotation launch), Chrome's What's New page (Chrome 155), and coverage by 9to5Google, TechCrunch, and MajorGeeks on vertical tabs, send-to-device state saving, and Gemini media understanding.
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