Google just released their version of a internet browser called Google Chrome, so I installed it this afternoon. In fact, I’m writing this post inside Chrome. So far it imported my bookmarks and other info from Firefox without a hitch and it seems to be rendering webpages fairly quickly. The toolbars at the top are a little smaller, and overall my screen feels a little bit larger, in Chrome then Firefox. Another cool feature is the “application shortcut” which makes desktop-style shortcuts that will load a site in a new window minus all the internet toolbars on top (much like a standard application). Though possible in Firefox or IE this is a much easier implementation and would be useful for Google calendar, docs, and other web applications.

However, I dearly miss the flashblock and ad-blocking capabilities, and the built-in spell checking, of Firefox. Trying to view sites with advertisements (like MSNBC or Intellicast) is down right painful and is a dealbreaker for daily use. I’m sure such tools will be available as Chrome matures, and it will definitley be interesting to see how it develops in relation to the other browsers.