An upcoming browser update, Chrome 58, looks likely to include support for the MacBook Pro Touch Bar, as a recent Canary release has that functionality included. This represents the first time that Chrome has shown any support for the Touch Bar, but shows that Google now sees it as a worthwhile feature to develop.
When Apple debuted the MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, many people weren’t convinced it was a worthwhile feature. There is still some debate on the topic, but bedroom hackers and corporations alike have found a multitude of different uses for it and now Google’s Chrome looks set to join that list of supporting applications.
In the Canary build of the browser update, the Touch Bar gains support for a number of features. There’s the ability to refresh a page, go forward and back, search, open a new tab and access the the usual Touch Bar media controls.
You can also add a website to your list of favorites, though these base functions are all you can expect in this build. As 9to5Mac reports, the controls and options don’t contextually change when you watch a video or open up a new tab.
Still, now that we’ve seen these Touch Bar functions appear in the Chrome Canary build we expect them to show up in the stable Chrome 58 update too. It will likely pass through a couple of additional testing channels first, but MacBook Pro Touch Bar support is almost certainly coming to Chrome, which will be a nice addition for those running the browser on their new laptops.
For anyone not willing to wait though, you can dive into the testing pool and grab yourself the Canary build of the Chrome 58. It’s available via the Chromium repository, where you’ll find all stages of the latest Chrome builds.
For those of you with MacBook Pros with Touch Bars, what are some of the interesting uses you’ve found for the touch interface?
