After launching a major visual redesign with Chrome 69, Google officially pushed out Chrome 71 earlier in December, but not everyone is happy with the new version. The latest update to the popular web browser is disabling the ability to go back to an older user interface that predates Google’s new Material Design language, and many consumers are furious.
Frustration with Google’s decision has been well noted on social media in the past month, where consumers pointed out they can no longer visit the chrome://flags page and tweak the browser to use Chrome’s older interface. Even though the new Material Design language-inspired UI introduces a cleaner look, and more rounded corners in tabs, some have still found that it makes tabs harder to decipher, preferring the older version instead.
“The previous design made you feel like a Jedi master of the [sloped tabs.] The “Material Refresh” makes you feel like a bumbling bureaucrat who’s just now having to use the internet for work and the thing has to look familiar to his Consumption Terminal on his tablet “computer,” explains one Redditor.
Since the ability to tweak the flags has been removed with Chrome 71, some consumers have taken the extreme step of downgrading back to Chrome 70 to enjoy the older design. That raised serious concerns for Google Chrome’s support team, which issued warnings on the potential security vulnerabilities of doing so.
“As a Chrome dev, we would really rather you use another browser than try to lock yourself on an old version of Chrome. There are serious consequences to this, and much like choosing not to be vaccinated, the choice affects other people besides just you,” posted Google Engineer Peter Casting on Reddit.
In a separate posting, Casting also suggests to frustrated consumers that it might be best to stay with Chrome and not switch to another browser altogether just because of the new UI. He says that nearly all users who Google has talked with have done this, and don’t mind the new UI after a couple of weeks. With features like the ability to block all ads on abusive websites, and to stop websites from hijacking your back button, that might be a good choice for a safer web.
