Chrome introduces new ‘Performance’ tools to wrangle the tabs gobbling up your memory

Google is introducing some new Chrome storage management features to help you manage runaway tabs more easily. The updates include new “performance issue notifications” and some tweaks to the existing memory saver mode, which already tries to free up the resources of inactive tabs in the background.

The new warnings appear when a new performance detection tool detects that one of your tabs is using more resources than it should. The notification appears next to your account thumbnail in the Chrome toolbar as a small graphic that looks like a speedometer. (If I didn't already know, I might think I accidentally added an Ookla Speedtest extension to my browser.) If you click on the graphic, the bad tabs will be listed and you will be given the option to “discard” them or “Discard”. “Fix it now.”

This is what it looks like:

Google also updated Memory Saver, a feature the company introduced to Chrome in 2022 that puts tabs to sleep if they're consuming your computer's resources. The company writes that it now offers Standard, Balanced and Advanced modes. According to Google, Standard interprets your system's needs and manages tabs for you, Balanced is based on system requirements and your browsing habits, and Advanced is the quickest way to disable tabs when you stop using them.

To check the new settings, simply click the three-dot menu in the top right corner of Chrome, click Settings, and then click the Performance tab on the left. Under “General” you should see a new “Performance Notifications” toggle and below that under “Storage” updated storage saver options. Here are our screenshots if you want to see what the performance issue warning toggle looks like.

We may not have the new memory saver mode yet as the names of our modes are Moderate, Balanced and Maximum.
Screenshot: Chrome settings

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