Google launched the stable version of Chrome 88 last week, and that means the beta is up for a new release. And indeed, Google has just promoted Chrome 89 to the beta channel. You can download it from the Play Store or over on APK Mirror right now.

According to the Chromium project, the release adds a few new features that you might not notice at first as a user, but you could appreciate them in the long run. A new Web NFC API allows web apps to read and write to NFC tags, making the gap between native apps and websites even smaller. Then there's the WebHID API (human interface device) that should help with gamepad support, which might pan out to be great news if you have an older controller and would like to play games on Stadia and Co. We're also getting WebShare support on some desktop operating systems, a Web Serial API,  support for native AVIF image decoding, new Web Authentication API features, and much more.

If Google sticks to its schedule, Chrome 89 should reach stable in about a month at the beginning of March. In the meantime, keep your eyes out for our detailed feature rundown of the new beta release.

Source: Chromium