If you are a heavy user of Hangouts and use Chrome or Chrome OS, there is a new extension and app for you to check out. Last week Google announced that a new, Android-like Chrome extension for Hangouts would be coming out with the aim to improve performance and the overall look and feel of the UI. Achievement unlocked as both the extension and the app look far better than the old style and both perform exceptionally well.
The new extension can be found in the Chrome Web Store which allows you to run Hangouts while you are using your Chrome browser regardless of platform. This is what the majority of users will want, especially Chrome OS users, as the browser tends to stay open all the time.
Secondly, there is also a much improved Hangouts app that is available for download in the Chrome Web Store. This is a standalone version of the extension so you can run it without having to
New Hangouts Chrome Extension UI
have Chrome open. This app sits in your taskbar and isn’t necessary but I have found it handy when I’m on my Windows PC and don’t have Chrome open all the time. With either, you get the new UI.
That new UI brings all your conversations into a single interface with your contacts on the left and your message trail on the right. No more multiple boxes popping up for every conversations. It is all nicely and neatly contained in one place. For me, this has made my desktop a much cleaner place as I usually have 2 or 3 Hangouts conversations going at any give time (It also serves as my SMS app as I’m on Project Fi).
If you have the Hangouts extension already installed in Chrome, it should automatically update to the new extension for you.
