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If you’ve been keeping a close eye on the version number for your Googlebook’s Chrome browser this week, you might have noticed a welcome jump today. After lagging a bit behind desktop and Android, Chrome 157 is finally rolling out to Googlebook devices just five days before 158 is scheduled to be released.
With that timeline established, getting caught up to the 157 baseline feels a lot like Google tying up loose ends before the next big update. Unlike the Chrome 156 Googlebook update, Google hasn’t posted a dedicated browser changelog in the Googlebook Help Community this time around, so there isn’t a neat bulleted list of flashy new desktop tricks to point to.
What’s actually inside the Chrome 157 update
Even without an official forum breakdown, we know this release is much more about under-the-hood stability and security than a visual overhaul. Upstream, Chrome 157 is a massive security release packed with over 200 vulnerability patches, making it an essential update just to keep things locked down.
On the Googlebook-specific side of things, this milestone also lines up with a confirmed fix for a nagging bug that broke the “Install page as app” flow, where certain web apps weren’t installing or launching properly. It also brings the standalone browser in line with the recent November Googlebook OS update, which already bumped the underlying System WebView to the 157 baseline to squash memory leaks and random PWA crashes.
Looking ahead to Chrome 158 next week
Because Googlebook’s browser is decoupled from full OS updates, Google pushing 157 out right before 158 drops is not a huge issue and clearly, the update pipeline is moving along. Still, if you were hoping this bump would suddenly introduce missing ChromeOS browser staples, you’ll have to stay patient a little longer.
With Chrome 158 right around the corner, it won’t be long before we see whether Google has more user-facing browser features lined up for Googlebooks with the next update. With the 2-week update process, I’m hopeful that user-facing updates will keep flooding in with each milestone. For now, head to the Play Store on your Googlebook, check for an update to Chrome, and get yourself on 157 before next week’s rollout begins.
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