Google Chrome 77 has released the Global Media Controls feature for the first time in the stable channel. Previously, the new feature was only available in the Canary branch of Chrome. Let’s see what it is and how you can enable it.
Google started rolling out the “Global Media Controls” feature as an experimental feature that displays a pop-up window similar to the one that appears when you press the media keys on your keyboard.
When enabled, the feature adds a new button to the browser toolbar. Clicking this button opens a drop-down menu that lists your current media sessions (e.g., a YouTube video in your browser tabs) along with play/pause buttons and more.
This allows you to quickly access and control each playback without having to go to the tab. The Global Media Controls feature can be enabled with a flag.
Google Chrome has a lot of useful options that are experimental. They are not supposed to be used by ordinary users, but fans of new features can enable them very easily.
These experimental features can significantly improve the Chrome browser user experience with additional functionality. To enable or disable an experimental feature, you can use hidden options called flags.
To enable Global Media Controls in Google Chrome, you need to update the browser to version 77.
Then open Chrome and type the following in the address bar: chrome://flags/#global-media-controls
Select Enable from the drop-down list next to the 'Global Media Controls' line and restart the browser when prompted.
That's it! Now, open a video on YouTube and a new play button will appear in the toolbar.
Click this button to see the list of media that is “playing” on your computer.
To disable the feature, open the flag page and change the option from Enabled to Default.
___________________
