Chrome gets its first new logo in 8 years – spot the differences

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Google Chrome has a new logo, which was recently rolled out with the latest developer builds of the browser. Here, the dramatically changed icon that will soon grace your devices:

Oops. I must have uploaded the wrong image. Let me try again. To improve!

Hmm. * Type on the keyboard. * Ok, this is new-chrome-logo-2022.png.

For reference, this is old-chrome-logo-2014.png:

So yeah, it’s the first new Chrome logo in eight years, but not much has changed.

Not to say it’s a bad thing, really. The Chrome logo is quite iconic and everyone knows what it is. Google probably doesn’t want people to panic when they suddenly can’t find their browser due to a brand new logo. Instead, the new logo will likely give some people that weird “hmm, something is different” feeling, like when Spotify changed its shade of green and people rebelled, presumably including Neil Young.

Now is your last chance: can you spot the differences?

…

Ok, time’s up. Here’s what’s officially changed, according to Google designer Elvin Hu.

The icon has been simplified / flattened by removing the shadows. Colors are brighter, making your fantastic screen stand out. The proportions are different, making the large blue ball in the center noticeably larger. There is a slight tinge to the colors because “placing a few shades of green and red next to each other created an unpleasant color vibration”.

Design is about the details, after all. But wait, there’s more!

Google is actually making the logo slightly different for the various platforms in order to better blend with their individual aesthetic. For Hu, on Windows 11, the logo has a more gradual appearance to match the aesthetics of the operating system.

But on Chrome OS, the colors are more solid, because that’s how Google’s design is based these days.

Meanwhile, the Mac version exits the left field with a slightly 3D icon that somehow matches Apple’s native icons.

Overall, it’s a change that most people won’t notice, and that’s probably okay. That said, part of me wishes Google went crazy and created a completely new logo (Google apparently considered bigger changes but decided not to make them). I mean, if the Chrome logo actually was, you know Chrome? This is a brilliant and brilliant idea.

Some of you may have noticed a new icon in Chrome’s Canary update today. Yup! we are updating the Chrome branding icons for the first time in 8 years. The new icons will start appearing on your devices soon. pic.twitter.com/aaaRRzFLI1

– Elvin 🌈 (@ elvin_not_11) February 4, 2022

The new logo will be launched on various platforms “soon”. If you want to know more about what’s new, I recommend reading Hu’s Twitter thread detailing the changes here.

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