Newsletter
Google continues to improve the ChromeOS user experience with the version 126 update. Now Chromebook owners will have more customization options, features, and accessibility settings. The previous update had arrived at the end of May.
AI-enhanced camera zoom, “Quick Start”, and accessibility improvements
After the update, you will now be able to zoom with any camera connected to or built into your Chromebook. That is, it is not necessary for your camera to have an optical zoom motor. Some advanced Chromebook models will even support AI-powered enhancements to make the zoomed image sharper. There’s also the “Quick Start” feature that allows you to quickly export your Google account and Wi-Fi keys from your phone to your Chromebook. This saves you the annoying process of manually entering credentials. Google announced “Quick Start” in 2022, so it’s been a long time coming.
ChromeOS 126 also improves accessibility with “Magnifier to follow Select to Speak.” The feature basically highlights the text on the screen as you read it aloud with “Select to Speak” enabled. This one will be useful for everyone, both people with low vision and anyone who wants to avoid distractions while reading. It requires you to enable both “Magnifier” and “Select to Speak” from the Settings page.
People with high levels of photosensitivity will be happy to know that they can now tweak the blink cursor rate, or even just disable it. You will find this option in Settings > Accessibility > Keyboard and text input > Text cursor blink rate.
Granular Family Link settings and multi-calendar support included in ChromeOS 126 too
Family Link now offers more granular options by separating permission management. Parents can now decide on app permissions and extension permissions that their children can use or install. Another ChromeOS 126 new option allows you to disable the swipe gesture to navigate between pages. This gesture can be annoying for some, so it’s good news that you can now get rid of it.
Lastly, ChromeOS 126 includes a functional improvement related to calendars. Now, users will be able to check all events from their multiple calendars if they wish. This means that you will no longer be limited to your main calendar. Of course, you can choose which calendars will be displayed in the app.
The blog post warns that the rollout is being carried out in stages. If you have not yet received the availability notification on your Chromebook, you just have to wait a few days.