Google Chrome is adding price tracking to your PC. The new feature, which is currently in beta, will allow you to see the price of items as you browse the web. You can also add items to a shopping list and track your progress as you shop. Chrome’s price tracking feature is similar to Amazon’s “Add to Cart” function. Amazon has been using this feature for years to help customers track the prices of items they are interested in buying. Chrome’s price tracking will be especially helpful for shoppers who are on a budget. Chrome’s price tracking feature is currently in beta and is available on Windows and Mac computers. Google plans to release the feature officially later this year. ..
Google Chrome primarily focuses on a solid web browsing experience, but occasionally, Google adds a feature not strictly related to browsing. The ability to track prices for an item is now rolling out, following months of testing.
Google confirmed in a blog post today that the ability to track a product prices is now rolling out on Chrome for desktop, after it appeared in the Android browser last year. You’ll see a “Track price” button in the address bar on some store listings, and if you click it, you’ll receive notifications when the price drops.
Google says you’ll receive an email or mobile notification when a price drop is detected, and you can manage your tracked prices from the Chrome sidebar. The browser will also display coupon codes for items in your shopping carts in the New Tab Page, if any are available. Google didn’t mention exactly which sites are compatible, but the functionality sounds similar to Honey (now owned by PayPal) or Camelcamelcamel.
Enhanced shopping experiences has been a focus point for some other web browsers, most notably Microsoft Edge, but Google hasn’t been too interested in the idea until recently. You could certainly make the argument that price tracking and coupon detection counts as feature creep or bloat. Chrome still isn’t quite as bad as Opera or Microsoft Edge in that regard — Chrome isn’t trying to make you sign up for loans yet — but it’s getting closer.
The bright side is that the price tracking prompt stays out of the way, without a popup that interrupts your work or shopping, so it’s easy to ignore if you don’t want it.
Source: Google
