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Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar

Oct 23, 2014 05:00 PM
Weather app displaying current temperature and conditions.

Google continues to be the most commonly-used search engine for a reason. While continuing to stay ahead of the pack with advanced semantic search functions, Google even introduced Knowledge Graph results that offer key information without ever having to click a search result.

A slimmed-down version of this Knowledge Graph functionality has made its way into the experimental settings menu of Chrome for Android. By enabling one simple option, address bar queries in Chrome will yield relevant answers without having to actually hit the "Go" key. Akin to search suggestions, these tidbits of info appear as you type, even answering some questions before you can ask them.

This feature does not work on iOS, nor any other experimental feature.

Enabling Knowledge Graph Search Results in Chrome

If you don't already have the Chrome browser installed on your Android device, head here to get it. You can also enable this feature with Chrome Beta.

Chrome Browser App on Google Play Store with options to uninstall or open.

Then, in Chrome's address bar, type chrome://flags to open the experimental settings menu.

Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar

From here, tap the three-dot menu button at the top of the screen and select "Find in page." The option we're looking for here is called Answers in Suggest, so type that into the text field.

Menu options on a mobile browser interface.
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Menu options on a mobile browser interface.
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar

The option will be highlighted in orange at this point. Tap the drop-menu beneath it, then select Enabled.

Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Settings menu with options for 'Default', 'Enabled', and 'Disabled'.
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Settings menu with options for 'Default', 'Enabled', and 'Disabled'.

At this point, a menu will appear at the bottom of the screen informing you that Chrome needs to be restarted before your changes take effect. Tap the "Relaunch Now" button on this message.

"Button to relaunch Google Chrome after applying changes"

Using the New Feature

These mini Knowledge Graphs will only show up for certain types of queries—things like weather, population, and age. Type your searches into Chrome's address bar like usual and you'll receive a quick answer where available.

Weather app displaying search results for San Diego with current temperature at 76°F.
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar
Weather app displaying search results for San Diego with current temperature at 76°F.
Get Instant Answers Right from Chrome's Search Bar

With mobile web browsing, every little bit of streamlining helps. This is just one little touch, but with Chrome for Android, continuing enhancements like this make browsing a more enjoyable experience.

What are some questions that this new feature has answered for you? Let us know in the comments section below, or drop us a line on Facebook or Twitter. And for more experimental Chrome features, check out our guide on speeding up the mobile browser from the flags menu.

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