What you need to know
- Chrome OS 98 has hit the stable channel.
- The update is slowly rolling out to "most Chrome OS devices."
- It brings Emoji 14.0 support, improved language settings, new virtual desk shortcuts, and more.
Google's stable Chrome OS 98 update has started making its way to most Chrome OS devices. As per the latest release update from the Chrome team, the stable channel is being updated to 98.0.4758.91.
While Google is yet to detail the changes included with the update, the folks over at Android Police have highlighted a few of the key additions and improvements based on source code changes. Google has updated the Emoji picker on Chrome OS 98 to emoji 14.0, which brings mixed skin tone support for the Handshake emoji and a bunch of new emojis.
Besides new emojis, the Chrome OS 98 stable update also brings revamped language settings, network based recovery, additional virtual desk shortcuts, a new dark mode flag for the virtual keyboard, enhanced scrolling in ARC apps when you're using a mouse, and a new "save to" menu to help users choose a folder or drive for screen captures more quickly. The network based recovery feature, which was first spotted last year, makes it possible for users to restore their Chromebook's firmware over a network connection.
As with any major update, there are also several bug fixes and optional flags for features that are still in development. These include noise suppression, a feature that was originally planned to be rolled out to users as part of the Chrome OS 98 update.
It is now expected to land sometime later this year. The feature can be handy when you're on a Meet or Zoom call, as it can lower the ambient noise recorded by your Chromebook's microphone.
Disappointingly, however, it appears Chrome OS 98 still uses the old Chrome logo and not the new one that was introduced last week. The redesigned logo will likely hit the best Chromebooks with the Chrome OS 100 update in late March.
