One question that many people are asking is “What are Google Chrome extensions?”. This site is dedicated to finding, reviewing and sharing the best extensions for Google Chrome, so we better describe exactly what they are and what they do.

Chrome is a very fast browser, and has been ever since it was released. This is thanks, in part, to the lack of 3rd-party developed software which both Firefox and Internet Explorer use as ‘addons’ to their software. These addons can add functionality to the user, but they can also mean a performance hit. Chrome is the newest browser, and so its development is obviously not as advanced as its rivals. It also means that the Chrome developers can learn from their competitors’ mistakes.

Firefox introduced addons early in its lifetime, and has been battling with performance and usability issues ever since. When Chrome was released it showed how fast a browser should be, and we hope that with the release of plugins for Chrome, the core product will remain unchanged.

Currently at time of writing, in order to use extensions you need to upgrade your version of the software to the developer version. You can find detailed instructions on how to do this here → Upgrade Chrome for Extensions.

The first couple of extensions that Google themselves introduced had quite basic functionality, but you will notice that they are already increasing the power and usability of the software – check out Bubble Translator – a unique addon that can use the Google Translate website to change different text on the fly into your own language. This is just the tip of the iceberg!

There are a number of plugins and addons available for Chrome already, and the number is only going to rise. Soon all of your favourites that you use on Firefox (including Greasemonkey scripts) will be available for Chrome, and you can check out their information and download them right here!