It’s a tired cliché that iOS apps are better and receive new features before their Android versions, but one would expect that at least Google would do its best to disprove the cliché. Unfortunately, even the Google app has had a rather convenient feature available only on iOS for years. Now, Google is about to fix that baffling disparity.
The Google app on Android will get easy access to incognito searches
The Google app on iOS allows users to switch a search to incognito mode right from the search bar inside the app, but that option is missing from the Android version of the app. That is going to change very soon, as Android Authority spotted the feature inside a beta version of the Google app for Android.
Just like on iOS, when you type a new search, a toggle appears above the keyboard. On Android, the toggle says “History Off Search” instead of “Incognito Mode,” which is used on iOS. Once you turn on the toggle, the results won’t open inside the Google app but in a Chrome Custom Tab, which is already in incognito mode.
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Once you’re in the new mode, you can continue browsing and clicking on links, which will all be opened in incognito mode. If you decide to open a link on Chrome, it’ll also launch the browser in incognito mode.
Not the only feature that’s missing on Android
Another feature that iOS users can utilize to use the Google app in incognito mode is a little less obvious. On an iPhone, you can tap and hold on your avatar to go incognito, but that option doesn’t exist on Android phones.
The new incognito toggle isn’t live on the Google app for Android, but it’ll likely become available in an upcoming update.
Google should do better
I can’t imagine Apple releasing an Android app with key features that aren’t already available on iOS. A switch for Incognito mode is not a groundbreaking feature, but it’s still bizarre that Google would launch it first for a competing OS. If I were an Android user, I would’ve felt mildly infuriated about such a discrepancy, even if it’s not the first time Google has done something like that.
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Ilia, a tech journalist at PhoneArena, has been covering the mobile industry since 2011, with experience at outlets like Forbes Bulgaria. Passionate about smartphones, tablets, and consumer tech, he blends deep industry knowledge with a personal fascination that began with his first Nokia and Sony Ericsson devices. Originally from Bulgaria and now based in Lima, Peru, Ilia balances his tech obsessions with walking his dog, training at the gym, and slowly mastering Spanish.
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