Chrome hits 2 million US installs

Author: Gareth Halfacree
Published: 18th September 2008
Comments (9) Stumble
Google's Chrome browser has got people interested: over 2 million installs in the US, and all in the first week.

Google's Chrome browser has got people interested: over 2 million installs in the US, and all in the first week.

Whether you love or hate Google's Chrome browser, you're not alone if you decided to try it – according to a study on US internet users, almost two million people downloaded the beta in the first week of availability.

The figures from a study by Nielsen Online, quoted yesterday by CNet, show 1.93 million visitors from the US hitting the post-install 'Thank You' page on Google between the 1st of September and the 7th of September. To put that figure into perspective, that means that around 1.4 percent of all Internet users in the US have downloaded and installed Chrome – a phenomenal result for a barely-advertised beta product.

Jon Stewart, research director for technology and search at Nielsen Online, believes that this figure is largely due to the healthy amount of discussion on blogs and forums around the web: “[Chrome] was mentioned in nearly one percent of all online discussions the day after its launch – a respectable slightly-more-than-half of what the highly anticipated iPhone 3G generated when it launched earlier this summer.”

That alone should give an indication of the massive following Google has: despite launching the browser with precisely zero fanfare and a non-existing marketing budget, it generated around half as much buzz as the much-hyped iPhone and its multi-million dollar advertising campaigns. If I were Apple, I'd be taking notes right about now.

The figures for the number of downloads tell only part of the story, of course: just because a curious individual tries the software out doesn't mean that they continue to use it as their main browser. Many individuals have installed Chrome for testing purposes, or to make use of its incognito mode for those 'special' moments. Only time will tell if Google has done enough with its maiden entry into the browser market to win over the minds of millions of Firefox, Opera, Safari, and Internet Explorer fans.

Did you bother to install Chrome? If so, are you still using it – or did the novelty quickly wear off? Share your experiences over in the forums.
Quote Woodstock 18th September 2008, 10:02
tried, it loved it just waiting for a linux native version and someone to port vimperator
Quote iwog 18th September 2008, 10:07
am currrently using it at work as its a lot more frugal with the resources then FF and I just cant stand IE, even if it is version 7.
Quote badders 18th September 2008, 10:31
Still using it.
It's not perfect, but the homepage is epic.
As is being able to drag tabs off to a new window.
Quote Bluephoenix 18th September 2008, 13:33
won't touch it with a 110ft pole yet.
Quote Stuey 18th September 2008, 14:31
I like it. I'm also running an IE8 beta, but they haven't fixed the memory hole problem.

There is absolutely no reason for a browser left open with only two tabs should consume 100+MB of RAM.
Quote Mongoose132 18th September 2008, 15:38
You can drag tabs off to a new window in Opera, and the homepage is a rip of Operas speed launch, but it's fast to launch and load pages, so if I don't need many (read: any) features i'll use that
Quote Firehed 18th September 2008, 17:05
Quote:
If I were Apple, I'd be taking notes right about now.
You're kidding, right? They spent plenty on TV, but 99% of the online discussion was fanboy reacharounds and trolls being trolls. The thing has been getting nonstop discussions online since six months before the first one was even announced.
Quote staples 22nd September 2008, 01:19
I like it, few issues with the home button, plus I have not worked out a way, there might not be one, to remove website from your most visited.

It is nice though, and looks good in Vista I feel.
Quote jhanlon303 22nd September 2008, 03:45
Quote:
Originally Posted by staples
I like it, few issues with the home button, plus I have not worked out a way, there might not be one, to remove website from your most visited.

It is nice though, and looks good in Vista I feel.

I have the same concern about most visited. I need to get rid of places from before I retired. Working on Vista also.

John
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