[General Questions and Answers] Leonccyiu:
Hello

I wanted to write about an issue that I have with Chrome for Android which isn't an issue on Desktop as there are extensions and they can function in incognito mode, and Safari for iOS behaves exactly how I want, but iPhones are so expensive now, and the hardware is unsatisfactory compared to Android, not to mention the hassles with switching i.e Whatsapp.

I prefer to do my general browsing in Incognito mode for multiple reasons, for example I don't get adverts for sites I browse in other apps, links which can be opened in other apps such as Youtube, Reddit, Wikipedia etc, you're always given the choice to open in browser instead by pressing stay in incognito mode, the cache doesn't get as big, it runs smoother and faster etc, and I don't have to keep clearing browsing history.

The main problem is that whenever Chrome unexpectedly quits, I will have lost all my tabs, and there are many instances which can cause Chrome to unexpectedly quit such as the phone crashing and restarting, accidentally swiping away the app, running out of battery (rarely happens to me), or even just being unable to start.

With Desktop Chromium browsers, you can install an extension such as session buddy which will record all your open tabs so in the unlikely event of a power cut, your tabs are all saved, and can all be restored in Incognito windows. Unfortunately Chrome for Android doesn't allow extensions, and if I need to update my browser, there isn't even an option to bookmark all tabs or open all bookmarks in a folder, and I don't think you can even choose where to save your bookmarks.

By comparison, with Safari for iOS on my iPad, and this works for iPhones too, I have never lost any private tabs or regular tabs, even after system updates, accidentally closing the browser etc, they have always been there. Safari maintains all your tabs until you choose to close them, and you can close all private tabs by holding the tab button, and pressing close all tabs. For a mobile browser, I think this is the right thing to do as Mobile platforms are less stable than desktop although iOS is stable unlike Android, but your tabs including Incognito should remain open even after closing the browser until you choose to close them.

I have contacted the Google help forums in which the Google expert insisted this couldn't be done as Incognito session data is only stored in Ram, but I doubt this as when you have too many tabs open, you can see your incognito tabs being restored from somewhere, and I don't think lossless compression in ram alone could do that. Maybe Apple can do it because of their integration between hardware and software.

Another great thing about Safari on iOS is if you're in private mode and an external app opens a link, it'll open a private tab, whereas in Chrome, a regular tab is always opened, and sometimes this causes Chrome to lose all other tabs which is massively frustrating.

I'd rather not buy an iPhone as not only are that massively overpriced, but their hardware is behind Android manufacturers in design e.g the iPhone X only has a 1080p screen, and there are problems with transferring Whatsapp messages, there's also the headphone Jack and Micro SD card slot. I am starting to feel like I might need to buy my first iPhone.

Before I do so, I hope that there can be a last ditch attempt to create a Session Buddy equivalent for Chrome for Android where your open tabs are consistently recorded and which can save sessions, and restore sessions in Chrome. Even if Chrome had an option to Bookmark all tabs, that would help a lot as that app could record all the mobile bookmarks and move them somewhere else, but it wouldn't be able to open them in Chrome, at least not in Incognito mode.

I feel massively screwed over by both Apple and Google, it's wrong that their monopolies and have that much control over our lives. I understand the desire to make Chrome as simple as possible and there have been stability and performance improvements in the latest versions, but it's lacking essential functionality compared to the desktop version.