Last week Google released the much-anticipated iOS version of their popular Chrome browser. Though the Chrome for iOS is, by all accounts (including mine), a fantastic app, it suffers from the same problem that plagues every other third party browser in the App Store: it can’t be set as the default browser. Of course, that’s Apple’s fault, not Google’s, but it’s still frustrating. Though jailbreakers have options in the form of tweaks like BrowserChooser and Browser Changer, those who aren’t willing to jailbreak are stuck.
Fortunately there appears to be another alternative. A simple javascript bookmark in Safari will allow you to open any page in Chrome. Though it doesn’t make Chrome your default browser, it does make it much easier to jump from Safari into Chrome when you open a link from an app, an SMS message, or an email.
Installing the bookmark is ridiculously simple. All you have to do is bookmark a page – any page, it doesn’t matter which – then do a little editing of the bookmark’s properties. The first thing you want to change is the name. “Open in Chrome” seems the simplest choice, but if you want to name it something else you’re welcome to. Once you’ve edited the title, you just need to edit the address. Simply replace the address you bookmarked with the following javascript code: javascript:location.href=”googlechrome”+location.href.substring(4);
It’s as simple as that. Now if you want to open a page in Chrome instead of Safari, all you have to do is pull up your bookmarks and tap “Open in Chrome” (or whatever you decided to call it) and you’re good do go.
