ChromeOS 125 is a significant update that brings several new features, improvements and security enhancements to Chromebooks and Chromeboxes.
Here are some of the key highlights:
- Accessibility features: ChromeOS 125 introduces several new accessibility features, including:
- Live captions: allows users to see captions in real-time for videos played in the Gallery player app, YouTube, Google Meet, Zoom and social media sites.
- Dictation: enables users to use voice-to-text functionality in Google Docs and other text inputs.
- Reduced animations: allows users to toggle off animations to reduce motion sickness or distractions.
- Audio Bluetooth telephony: ChromeOS 125 supports call control buttons on compatible Bluetooth headsets, making it easier to answer, reject or terminate calls.
- Extensions Safety Check: Chrome 125 expands the Extensions Safety Check feature to flag extensions that are not installed from the Chrome Web Store, violate store policies or are considered unwanted software.
- Gallery video playback speed control: allows users to control video playback speed in the Gallery player app.
- Always-on VPN SAML fix: resolves issues with SAML authentication and VPN in always-on strict mode.
- ChromeOS Passpoint settings: allows users to view and manage Wi-Fi Passpoint subscriptions.
- PrivateIP to DoH with identifiers: adds a new placeholder to DNS URI templates which can be replaced with device local IP addresses.
- Send download reports without explicit user decision: sends reports to Safe Browsing when users auto-discard or bypass download warnings.
- Captive portal sign-in window: opens a dedicated window for captive portal sign-in, making it easier to access network resources.
- New policies in Admin console: introduces several new policies for administrators to manage ChromeOS devices, including DevToolsGenAiSettings, ContextualGoogleIntegrationsEnabled, ContextualGoogleIntegrationsConfiguration, DeviceExtensionsSystemLogEnabled, and DeviceDlcPredownloadList.