Chrome's Native-Like Packaged Apps Come Out Of Dev Preview And Head To The Desktop, Now Called “Chrome Apps”

Google officially launched its Chrome Apps today, a “new” breed of native/web app hybrid for Chrome OS and Windows that isn’t actually all that new. Google’s Chrome offered so-called packaged apps for quite a while now and today’s “launch” is, for the most part, about bringing these packaged apps out of the developer niche and to consumers. Chrome Apps are essentially installable web apps that get additional privileges to access some native hardware features. They allow developers to run their web apps outside of the browser and without the usual Chrome user interface. They also make it easier for developers to make their apps available offline and to access local storage, as well as connected devices and cameras over USB and Bluetooth. Just like Chrome itself, these apps update themselves and just like Chrome extensions, they are automatically synced between your machines.