We all have heard of Chrome web browser. Most of us would be using it right now. But Chromium? Doesn’t ring a bell, does it? Well, let me describe it in brief. Chromium is an open source project that forms the basis of the Chrome web browser. When Google launched the Chrome web browser, it also released an open-source code on which Google Chrome was based. That open source code was Chromium source code. Nowadays, Chrome is maintained by Google while the open source code is maintained by Chromium Project.
The difference between the two web browsers is Google adds some features like automatic updates and support for Chrome since it is owned and maintained by Google. In simple words, Google takes Chromium and adds proprietary features along with closed source code and Chrome is made!
Now, let us discuss which features make Chrome different from Chromium.
Features Chrome has but Chromium Doesn’t
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Google Update
Windows and Mac users have a background application that automatically keeps Chrome updating. Thus, your browser is always up to date. In the case of Chromium, users have to update it manually from here.
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AAC, H.264 and MP3 Support
With Chrome, you can get wider access to a variety of media content with AAC, H.264, and MP3 support. Chromium only includes basic free codecs like Opus, Theora, Vorbis, VP8, VP9, and WAV.
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Crash Reporting
With Chrome, you can send the crash report to Google so that they can check out what went wrong and can help you with it in the future. This is not the case with Chromium.
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Extensions
Extensions that are not present in the Chrome Web Store are disabled by Google Chrome. Such is not the case in Chromium.
Downloading Google Chrome and Chromium Web Browser
Getting Google Chrome on your computer is quite an easy task. Just head to the official Chrome Page and download it from there. Install it and you will do just fine.
Coming to Chromium, getting it on Linux is easy, but on Windows and Mac, it is a complex job. To install Chromium on Linux, just head to the Linux distribution’s software repositories and download it from there. It will get updated with securities updates from these software repositories.
On Windows and Mac, using Chromium is tough. Although, it won’t get updated automatically. To get the latest versions of Chromium as and when it gets updated, you have two options. You can get updates from either third-party distributors or you can compile chromium from the source code yourself. But the question you need to ask yourself is are you willing to do that every time you get an update? Maybe not!
Conclusion: Which One Should You Use?
Chromium is basically for Linux users who are more into using open-source software. Since Chromium allows Linux repositories to package it as open-source software that looks and works like Chrome, it is a good choice.
However, if you are a Linux user and not so crazy about open source, then you should go for Chrome because it works and feels great. Also, it unlocks a large volume of media content for you and gives you a better version of Flash Player for your needs.
Coming to Windows and Mac, Chrome is the answer because Chromium isn’t stable and you won’t get any updates. The real choice has to be made by Linux users about open source (Chromium) or great experience (Chrome).
