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Google is testing out a new Material Design look for notifications on Chrome OS

The Chrome OS Canary channel is full of things that Google is testing out for the future of Chrome OS, and right now there are quite a few adjustments to the UI based on Google’s Material Design. The latest, just recently discovered, is a UI revision for notifications.

First spotted by Chrome Story, the Canary channel of Chrome OS has recently added a new flag which changes the way notifications look. Before enabling the flag, notifications have the same look they’ve had since Chrome OS debuted, and the same one seen with Chrome on Windows.

With the redesign, notifications get a more streamlined look with rounded corners and cleaner icons, as well as condensing actions into that notification. In a way, things look a bit unfinished, but this is a change in its very early days. It’s entirely possible that things could change by the time this hits other Chrome OS channels, but the overall Material-inspired look will probably remain.

To test this out on your machine, you’ll need to be on the Canary channel (not recommended) and enable the flag #enable-message-center-new-style-notification.

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