If you happen to have downloaded the latest Google Chrome dev release from the other night then you probably noticed the biggest change in version 11.0.696.12: a new logo. The Chrome and Chromium logos both got a face lift into something less GLaDOS and more Web 2.0 in the release, causing what may be perceived as a major brand disconnect. This isn’t the first time a company has changed its logo of one of its products to something more contemporary but when your product name evokes some sort of weight that must be symbolized by the logo, then a backlash might occur. Granted the backlash might not be a big uproar but it may be something that affects the perceptions of the consumer.
The issue with the Chrome name is that you think of something lustrous, flashy, and polished when you hear it. Whether or not the Chrome browser itself is lustrous, flashy, and polished is up for debate but the browser itself definitely seems to be more focused on the minimal, the simple and the fast. This new logo does justice to these latter three qualities without a doubt, but does it embody the former three that are characterized by the name instead of the product?
Source: Google Operating System
I know that I personally like the old logo better. But that is probably just because I am used to seeing it. I am sure I will learn to like this one. Though I have to say this seems to match what Microsoft did with the IE9 logo.
I don’t really mind it- matches chrome’s trend towards simplicity.