Google Chrome 9.0 has been released as a stable build, bringing across three major new features from the beta channel. The standout feature is Google Instant, which attempts to speed up browsing by loading web pages and search results the moment you start typing into the Address Bar – the choices made are based on your previous history. It’s disabled by default – switch it on from the Basics tab of the Options dialogue box.

WebGL adds native support for hardware-accelerated 3D graphics without an additional plug-in – the WebGL group comprises Chrome, Safari, Mozilla and Opera, and a number of examples of 3D animations are provided at the WebGL Experiments website.

Finally, the Google Web Store is open for business – assuming you’re in the US. This works in a similar way to the iTunes App Store, allowing you to browse for free and paid-for add-ons for Chrome, including apps, extensions and browser themes. Apps are effectively programs based on websites, which run from within Chrome.

Chrome 9.0.597.84 Stable also contains a number of bug fixes and security patches, and is available now for Windows, Mac and Linux users.