>Now for the simplified version:
Chromium:
– the open-source project on which Google Chrome is based;
– bleeding-edge features;
– several binary builds for Windows, Linux and Mac made available each day, sometimes 20 or more;
– not considered stable, don’t blame the developers if it crashes your computer or eats your cat;
Google Chrome dev:
– based on very recent Chromium builds;
– new versions every week or so;
– relatively stable, more like what other companies would consider ‘beta,’ but not stable enough for production use;
– the latest and greatest features and updates;
Google Chrome beta:
– based on stable developers channel releases;
– new versions every month or so;
– new features and bigger changes, known to work in the majority of cases;
– stable enough for everyday use, crashes are few and far between;
Google Chrome stable:
– based on tried-and-trusted beta versions;
– all known bugs ironed out, all new features tested for months before release;
– new versions every few months;
– as stable as Google Chrome gets, usable in any environment;
Google Chrome vs Chromium
Another common question concerns the actual differences between Chromium and Google Chrome. In practical terms, they are minor. The short version, Google Chrome is Chromium with a different logo and a slightly different spelling. This is what Google Chrome adds to Chromium builds:
– the Chrome logo and other branding changes;
– an auto-updater which downloads and installs the latest Chrome version from the respective channel;
– an option, enabled by default, to send anonymous usage statistics to Google;
– code to send stats like installs and country info back to Google, no option to disable it;
Understanding Google Chrome version numbers
Google Chrome’s version numbers can be a bit confusing as well. They look something like 5.0.375.9. The number can be split into three areas.
5.0 – is the major version number. It changes occasionally and, though a move from the last 4.1.x.x to the first 5.0.x.x doesn’t necessarily mean a huge list of new features, the differences are bigger between the first 4.0.x.x builds.
.379 – is the code for the current version. A change means new features or improved functionality.
.9 – this number is reserved for small updates fixing security vulnerabilities and stability issues. No new features are added when this number is updated.
Chromium gets another number added, something like 44736, which is the build code of the release.