It’s annoying. You go to browse the web or use the Google app on your Android, and you see a host of suggested sites, places you may not particularly want to go. A lot of it could be advertising, especially if you do lots of online shopping or browsing. Want to get rid of those suggestions? You can, but you need to know where to look.
Two apps could be the source of suggestion suffering: Google and Chrome.
Google is the Google Now feature on your Android phone or tablet. You can access it from the Google Search widget, from the swipe-up shortcut, from the Apps Drawer, or you can utter “OK Google.” The cards you see in the app are the suggestions, some of which may vex you.
Chrome is Google’s web browser, the default web browser on most Android devices. Samsung uses their own web browser, but it’s really Chrome wearing a fancy suit. The suggestions you see in the Chrome app appear when you type a web page address or search item into the Address box.
To eliminate the suggestions from the Google Now app, follow these steps:
1. Open the Google app.
2. Tab the Side Menu icon.
3. Choose Customize from the Navigation Drawer.
4. Tap the item Apps & Websites.
5. Tap the item Receive New Cards from Apps and Websites.
6. Tap NO.
While these are the steps you follow to disable the new card suggestion feature, I keep that feature enabled on my Android gizmos. That setting defeats the purpose of Google Now; I enjoy seeing the new cards. And if they’re a pain, I can just swipe them off the screen.
The second set of steps removes the suggestions from the Chrome app:
1. Tap the Action Overflow icon in the upper right corner of the screen.
2. Choose Settings.
3. Tap Privacy.
4. Remove the checkmark by Search and URL Suggestions.
5. Remove the checkmark by Navigation Error Suggestions.
Disabling the two items from this set of steps might prevent Chrome from suggesting websites when you type in an address. Then again, it may not; the suggestions could be blossoming from another app, something you installed beyond the basic Android stuff.
Also, the settings to disable the website suggestions might be different on your mobile device. Still, they’ll be close to what’s listed above. The consistency of apps in the Android environment is something Google continues to improve.
