Google modernizes Bookmarks with redesign, enhanced search, sharing, and more
Bookmarks implementations have remained pretty static over the lifetime of the Internet. Google is changing that with 'Bookmark Manager' (formerly called Stars). An extension available in the Chrome Store, it promises to bring your bookmarks into the future with a new design, better search, smart organization, and sharing.
The first thing you will notice is the design, and nice, subtle animations. It feels like Google Drive, with a 'New' button on the left with the navigation under it. Each bookmark is given an image and description in a 'card-like' UI. Bookmarking pages is also a nicer experience. Adding the bookmark to a folder is more intuitive, and you can create a new folder easily. One of my favorite features is that you can include a quick note, reminding yourself why you saved the page.
Since Google is scanning the body of your bookmark, search will encapsulate the contents of the bookmark. No longer will you have to sit there and try to remember either the name or part of the domain. Carrying on with the helpfulness, Google will automatically organize your bookmarks by topic (your folders are still there, don't panic).
You can now also share folders! The folder will be public and you can share a link with whomever you wish. Just on the top of my head, this is great for school courses, including projects, course materials, etc.
Syncing will continue to work across your devices. Besides the big, card-like view of your bookmarks (which requires some getting used to, and will not be for everyone), everything is a clear step forward.
Some Quick Observations
If you have a lot of (junk) bookmarks, it is probably in your best interest to organize/delete them before you switch over to the extension, as each bookmark will take a lot more space, and scrolling through them will be a pain.
By default, you can't bookmark pages in incognito mode (with the extension). Incognito mode turns off extensions, and when I tried to use it to view the classic manager, I found I couldn't access any bookmark manager. You can enable the extension in Incognito mode, which will allow you to bookmark again.