[Bug] Performance regression with system Chrome 150 v in Playwright automation

[technileshpatil]

Bug Report

Environment

• OS: macOS 26.5.2
• CPU: Apple M4 Max (16 cores)
• Memory: 48.00 GB
• Node: 22.14.0
• npm: 10.9.2
• @playwright/test: 1.59.1

Browser

• channel: 'chrome'
• Chrome version before update: ~129.x (fast ✅)
• Chrome version after update: 150.0.7871.125 (slow ❌)

Description

After Chrome auto-updated to version 150.0.7871.125 on approximately
2026-07-17, all Playwright tests using channel: 'chrome' became noticeably
slower. No changes were made to the test code or Playwright configuration.
Reverting to a previous Chrome version is not possible as Chrome does not
support downgrading.

Playwright Config

projects: [
  {
    use: {
      ...devices['Desktop Chrome'],
      channel: 'chrome',
      launchOptions: { slowMo: 500 },
    },
  },
],

Steps to Reproduce

1. Install Playwright 1.59.1
2. Configure channel: 'chrome' in playwright.config.ts
3. Allow Chrome to auto-update to version 150.0.7871.125
4. Run any Playwright test suite
5. Observe noticeably slower test execution compared to Chrome 129.x

Expected Behavior

Chrome 150 should perform similarly to previous Chrome versions
under Playwright automation.

Actual Behavior

All tests run significantly slower after the Chrome auto-update to
version 150. Browser startup, page navigation, and OAuth redirect
flows are all affected. The issue appeared exactly when Chrome
auto-updated — no other changes were made.