[mcbits]

If they're not running new features through their Beta channel, then you have a point. Otherwise, I'd assume the features that make it to field trials have already gone through Beta testing and are thought to be ready to release--which isn't always the case, hence the gradual rollout.

[khedoros1]

I'd say that if they're doing A/B testing or "field trials", then they aren't sure enough to roll the feature out to Stable. That's not Google's policy, though.

They run experiments in Canary, Dev, and Beta, then conduct a roll-out to stable to get a broader test (per the explanation here): https://textslashplain.com/2017/10/18/chrome-field-trials/

I'm just grumpy that we don't live in the perfect world, where confusion-inducing processes like this wouldn't be necessary. I've never been that comfortable with the "break a few eggs" method of progress.