Last Monday, Google Chrome 4.0 was released packing the highly-anticipated extensions, bookmark sync, and reported speed increases of 40%. Extensions was the biggest drawback thus far with Google Chrome as its rival, Mozilla Firefox, continued to hold the title as the extension king. Though extensions were available for several months prior in beta version, the new release is now stable and ready for the masses.

If you check out the Chrome Extensions gallery, you will find over 1,500 available extensions. Far smaller in selection than Firefox’s, it reminds me of Google’s Nexus One’s library of applications in comparison with the Apple iPhone’s App Store. Aside from that, let’s take a look at some of the best Chrome extensions worth downloading.

AdBlock

Block ads from showing up with this plugin. You can also configure the filters to improve how you want AdBlock to target ads. It’s a simple one-click install to a pop up-free browsing experience. This extension is one of the most downloaded Chrome extension thus far.

Aviary Screen Capture

Use this plugin to take a snapshot of your screen. It also allows you to edit the image using a basic image editor directly from your browser. You can edit photos with basic actions such as crop, markup(rectangles, lines, arrows), and insert text. A must-have tool for bloggers and web designers.

Google Mail Checker

This plugin places a Gmail icon on your toolbar where it displays a count of any unread emails from your Gmail account. When you click on the icon, the plugin launches Gmail in a new tab. A very handy tool to quickly access your email inbox.

ChromeMUSE-Multi-URL Shortener/Expander

With ChromeMUSE, you can quickly shorten long URL’s or expand shortened URL’s. It lets you choose your preferred URL-shortening service, including Bit.ly, Goo.gl, Ow.ly, and TinyURL. When you hover over a shortened URL on a webpage, the plugin expands the URL by displaying the page title as you hover over the target link.

Google Quick Scroll

Search better and faster with this helpful plugin on your side. When you perform a search on Google, this plugin may appear on the bottom-right corner as a box containing text from the webpage relevant to your search query. When you click on the text, the plugin sends you quickly to the location of the text, removing the painful task of reading through the entire page.

Shareaholic for Google Chrome

One of the most popular web page sharing tool is now available in Google Chrome as a downloadable add-on. If you find an interesting article as you browse the internet, simply press the green Share button and select from a large, customizable list of services to share the articles with others. Among the over 100 services are: Delicious, Stumbleupon, WordPress, email, print, Facebook, Twitter, Digg, and Reddit.

Cooliris

The coolest (and head-spinning) way to browse the web is now here on Google Chrome! Browse articles, videos, pictures, and more in a stunning 3-D wall.

Have you downloaded any Google Chrome Extensions yet? Which ones did you install? Let me know in the comments section below!