Mozilla released the first public preview of Firefox for iOS on the App Store in New Zealand today. The company aims to collect feedback on Firefox for iOS in the country, and eventually a few others, to help make improvements and add new features to the browser prior to a worldwide launch later this year.
The public preview version of Firefox for iOS features Intelligent Search, Firefox Accounts and Visual Tabs.
- Intelligent Search: Suggested search results and list of search options, including Google, Bing, Yahoo, DuckDuckGo, Twitter, Amazon and WordPress
- Firefox Accounts: Firefox browser history, passwords and tabs from your desktop on your iPhone
- Visual Tabs: A card-based grid of open tabs
To provide feedback within the app, tap the numeric tab icon on the top right, tap the "Settings" menu on the top left and tap on "Send Feedback" under the "Support" menu.
Mozilla was initially opposed to releasing Firefox on iOS because of Apple's policy that requires third-party browsers to use its own WebKit framework and JavaScript engine, but the company reversed course and announced plans to release an iOS app in December 2014. Other third-party browsers include Chrome and Opera.
Top Rated Comments
1) it syncs perfectly with my Mac and iPad as well as handoff features.
2) it's fast. Generally one of, if not the fastest mobile browser on iPhones.
3) I can't change an app default, so if I click a link somewhere it will automatically open in safari anyway.
Firefox anyway syncs in its own way - and since it's open source there is a chance that its sync mechanism can be tapped by other browsers. Probably the same applies to Chrome too. But Safari rather locks you in because of iCloud-mediated sync and of how the open tabs and bookmarks are accessed by the user.
Firefox for iOS is being tested now - and you already know that Safari is faster?
Hint: in arewefastyet.com you can see that Firefox in desktop is faster than Safari (and Chrome) in most tests, in most architectures, in most OSes… and that it has been so for a long time already.
So, you are converting Apple's mandate in your willfull choice? Way to go.
To me that is more like a reason to ask for changes.