05-21-2017 , 01:38 PM
Published on May 11, 2017
A Pre-Release Version of Mozilla's Privacy-Focused Browser for Android
Full Tutorial: http://bit.ly/TryFirefoxFocus
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In this video, I'll be showing you a cool little new browser from Mozilla that prevents sites from tracking you and makes it easy to destroy browsing history. It's basically a full-time Incognito Mode browser.
The thing is, it's not officially out for Android yet. So we compiled Mozilla's latest source from Github to create an installable APK, which means you can try this slick browser right now!
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Transcript below:
Hey what's up everybody it's Dallas with Gadget Hacks. And today I'm gonna show you how to try the new Firefox Focus browser before it's released for Android.
Okay, so Firefox Focus is a privacy-oriented browser that's been around for a few months on iOS, but still hasn't made its way to Android.
That's a shame, too, because it's basically a full-time Incognito Mode browser, and it has a few tricks that make sure ads and tracking cookies won't follow you around.
But, Mozilla actually has a Github page for an Android version of the open source app, and it looks like they're pretty far along in the development process already.
So Kevin, who's one of our writers at Gadget Hacks, went ahead and compiled an APK out of the latest code on that Github page.
Basically, it's a pre-release version of the exact app Mozilla will eventually put out, and I gotta say, it's pretty smooth and stable already.
The app should work on any device running Lollipop or higher, so if you want to try it out, just make sure Unknown Sources is enabled in Settings, then head to Step 1 at the full tutorial on Gadget Hacks to grab the Firefox Focus APK.
From there, launch the APK from your notification tray, or with any file browser, then just tap "Install."
At this point, you're all set to try it out. It's got a simple interface with a cool color scheme, but that's kinda secondary.
The real story here is a set of solid privacy features that you can check out in Settings.
By default, it'll block trackers from ads, analytics, and social sites, so basically your browsing history doesn't follow you around across the entire web.
There's also an option for blocking content trackers, but like it says, that can break some webpages, so you may or may not want to turn it on.
Aside from that, it's a pretty straightforward web browser. The only obvious downside that I can think of is that it doesn't have tabs, so it's just one page at a time.
But it's actually pretty quick and lightweight, and while you're browsing, you'll see a floating delete button in the bottom right corner.
Basically, when it's time to bail, just tap this button and all traces of your browsing session will evaporate instantly.
So yeah, it's a pretty simple concept, but I think it's awesome that we can try this before it's officially released.
As always, though, we'd appreciate your feedback in the comment section below, and we'll see you again next time folks, but until then...happy gadget hacking.
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- License
- Standard YouTube License
- Standard YouTube License