Image: Qi Yang/Getty Images.
To properly perform its function, a modern web browser must skillfully combine substance and form, offering a clear interface with useful features, but not too much to avoid overload.
Arc, the browser launched by The Browser Company in 2023, fulfills this contract very well. Although it is obviously not perfect, it offers a very pleasant browsing experience.
Are you hesitating? So here are five reasons why you might want to try it. Please note, the browser is currently only available for macOS and iOS. You will have to wait until next spring to benefit from it on Windows.
1. Managing tabs by spaces
For a long time, Opera had one of the best tab management experiences, in my opinion, with its Spaces. But Arc does even better.
Functionality Spaces actually looks like Spaces on Opera… with a little bonus. Arc not only allows you to create different spaces to contain linked tabs, but it also allows you to theme each of these spaces. And it’s very useful.
Imagine: you have five or six groupings of tabs, “spaces”, but you need certain specific tabs to always be in the same place, and above all to quickly know which space you are in. You can then theme them by color, for example with a yellow space, another blue and a third green.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET.
You can also rename these spaces, give them specific icons, and even turn them into folders for backup purposes.
2. Favorites
In each space you will find a vertical panel with tabs, and at the top of this panel the section Favorites. Unlike pinned tabs, which are always open, favorites correspond to pages that you keep in memory, like a bookmark, in your space. You can of course use both at the same time.
The advantage on Arc is that the favorites are added in a specific space, as below in my space dedicated to “WORK”:
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET.
3. The user interface
Arc’s UI (user interface) is reminiscent of Opera – which in my opinion is one of the best browser interfaces. But once again, with a slight improvement. The way things are laid out makes sense on Arc – almost as if the developers designed the browser with an idea of how to maximize its efficiency.
And at the same time, the interface is simple, almost minimalist, without confusion or clutter. Thanks to the macOS menu bar, the Arc interface allows you to focus on what matters: the pages you are browsing.
4. The library
Arc’s library contains specific objects. In a sidebar you will find Media (the files in the folder Documents), Downloads (the files you downloaded with Arc), Easels & Notes (the easels you drew and the notes you took), Spaces (see above), Boosts (small apps you can install to customize your browser or specific sites, see below) and archived tabs (tabs you have closed).
Arc’s library gives you access to some very handy features, but stays out of the way when you don’t need it. To access it, you must click on the leftmost icon, at the bottom right of the Arc window.
Screenshot by Jack Wallen/ZDNET.
5. Boosts
If “Boosts” are part of the library, they have a special place: they can help to further improve (or even make more fun) your browsing experience.
For example, you can find Boosts to add color to Gmail or X/Twitter, or even features to Spotify, YouTube or other applications that you may use daily. You will surely find what you are looking for among the many Boosts that exist. It is even possible that there will be one or two that become indispensable to you.
Available only on macOS and iOS
The biggest drawback of the Arc browser, ultimately, is that it currently only exists for Mac and iPhone.
And if a version is planned “in spring 2024” for Windows – for which you can already register on the waiting list – there is no indication that it will be available on Linux.
Source: ZDNet.com