Arc, a Mac and iOS browser from The Browser Company, has officially launched after being in testing for over two years. The browser’s version number jumped to 1.0, meaning anyone can now download it from arc.net. Arc aims to be more than just a place to view webpages by offering tools for note taking, collaborative workspaces, and redesigning webpages. While Arc 1.0 does not have any major new features, The Browser Company feels ready for a wider launch. Arc’s picture-in-picture mode allows users to have video calls in a small window while browsing, which many people enjoy. Though Arc has been stable, it can suffer from the same performance issues as other Chromium-based browsers with many tabs open. The Browser Company still has work to do improving the iOS app and bringing Arc to Windows.
Tried it today. The first feature im getting value out of is you can group tabs into spaces. Think screens on your Mac. It’s nice to be able to switch between different contexts.
The only interesting browser launch in years was brave. And even that lost hype after some time. It actually tried something new. The idea of being able to cash out your ads, or donate them to the websites you actually used was novel. And it wasn’t a horrible idea.
But at least it added something. According to marketing, this is just changing the layout and claiming it’ll change the way you interact with the web. Also a vague promise of AI, which honestly sounds like a negative at this point.