Samsung Internet Browser beta shows privacy and interface improvements

Samsung devices come with the South Korean giant’s own app ecosystem, including an email client and an internet browser app. And although most Android users usually stick with Google’s offerings, namely Gmail and Google Chrome, Samsung’s own internet browser is becoming a respectable alternative to the latter.

In its new beta version, the Samsung Internet app brings a number of security and privacy-related updates, including support for DuckDuckGo, which is a search engine that’s primarily focused on user privacy, its tagline being “The Search Engine That Doesn’t Track You.”

Another great addition is support for third party content (advertising) blockers. SamMobile also reports that a new feature called “Block unwanted pages” will combat shady websites that would normally be a hassle to get out of, requiring several back button taps.

The Samsung Internet Beta app also introduces some convenient customizations, such as the ability to add shortcuts to actions like Share or activating Secret Mode (an alternative to Incognito in Chrome) to the menu bar.

Its other notable features include support for progressive web apps, allowing for certain websites to be installed as apps. Samsung’s Video Assistant also made a return recently, letting users switch between viewing modes while watching videos. 360° video support and an Amazon Shopping assistant, allowing for comparing products and finding deals, are also available.

The browser itself is based on the open-source Chromium project, much like Chrome and Microsoft’s new Edge browser, so web pages should load and behave as they do in those alternatives, with no issues.

It’s not certain if all of the features seen in the beta will make it to the main Samsung Internet Browser app, and when, though generally a jump from beta shouldn’t take too long.