Firefox will be a little different the next time you launch it – more bubbly, with new pops of color. The latest browser update brings a design overhaul to all desktop and mobile users, aiming to modernize Firefox with bubble-shaped tabs, a rounded address bar, and refreshed colors, icons, and themes. The desktop and mobile versions of the browser will also now share the same design language. According to Mozilla, the design changes will have “no cost to your browser’s performance.”
Mozilla says the revised design is a “refresh” for Firefox, following major updates last year, like homepage widgets, Split View, a built-in VPN, and controls to disable the browser’s AI features. However, Firefox isn’t avoiding AI: It also launched its Smart Window AI mode earlier this year, which could help it compete with rivals’ AI browser features, like those in Chrome. With its rounded UI elements, Firefox now visually resembles Chrome a little more.
The design overhaul also introduces more customization options, including more themes and wallpapers to choose from. Mozilla shared a preview of some of the updated theme options in May, including a dozen different colors to choose from, each with a light and dark mode. Alongside the design overhaul, Firefox 157 brings the return of an old feature: compact mode, back after user requests. This condensed version of Firefox “reduces the size of your tabs and toolbar to give more of your screen to the web, with an automatic compaction option for smaller screens.”
Gn tech
