Facebook testing improved in-app browser that will make you stay on FB
Move over Chrome and Firefox, the all new Facebook browser is coming soon. The social networking giant is testing an improved in-app browser that would allow users input their own URL should they want to check another page without leaving the Facebook app.
Facebook has been long looking to convince the FB users to within its confines by providing all sorts of value added services like chats, messengers etc. However it lacked a full fledged browser that could take on the might of the market leader, Google Chrome and make its users stay on FB even while surfing the web.
The new in-App browser is a step in making that into a reality. Besides the aesthetic shift, a new bar on the bottom tells you how popular a post is, includes back and forward buttons, lets you bookmark pages, and has a menu button which likely includes a few more features too.
The only feature that is missing in the forthcoming Facebook browser is tab support. Apart from that the in-App browser is quite close to approximating a full-fledged app. Facebook hopes that once it gets the browser right, the Facebook app could essentially become a self-contained ecosystem of its own, it added.
Right now the browser is only made available to a small subset of users (iOS only), but most public test features end up receiving a wider roll-out a few months later.
The new browser also includes allows you to back and forth between pages, bookmark a page, and a menu button likely to include additional features.