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ZDNET’s key takeaways

• The Vivaldi web browser has a killer new UI feature.
• With Auto Hide UI, you get maximum screen real estate.
• You can install and use the feature on all desktop OSes.

Every time I create a web app from a site, I think, “I wish I could have a browser that could behave this minimally when I want it to.” 

If you’ve never used a web app on your desktop OS, let me explain what they are. You open a site on a browser that supports the creation of web apps, and you then save the site as such. When you then open the site (from your desktop menu), the app opens without the usual browser accutremont. You get a window and not much else: no controls, no tabs, no menu bars. The web app turns your website into an app.

I’ve always enjoyed this feature because it not only keeps me from having to add yet another tab to my browser, but it’s also very clean, and the browser takes up little to no screen real estate (meaning the page I’m viewing can take up the entire screen, without having to switch to full-screen mode.

Also: 5 reasons why Zen is my new favorite browser (RIP, Opera)

Now, imagine you had a browser that allows you to switch between regular mode and what they’re calling Auto-Hide UI mode. When you toggle this new mode, all web browser elements are tucked away, out of sight, so all you see is the website you’re viewing.

I love this new feature.

I love it so much, I could see Vivaldi overtaking Opera, which has been my default browser for a long time, even over the other Jack-approved Chrome alternatives. 

It’s easy and reactive

The new Auto Hide UI feature isn’t enabled by default, but you don’t have to jump through any about:config hoops to make it happen. All you have to do is open the browser, go to Settings > Appearance > UI Auto Hide, and enable the feature. Even better, you can decide what elements you want to hide. You can hide the tab bar, panel, address bar, status bar, and bookmarks bar. 

Once you’ve enabled it, you can switch between standard mode and Auto Hide mode by hitting the F11 key on your keyboard. 

You might be thinking, “I don’t want to have to use a function key to switch between modes.” Well, Vivaldi thought of that as well. When you have Auto-Hide UI enabled, Vivaldi has another trick up its sleeve.

Let’s say you want to go to a different website. If you hover your cursor at the top of the Vivaldi window, the address bar appears. Hover to the left and the tab bar appears (if you have tabs set to display on the left side), hover to the right and the sidebar appears, and hover to the bottom and the status bar appears.

This new feature is satisfying in a way that no other browser has been. It gives me the best of both worlds, and I couldn’t be happier with where the Vivaldi developers and designers are taking the browser UI.

Also: 5 great Chrome browser alternatives that put your privacy first

I’d go so far as to say that all other browser developers should be paying attention, because this is the future of the web browser. 

The last time a web browser UI had me this excited was when Opera introduced its new theming engine, or when Zen Browser came into being. 

Maybe it’s just me (someone who places a lot of importance on UX — User Experience), but this new take on the web browser UI really is that impressive; so much so, that I’m seriously considering it as my default. And given Vivaldi also has Workspaces (for even better tab management), there’s really nothing preventing me from making the switch.

If you’re interested in checking out this new Vivaldi UI, all you have to do is download and install the latest version, which is available for Linux, MacOS, and Windows. Once installed, enable the feature and experience the future of the web browser UI.