Mozilla announces Firefox 29 with improved features

Mozilla has given Firefox a major makeover, bringing a fresh design and several new features to the desktop version of its popular web browser. The organisation claims that the new version of Firefox (version 29) is the most customisable version of the browser, ever. It features a new menu, customisation mode and an enhanced Firefox Sync service powered by Firefox Accounts.

Firefox 29 introduces an entirely new UI — called Australis — that does away with the Big Orange Button (BOG), adds some rounded corners, and, as a result, looks almost exactly like Google Chrome. Firefox 29 has been released over on Firefox.com and all existing users should be able to upgrade to it automatically.

Mozilla explained in a blog post the reasons behind the new change of face: “We reimagined and redesigned Firefox to reflect how you use the Web today and we are excited to introduce many features including an elegant and fun design, new menu, customization mode and an enhanced Firefox Sync service powered by Firefox Accounts.”

One of the big changes on the new Firefox 29 browser is the enhanced options for customization. The users can now choose which applications they want to feature in the upper-right-hand corner of the browser’s toolbar. They can do this with the new buttons for social media platforms like Pinterest and other basic functions like bookmarks and email shortcuts. Mozilla also features an add-ons manager where one can browse through the options and also install new applications once they become available. You can also browse the vast internet with multiple tabs at a time. Mozilla Firefox 29 gives you the option to leave the tabs you are not using in the background and it highlights the page you are using.

As well as moving the main menu, Mozilla has also completely revamped it. Tap the new menu button and, instead of a list of word-heavy menu items with hover-activated sub menus, you get a clean and clear grid of commonly used items with big icons above them. The default selection are all items you could otherwise find in the main menu of the old system, but here they’re much more prominent. Crucially they’re also much more touchscreen friendly, making Firefox 29 the most touchscreen friendly Windows browser around. Even Cut, Copy, Paste and Zoom have been given nice big prominent buttons on the menu.

The final major addition to Firefox 29 is its new syncing system for matching up settings and bookmarks between machines. While Firefox has had a system in place for a while it has always been rather clunky, requiring random codes instead of a username and password. Now Mozilla has Firefox Accounts, which uses a more conventional email and password user account combination. Data is synced via Mozilla’s cloud systems and Mozilla has plans to use the service for other parts of the application too. Firefox Accounts is also coming to Firefox on Android, making for even easier cross-platform syncing.