Kiwi Browser takes final breath but at least some of it will live on in Microsoft Edge

Kiwi Browser, the fully open-source web browser for Android, is packing things up and leaving the tech world. Its founder, Arnaud Granal, announced the browser's departure on the official Discord server and GitHub repo.

"Kiwi Browser is now archived. It will no longer be maintained after January 2025," Granal said on Discord. The browser had been pulled from the Google Play Store by the time of writing, but its latest version is available on GitHub to download.

"Browsers are very complex to maintain and they require long commitment, I started Kiwi as a side-project, and it's almost 7 years now. I just wanted extensions on mobile for myself," Granal said in a separate message.

"The "problem" is that Kiwi gets 1 million downloads per month, that's "too much", so the users accumulate over time, and they all want something new and updates (which is reasonable)."

The web browser's demise comes after over half a decade of existence. Turning back a few pages in Kiwi's history reveals the Chromium-based Android web browser was first launched in April 2018 and added support for Chrome extensions in April 2019. However, it was in April 2020 that Kiwi Browser became fully open-source.

In addition to supporting Chrome extensions, the browser offered features like Night Mode, built-in ad blocking, performance improvements, support for easy one-handed usage, and an optional bottom address bar.

"The extensions code for Kiwi Browser has now been integrated into Microsoft Edge Canary," Granal added. Those interested can follow the instructions laid out by the founder to install the extensions on Edge Canary for Android:

To install extensions on Microsoft Edge Canary:

 

1. Open Microsoft Edge Canary and go to Settings > About Microsoft Edge.
2. Tap the Edge build number (e.g., xx.0.2487.0) 5 times to enable Developer Options.
3. In Developer Options, select Extension install by id.

 

To find the extension ID:

 

1. Open the Microsoft Edge Web Store.
2. Locate and select the desired extension.
3. Copy the ID from the URL (e.g., for Bitwarden, the ID is jbkfoedolllekgbhcbcoahefnbanhhlh from the URL ending).
4. Paste the extension ID into the Extension install by id field.
5. The extension will install.

You can continue to use the latest Kiwi Browser installation until it works. The founder has suggested looking for alternatives such as Mozilla Firefox, Vivaldi, and Edge Canary. An out-of-date web browser will lack new features and be vulnerable to unwelcome security risks.

Source

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