DuckDuckGo makes its Mac browser beta open to all

All Mac users can now take DuckDuckGo's browser and its built-in privacy protections for a spin. The company first gave us a glimpse of its desktop web browser in December last year before launching it as a closed beta in April. Now, the beta browser is finally open to the public and can be downloaded — clicking this link will automatically load its DMG file — from DuckDuckGo's website. The company has also bundled the browser with new features, some of which were requested by testers who've been using it over the past few months. One new feature is the Duck Player, a YouTube player that prevents the website from serving the viewer targeted ads. 

While YouTube will still register a user's views, the videos they watch will not add any information to their advertising profile. The company says that had prevented most ads from showing up in videos during testing, but any ad that does pop up for viewers will not be personalized. Another new feature is integration with Bitwarden, an open-source password manager, on top of DuckDuckGo's own manager and support for 1Password's autofill feature. 

When it's switched on, DuckDuckGo's Email Protection can shield the user's inbox with email tracker blocking. The company has also upgraded its Cookie Consent Pop-Up Manager to be able to block more cookies on more websites. Other features that were added after testers requested them include the bookmarks bar, pinned tabs and a way to view locally stored browsing history.

We tried out the browser for Mac and found it easy and quick to import passwords and bookmarks from other browsers like Chrome. It loaded quickly, as well, and the Fire Button that can instantly clear browsing data with one click is easily accessible at the top right corner of the app. Those who try it out and find themselves wanting to see features that aren't available for the browser yet can simply click at the ellipsis (...) menu next to the URL box to send the company their feedback. 

To note, DuckDuckGo hasn't forgotten its Windows users. Its Windows browser is still in early friends and family beta, though the company is planning to make it available to more people through a private waitlist beta launch in the coming months.

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