It has a long way to go to catch up with Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Safari in terms of user numbers, but Vivaldi is near the head of the pack when it comes to customizability and privacy. Now, Version 2 of the web browser from Opera founder Jon von Tetzchner adds secure syncing, resizable tab tiling, floating web panels, and a whopping 1,500 more new features.
Vivaldi 2.0 also sports an updated, more sophisticated interface design. Like Opera, Vivaldi uses a start page with tiles for your most frequently visited sites. The latest release offers more background choices for this page, as well as a new Welcome Page to take new users through setup and customization.
Though the syncing capability just launched, it can already sync not only bookmarks, but also passwords, some settings, autofill entries, history, extensions, and notes. That's more than Chrome, Firefox, and Edge can boast. One thing you don't get in those browsers is multiple site panels in one window, and now those are resizable in Vivaldi.
Vivaldi is also strong on privacy; it doesn't take money from Google as Mozilla does with Firefox to get the dominant internet search and ad provider into its browser. Instead, Vivaldi defaults to using the privacy-respecting DuckDuckGo web search engine in private browsing windows.
"We do not believe in tracking our users or in data profiling," says von Tetzchner. The browser also offers the privacy-respecting (and nicely designed) European Qwant as a search engine option.
Also new and unique for Vivaldi are a distraction-free reader view, adjustable zoom defaults, resizable tiled tab views, and floating/overlay panels. The browser uses a convenient sidebar for sites that don't require the full window, such as Twitter or a chat site. You can also set it to an adaptive mode that changes interface colors to match the website your visiting.
You can read more about the Vivaldi 2.0 release on the Vivaldi Blog. The browser is available for Windows and macOS. Download it for yourself and start your customized browser experience here.