Brave Browser

Brave is a web browser specifically designed to help you have a faster and more private navigation through the Internet.

What characterizes this app is the intention to substitute the present model in which you actually pay for watching ads by a new one in which you support your favorite sites by just visiting them.

This way, the browser blocks ads and trackers, with the subsequent decrease of page weight and consequently enabling a faster browsing experience. Besides, your privacy is kept safe from those sites that keep track of your personal data. Similarly, it gives you the chance to decide if you want to substitute those ads with others, which are fewer, smaller and unobtrusive.

Brave is based on Chromium, so it inherits most of its characteristics, such as speed and stability. Likewise, Brave has a similar look to other Chromium-based browsers. Thus, if you are familiar with any of them, you will hardly notice the difference. Brave has many of the features that are found in modern browsers, including multiple tabs and private browsing. Moreover, it lets you view your browsing history, manage downloads and set bookmarks. In terms of privacy, I liked the possibility of opening a private window with Tor and encrypting all traffic irrespective of the site you are visiting. It is a shame that it does not come with a built-in VPN, a feature that is already present in some browsers.

Like other Chromium-based browsers, Brave supports installing extensions to add certain features. In this regard, it comes with some default extensions. For instance, there is one that allows displaying torrents directly on your browser and another that enables screen sharing.

In short, Brave is still at a very early stage of development. However, it has the advantage of 'standing on the shoulders of a giant'. While its features were quite limited at the beginning, the newer versions show its developer’s interest in providing more.