This blazing-fast, super-private browser delivers a brand new beta – try it for free

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ZDNET’s key takeaways

• Orion is a web browser based on Safari.
• This is one of the fastest browsers on the market.
• You can install the beta release on Linux for free.

You’ve probably never heard of Orion (the browser). Sit back and let me introduce you to this remarkably fast browser, which was just released as a new and improved beta for Linux.

Orion is based on Safari; that’s right, Apple’s Safari. The developers used the Safari tech stack as an inspiration for the browser, but then added numerous productivity enhancers to improve on Apple’s creation. On top of that, the developers decided to make Orion a true zero-telemetry browser with ad blocking to boot. Orion is free and also available on MacOS, iOS, and iPadOS — with a Windows version coming soon. (I’ve previously tested the browser on MacOS.)

Also available on the same platforms is Orion+, which adds custom icons, a browser border, an exclusive community tag, and access to early beta builds. The cost of Orion+ is $5/month, $50/year, or $150/lifetime.

Also: The best secure browsers for privacy: Expert tested

Even before you get to the privacy and other features, the first thing you’ll notice about Orion is the speed. In fact, I’ve never experienced a faster web browser. Type a URL in the address bar, hit Enter, and the page appears almost immediately. 

That’s no exaggeration. Using Orion makes you feel like you’re living in the future.

And then there are the built-in features. The highlights include:

• Focus mode
• Built-in share menu
• Tab overview
• Programmable button
• Customizable menu
• Built-in webapp support
• Built-in screenshot tool
• Containers
• Page summarizations
• Page tweaks
• Privacy reports
• Extensions
• Vertical tabs (and nested vertical tabs)
• Tab groups
• Mini toolbar

The list of features is so extensive that you’ll need to head over to the official documentation to read about everything available.

This is only the second public beta release of Orion. When I originally tested the first beta in March, it was quite unstable. This release brings much more stability to the browser, as well as link preview, local sync, an edit website text tool, a “never for this site” option in the password manager, the website settings feature finally working, and a low-power mode.

Also: I’ve used nearly every browser out there, and these are my top 4 (spoiler: Chrome is out)

One of the nice things I’ve discovered is that Orion’s tab group feature is more like Opera’s Workspaces feature, so you can better organize your tabs. Impressive.  

Another feature is called programmable buttons. You can add a programmable button to the toolbar and customize the button to run code, execute custom JavaScript or AppleScript, open a URL, and more. There’s even a collection of open-source programmable buttons that includes interaction buttons, AI buttons, and community buttons.

With regards to customization and extensibility, Orion blows away every browser on the planet.

And it gets better.

Orion is finally available for Linux. As long as your distribution supports Flatpak (which most do), you can install Orion by downloading the .flatpak file and issuing the command:

flatpak install oriongtk.0.3.0.flatpak

Note: Make sure to change the release number for the version you’ve downloaded.

Also: 5 Firefox-based, privacy-first web browsers that improve on the original

Once the installation is completed, you’ll find the Orion launcher in your desktop menu. If it’s not there, log out and log back in, and it’ll appear.

When you first open Orion, you are greeted with a warning that clearly states the software is in active development (beta), so you should expect incomplete features and potential instability. 

Speaking of which, I did have Orion crash on me once while I was attempting to rename a Tab Group. Other than that, it worked quite well for a beta release. I would expect, however, that Orion will crash more often with further use, but that’s the nature of beta software.

Could become my new default

If the developers continue to build the Orion browser for Linux, I could easily see this becoming my new default. Between the speed of the app and page rendering, the customization, and the privacy, what’s not to love? 

Also: I speed-tested 11 browsers – and the fastest might surprise you

If you’re curious, you should install Orion on your Linux distribution of choice and experience what I’m talking about. Once you’ve had a taste of this browser, you’ll be eager for it to leave beta and enter general release.