Firefox 2.0 for iOS arrives with 3D touch support, password manager and search improvements

Mozilla today released Firefox 2.0 for iOS. Notable additions to the browser include an improved password manager and support for 3D Touch on iPhone 6s and 6s Plus. You can download the new version now directly from Apple’s App Store.

Mozilla doesn’t break out the exact numbers for Firefox, though the company does say “half a billion people around the world” use the browser. In other words, it’s a major platform that web developers target — even in a world increasingly dominated by mobile apps. Firefox for iOS was released as a public preview in September 2015 and as a stable release in November 2015.

First up, Firefox 2.0 for iOS on iPhone 6s and 6s Plus has gained 3D Touch support. You can now press the Firefox app icon to open the Quick Access menu and get three options: Open Last Bookmark, New Private Tab, and New Tab.

Firefox for iOS has also gained Peek and Pop functionality. You can thus more easily preview a tab and take actions on it such as Add to Reading List, Copy URL, or Close Tab. Instead of tapping on the page, waiting for it to load, and then tapping again, you can now preview content by lightly pressing on a tab in the tab menu and swiping up to access these shortcuts.

Next, the password manager now lets you manipulate your saved logins. Any entries saved locally or synced from your Firefox Account can now be searched, filtered, viewed, and edited from the Logins setting option.

The browser now also lets you type your search query directly into the Spotlight Search Bar on your iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch. You can also search for text in a web page with “Find in Page” by long-pressing on a text item or from the Share menu.

Here’s the full Firefox 2.0 for iOS changelog:

• Firefox Password Manager: Logins saved locally or from a signed in FxA account can now be searched, filtered, viewed and edited from the ‘Logins’ setting option
• Open tabs now display Spotlight Search results on the home screen
• A new tab describing the new features and changes available in the latest release is shown upon first launch after an update
• ‘Find in Page’ accessible by either long-pressing on a text item or by explicitly launching the feature from the ‘Share’ menu
• Support for 3D Touch on iPhone 6S and 6S Plus added pressing the Firefox app icon to open the Quick Access menu provides shortcuts to Open Last Bookmark, open a New Private Tab or a New Tab
• Various bug fixes and performance improvements

Mozilla typically releases new Firefox versions every six to eight weeks, and we thus expect the next iOS version to arrive in late March or early April.