Boost Your Web Surfing Experience / App of the Day 106
Arc’s iPhone browser packs ad blocking, privacy guards, AI powered search, and a one-gesture page summary into a lightweight package that still syncs with the desktop app. If you want faster answers, fewer banners, and a cleaner reading view, this one earns a spot on your Home Screen.
Why it feels faster
Arc hides the usual web clutter from the first launch - ads, tracker pop-ups, and consent banners are filtered automatically, so pages load with far less junk to render. The interface is slim, taps trigger gentle taptic feedback, and every animation is tuned for 120 Hz screens, which makes swiping between tabs feel instant.
AI that hunts down answers
Type a question and tap ‘Browse for Me’. Arc’s servers spin through dozens of sources, stitch the key points together, then return a short, cited report while you watch the progress bar race across the top. In practice it means you can ask ‘best budget mirrorless camera 2025’ and get specs, pros, and a quick verdict instead of sixteen sponsored lists. The same engine works on news queries and how-tos, so it feels like a mini research assistant rather than a search page.
Pinch to Summarize
Already on a giant article? Pinch the page and Arc collapses it into a handful of bullet-size highlights, plus links back to the sources for deeper digging. It is surprisingly handy for recipe sites, academic PDFs, or long opinion pieces where you only need the takeaway.
One profile, all screens
Log in once and your open tabs, bookmarks, and Spaces appear on the Mac build and the new Windows beta, so you can start a search on the phone and pick it up on the laptop without emailing links to yourself. The setup is opt-in and encrypted; you can keep mobile browsing separate if you prefer.
Bottom line
Arc doesn’t just re-skin Safari - it rethinks the bits that waste your time. Automatic ad blocking keeps pages light, the AI fetches concise answers, and ‘Pinch to Summarize’ squeezes any article into a snack-able brief. Pair it with the desktop version and you get the same tidy experience everywhere. For anyone who browses more than they stream, that combo is hard to beat.
The Browser Company of New York Inc.
