Mozilla announces Reference Browser test platform for Android

Mozilla has announced the Reference Browser, a new mobile browser for Android. However, this is not a consumer product, but a kind of test platform for various components, which can be tried out by volunteers.

The browser builder announced the new Reference Browser via a post on its forum. According to an employee who uses the nickname Seburo on the forum, the Mozilla team has recently been working on a new “infrastructure” for mobile internet browsing. These include, for example, GeckoView, Glean and a new implementation for Firefox Accounts. That should all come together in the new browser.

However, this means that the new Reference Browser is not a product that is suitable for consumers, according to Mozilla. It is a testing platform that still needs to be developed further, and for that the company needs the help of people who want to test. Ultimately, the Reference Browser components can be used to create multiple browsers for different operating systems by interested developers.

The application can be installed for Android users as long as they have version 5 or higher of the mobile operating system. Mozilla has put the software in the Play Store. Interested parties should also sign up for a Google Group, and issues users encounter during testing can be reported on Github.