9 Must-Have Extensions To Get You Started With The New Firefox Quantum
Big news came this week when Mozilla announced that their latest version of Firefox — Firefox Quantum — came out of beta and launched officially.
Tons of influencers on Twitter like David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH) from Basecamp are encouraging people to move from Google Chrome to Firefox as a way to support the Mozilla philosophy
The new version of Firefox Quantum has been almost rebuilt from the ground up with “close to 7 millions lines of code changed” and after you give it a spin, you’ll see that the UX is pretty phenomenal and the speed is lightning fast!
I ran a quick informal survey among some friends and asked them why they still prefer Google Chrome over Firefox. The reasons that kept coming up were always around 3 aspects:
- Speed: Chrome has better performances than Firefox
- UX: Firefox has been lagging behind in terms of user experience
- Extensions: People love their Chrome extensions!
But since speed & UX have now been dramatically improved in the latest version , I thought I would compile a list of useful, Quantum-ready, Firefox add-ons for those looking to make the switch.
1) LastPass
LastPass is a password manager that saves all your passwords and gives you secure access from every computer and mobile device.
I use it to generate super complex passwords when I sign up to a new service like Facebook, Gmail, Amazon or Slack and store those passwords securely in my LastPass account.
When I need to login, I don’t need to remember my password! I just need to unlock my LastPass account inside my Firefox browser using my LastPass password.
The cool thing with the Firefox plugin is that I can log to any service in 1 click as all my credentials can automatically be filled for me.
2) Marker.io
Marker.io allows you to collect visual feedback from colleagues & clients directly into Trello, Asana, Jira, GitHub and more.
I use the extension all the time to report visual bugs directly into new Trello cards or Jira issue without having to leave my website. Also, since Marker.io is available on all other browsers as an extension, the Firefox plugin is pretty useful to make sure your website looks the same across all browsers.
You can check out this demo video below 👇
3) Adblock Plus
AdBlock Plus basically makes sure that ads that show up all over the internet (News, Facebook, Google, Youtube, …) are removed from your browsing experience.
If you hate ads, install this free extensions and your browsing experience. It’s the best on the market.
4) Grammarly
Grammarly is one of those life saver extensions that helps you communicate more effectively.
After installing it in your Firefox browser, Grammarly will detect whenever you type some text and it will flag mistakes for you to correct. As it lives in your browser, it means that your spelling and grammar will be vetted on Gmail, Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and nearly everywhere else you write on the web.
Whatever email, document or social media posts you write, Grammarly makes sure that your writing is clear, mistake-free and impactful.
5) Honey
If you’re an online shopping addict or you simply like to save money on your online purchases, install the Honey extension for Firefox!
Once the extension is set up in your browser, Honey will automatically find and try coupon codes for you. Whatever you like to shop for online, simply use the Honey extension when you’re visiting a product page and it will tell you instantly is you can save money on the displayed price.
6) Firefox Multi-Account Containers
You know how you always open tons of tabs andget lost between personal and work stuff? Well this extension helps you keep all the separate parts of your online life neatly contained in different tabs, while preserving your privacy.
But the best part is that under the hood, it separates website storage into tab-specific Containers. Cookies downloaded by one Container are not available to other Container. For example, you could sign in to two different accounts on the same site: One for with your work email and the other with you home email in two different Container tabs but on the same session.
7) Hoxx VPN Proxy
Hoxx VPN Proxy is a VPN service that allows you to unblock blocked websites, hide your location and encrypt your connection.
Hoxx VPN Service can be used to bypass filtered or blocked websites such as Netflix, Hulu, Spotify or sites that have been blocked by your government or for licensing reasons. You can also use Hoxx VPN to hide your tracks and/or protect your personal information at public Wi-Fi locations.
8) Momentum
Replace your new tab page with a personal dashboard featuring to-do, weather, daily inspiration, and more with Momentum for Firefox
Each time you open a new tab, Momentum gives you a moment of calm and inspires you to be more productive and inspired with a daily photo and quote. You can also set a daily focus, and track your to-dos.
9) Pocket
Pocket is a service that lets you save content from around the web so you can read them later.
I use this service all the time to save blog posts for later that I find during the day and read them on my smartphone via the mobile app during my commute back home in the evening.
Since Mozilla acquired Pocket in Feb 2017, they have completely integrated the extension in the default setup of Firefox Quantum so you don’t have to install anything. Simply look for the Pocket icon in the new address bar and register your free account.
Conclusion
The new Firefox Quantum is considered by many to finally be a strong alternative to Google Chrome. If you support the ideas behind the Mozilla philosophy and would like to give it a spin, I hope these extensions will give you some good reasons to give it a fair shot!
