Opera

If you get FOMO from being away from Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp, Opera's new update will please you very much.

Opera today introduced a new browser that integrates messaging apps to its sidebar. Codenamed Reborn, the browser lets you chat with friends through Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and Telegram on a side window while you work on the main browser. Other apps such as Viber and WeChat are not yet included in the support, although the company tells CNET it is working to make them available soon.

Opera is way behind Google Chrome and Apple's Safari in terms of userbase, but has worked on bringing nifty features to its browser. Last year, the company introduced an integrated ad-blocking fea ture and built-in currency converter that allows online shoppers to see converted rates simply by highlighting the price of a product or service.

Opera

In the new browser, you can pin supported messaging apps to the sidebar as shortcuts. That means no more having to toggle between tabs or windows, even if WhatsApp is always just an Alt+Tab away (or in my case, Alt+Tab, Tab, Tab). You can also share photos online as well as sign out of the messaging apps directly from the browser.

"Using WhatsApp on Opera is exactly the same as using the web service," said Krystian Kolondra, Opera's Executive Vice President of Desktop on potential privacy concerns. "Like other browsers and websites, Opera does not have access to any information shared or transmitted via this service."

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