Opera GX is the world’s first gaming browser. Launched in June 2019 in early access mode, it now comes with several major new improvements including a game release calendar, a network bandwidth limiter and improvements to the built-in Twitch feature.
Oslo, Sept 12, 2019
Launched in June 2019, during the E3 gaming convention, Opera GX is still in early access mode, which means it’s still being shaped to suit people’s needs. Right now, the Norwegian company is adding exciting new features including a Network limiter, as well as a Game release calendar and many other tweaks.
The Network limiter lets people limit the network bandwidth used by their browser to speed up their gaming and streaming
“Many of us like to stream music from YouTube or a Netflix film in our browser while playing a game and streaming the gameplay in parallel. This requires a lot of bandwidth and, sometimes, your browser might get needy, using up too much of it as a result. We’ve fixed that,” said Maciej Kocemba, product director Opera GX.
The Network limiter allows people to choose how much of their network’s bandwidth they would like to devote to their browser – Opera GX will stick to that limit, which means the game they are playing or the streaming service launched outside of the browser might run more smoothly thanks to a larger net bandwidth at its disposal.
The network limiter will also come in handy when the internet connection is slow or should one want to play a game without lag and download files in the browser at the same time.
The network usage can be limited using one of the many predefined values (It is worth noting that the setting values are indicated in KB/s or MB/s. or kilo- and megabytes, which are much more meaningful than bits typically used by network provides).
The Network limiter in Opera GX can be found in the “GX Control” panel, which additionally allows you to limit the amount of CPU and RAM used by the browser.
The set of three limiters in the GX Control panel gives Opera GX users full control over the way their browser uses their computer’s and network’s resources. The CPU and RAM limiters have also been updated since the June 2019 release to give users even more detailed control of the limits they set for their browser.
Opera GX now comes with a game release calendar
With this update, Opera GX also adds a game release calendar. Found in the GX Corner above gaming news and deals, the feature, curated by the Opera GX team, might come in handy to anyone who wants to spend their time playing games and not looking for news about upcoming releases. Opera GX will simply inform them about the upcoming major game releases.
Twitch integration improvements let you filter your followed channels list and see the games the streamers are playing
People either use Twitch or they don’t – there is no in-between. Those who do, will find the current updates handy.
Opera GX features a Twitch panel, which lets Twitch users to follow their favorite streamers directly from the browser and to get notified whenever they start a stream. Since the initial version of the browser was released in June, Opera has introduced some major improvements to this feature: it is now possible to filter the list of followed channels. Additionally, when hovering the mouse over one of the followed streamers, the browser will display the cover of the game he or she is currently playing.
The Twitch panel has also received a brand new settings page, which lets people customize the appearance of the feature by picking the chosen layout and hover style, but also to choose whether they want to receive sound notifications from Twitch or not.
Better Razer Chroma support
Opera GX comes with Razer Chroma support. This means the Razer Chroma gear will illuminate with the color one sets in the browser’s “Color picker” feature in settings. Following the current update, the transitions between colors have become smoother. People can also adjust the brightness of their gear to the brightness of their browser window to create the perfect setup.
Much positive feedback to the early access version
The Opera GX developers have placed “Feedback” buttons in many parts of the browser. They are a way for users to let Opera know how they like certain features by choosing a rating of 1 to 5 hearts and leaving a comment. So far, the ratings and reviews the team has received from users have been overwhelmingly positive. Opera GX is currently at an average of more than 4.50 hearts out of five.
Design Oscar and one million downloads
Opera GX recently reached one million downloads of the early access version. The browser has also been recognized by design experts and awarded the Red Dot award for its UI design. The Red Dot is a famous prize awarded to the best-designed products in their respective categories.
“We are very happy that the jury decided to recognize the world’s first gaming browser,” said Maciej Kocemba.
Opera GX will continue to be updated in the near future with an official launch planned in the coming months. To follow all the updates, you can access the “Changelog” tile on the browser’s speed dial. Whenever the “new” mark appears on the tile, this means the Opera team has added some improvements.
About Opera
Opera is a global web innovator. Opera’s browsers, news products and fintech solutions are the trusted choice of more than 350 million people worldwide. Opera is headquartered in Oslo, Norway and listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange (OPRA).