A dedicated web browser app is one of the few PlayStation 4 features Sony did not carry over to the PlayStation 5—at least, not officially.
Turns out, there is a built-in web browser on PS5. If you tab through the PS5’s menu, you’ll come across a selection of web browser settings—including options to clear cookies, change Javascript preferences, and more. So where the heck is it, and how do you use it?
Accessing the browser isn’t hard; you can open it in several places through the console’s Settings menu, such as by accessing the online user manual under Settings > User’s Guide, Health & Safety, and Other Information > User’s Guide. It may also pop up in-game to load announcements, user agreements, and other documents.
Unfortunately, the browser does not include an editable URL bar (or most other modern browsing feature, for that matter), so you can’t use it to navigate to other websites.
That said, there is a way to open pages and surf the web on PS5. The trick involves linking your Twitter account and accessing webpages through your Twitter feed, like so:
Hold down the PS button on the PS5 controller to bring up the menu.Scroll over and select the Settings icon.In the settings menu, go to Users and Accounts > Link with Other Services.Select Twitter from the list, then select “Link account.” This opens the Twitter login page in the PS5’s browser. Log in with your Twitter account.Once you’re logged in, you can open links from your Twitter feed, and the pages or media will load in the browser. While you still can’t plug in a URL, you could feasibly use this workaround to link your way around the web. Note that some pages may not load at all, or will load slowly at first—but there are ways to possibly speed things up (albeit only slightly).
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Screenshot: Brendan Hesse
Go to Settings > System > Web Browser.Turn on “Allow Cookies” and “Enable Javascript.”Keeping these settings off is better for your privacy, but they might help some pages display properly and load more quickly if enabled.
Speaking of privacy, the PS5’s Web Browser menu also has settings to prevent cross-site tracking and for deleting cookies and website data. These settings imply Sony expects users to open pages beyond just user manuals and social media login screens, despite the browser’s current, limited functionality. It’s possible the app could blossom into a fully-fledged web browser after a future update, allowing users to surf the web on PS5 just like they can on PS4, but for now, it’s at least a novel way to load links if you happen to use Twitter on your PS5.
To be fair, most people don’t need a web browser on their gaming console—their phones or computers are probably right next to them while they play, and you can always load up the YouTube app or other streaming apps like Hulu if you want to watch something on your PS5. Still, there’s bound to be someone out there who really wishes the PS5 had a dedicated web browser, and this is the closest thing to it right now.
[TechRadar]
