How to Change Settings in iOS Dolphin

A rundown of Dolphin's browser modes, settings, and options

What to Know

  • Tap the Dolphin icon at the bottom of the app to open the settings menu. Swipe left to reveal options.
  • Settings include: Add Page, Share, Refresh, Find on Page, Downloads, Sonar & Gesture, Private Mode, Night Mode, and more.
  • To access the browser settings, select the Dolphin icon, then choose the gear icon.

Dolphin is a free mobile web browser for iOS and Android devices. While not as popular as Chrome, Safari, or Firefox, Dolphin holds a loyal following for its ease-of-use, customizability, and small footprint. Here's how to customize the Dolphin mobile web browser for iPhone and iPad devices with iOS 8.0 or later.

How to Access the Dolphin Menu

Dolphin has a variety of modes and functions, so you can customize how you use the mobile browser. Here's a look at how to access the Dolphin menu and what its options mean.

  1. Download the Dolphin browser to your iPhone or iPad.

  2. Open the app and tap the Dolphin icon at the bottom of the screen.

  3. A menu appears that shows Dolphin's modes and functions.

  4. Swipe left to reveal more menu items.

    Dolphin settings and functions

How the Dolphin Menu Items Work

Here's a look at the functionality each Dolphin menu item offers.

Add Page

When you tap Add Page, you have the option to Add Bookmark, Add Speed Dial, or Add Gesture.

  • Tap Add Bookmark to add the page to your bookmarked sites, similar to how other browsers work.
  • Tap Add Speed Dial to add the page to your home page so you can quickly launch it with a tap.
  • Tap Add Gesture to create a quick shorthand design to launch a page. For example, create a simple L gesture to launch Lifewire.com.
Add options in Dolphin

Share

When you tap Share, you can share the page to Facebook, Twitter, Evernote, or Pocket. You can also send the page to another device if you're signed in to Dolphin on another mobile phone or tablet. Tap More to send the page via text, email, AirDrop, and more.

Share options in Dolphin

Refresh

Tap Refresh to reload the page.

Find on Page

This function lets you search for and find specific text on a web page. Tap Find on Page to display a search box. Type the search query, tap Search, and see the results.

Find on Page in Dolphin

Downloads

Tap Downloads to show a list of all downloaded files.

Sonar & Gesture

Tap Sonar & Gesture to draw a gesture to command Dolphin to access a frequently visited site. Tap the gear icon to see a list of gestures that already exist, or tap Create Gesture to make a new one and associate it with a URL.

Creating a gesture in Dolphin

Private Mode

Select Private Mode to prevent Dolphin from saving browsing activity to your device. When activated, browser history, cookies, cache, and login credentials aren't saved. Tap Private Mode again to go back to normal.

Private mode in Dolphin

Night Mode

Tap Night Mode to dim the screen to prevent eye strain when browsing in the dark. Tap Night Mode again from the menu to go back to normal.

Night Mode in Dolphin

Classic Tab Mode

Tap Classic Tab Mode to display all open tabs at the top of the browser window, similar to a desktop browser. Tap Classic Tab Mode again to revert to normal.

Classic Tab Mode in Dolphin

Desktop Mode

Tap Desktop Mode to display the desktop version of websites rather than the default mobile-friendly versions.

Disable Image

Tap Disable Image to prevent Dolphin from loading images. This limits your data usage and allows pages to load faster.

Disable Image in Dolphin

Auto Fullscreen

Tap Auto Fullscreen to hide the menu bar at the bottom of the screen when scrolling through a page.

Toolbox

Tap Toolbox to access any plug-ins or extensions added to Dolphin.

Dolphin's Browser Settings

In addition to the Dolphin menu options, customize how the browser works through the Dolphin settings. To access the Dolphin browser settings:

  1. Select the Dolphin from the bottom of the screen.

  2. Tap the gear icon in the lower-left corner.

  3. The Dolphin settings page appears.

    Accessing settings in Dolphin

Understanding the Dolphin Browser Settings

Here's a quick rundown of what the Dolphin browser settings control.

Dolphin Service

Under Dolphin Service, you'll find Account & Sync. Tap Account & Sync to synchronize content and settings across all devices that run Dolphin using the cloud-based Dolphin Connect service.

You can also sync and share Dolphin content with Evernote, Facebook, and Pocket.

Sync settings in Dolphin

Browser Settings

Under Browser Settings, you'll find options for enabling Landscape/Portrait Lock so that you can lock one view in the browser. Tap Font Size to set Default, Medium, or Large fonts. Tap Search Engine to set your default search engine choice, choosing from Yahoo!, Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo, or Wikipedia.

Settings in Dolphin

Also under Browser Settings, tap Link Option to choose to open links in a new tab or the current tab, or keep the default action. Tap On Startup to start up where you left off or open the new tab page. Tap Clear Data to clear your browsing history, cookies, cache, and passwords.

Link Options, On Startup, and Clear Data in Dolphin

Also under Browser Settings, tap Passcode on Startup to require touch ID or a PIN passcode to open and use Dolphin. Toggle off Page Swiping Switch and you won't be able to swipe back and forth between pages. Toggle on Save Passwords to recall passwords used to access certain web pages. Toggle on Block Pop-ups to prevent pop-up ads and windows from appearing on a web page. Toggle on Ad Block to blocks advertisements from appearing on a web page.

About Us

The final section, About Us, displays the Dolphin version number. Tap Tell Us What You Think to open an email box for sending feedback to the Dolphin support team. Tap Rate Dolphin to give the app five stars on the app store or provide feedback via email. Tap Stay in The Loop to subscribe to the Dolphin email newsletter.

Feedback, rating, and subscription in Dolphin settings

The final item is UX Improvement Program. Toggle this on to send usage data to the Dolphin development team. This mostly anonymous data is used to improve future versions of the browser.

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