I have been an Opera user for the longest time. I know, I’m the guy to get weird stares from (lagging) Chrome users. But, one of the key reasons for which I’ve stuck with the Opera browser is the multi-functional sidebar.
The sidebar in Opera comes integrated with some of my most-used chat messengers. I tend to take a lot of screenshots on my phone, sending it across to my PC via a dummy WhatsApp group chat. The sidebar gives me one-click access to WhatsApp. Today, the Opera browser has gained Twitter integration to make news and tips more accessible to me.
Opera already made Telegram, WhatsApp, and Facebook Messenger available in this sidebar. The browser gained Instagram integration back in March and now, Twitter is only a click away. You can simply tap the ‘Twitter’ icon in the sidebar and tweet your thoughts away.
If you are new to Opera or planning to switch due to its myriad of integrations, here’s how you can enable the Twitter integration. When you power up the browser, you will already see the sidebar on the left. Now, follow the steps underneath:
1. Right-click on the sidebar and select the ‘sidebar setup’ option to be greeted with a plethora of sidebar settings. You can also tap the ‘three dots’ icon at the bottom to get access to the sidebar settings.
2. Under the ‘Messengers’ section, click on ‘show more’ and just toggle on ‘Twitter’ to access the service via the sidebar.
“Having Twitter built into Opera gives you quick access to your main feed, the search function, as well as direct messages, allowing you to respond to unfolding events more quickly,” says Opera in an official blog post. You will gain access to a responsive version of Twitter’s website. It’s going to be sure handy and adds to the list of apps that I will access via the sidebar in Opera.
Apart from the Twitter integration, Opera 69 brings a new weather widget baked at the top left on the start page. The tab cycler (accessible via Ctrl+Tab) has also received a visual overhaul in this update. The browser already offers users access to a free VPN service, ad-blocking, tracker blocker, and a Crypto wallet, among other things.
