The Qt WebBrowser (codename Roadtrip) is a browser for embedded devices developed using the capabilities of Qt and Qt WebEngine. Using recent Chromium, it features up-to-date HTML technologies behind a minimal but slick touch-friendly user interface written in Qt Quick.

User Interface

The user interface of the browser is designed for embedded devices using a touch screen. It uses flat icons and minimalistic transitions to provide a contemporary look and feel.

All central actions are conveniently accessible in the menu bar at the top. When the user scrolls down a page, the menu bar disappears to leave more screen space for content. It appears again if the user scrolls upwards.

The Back button (1) and Forward button (2) navigate through the history of pages already visited. The input bar (3) allows the user to type and edit URL's, or search for text. It also allows to reload a page, or stop a page currently loading. Pages can be bookmarked with the Bookmark button (6), the bookmarked pages are accessible through the Home button (4). The Pages button (5) allows the user to manage the pages currently opened. The Settings button (7) brings up a view of the current settings.

Opening Pages

The input bar supports typing in either a full URL or a query that is automatically passed to Google. Url suggestions of visited pages matching the text are suggested during typing. The current text can be cleared by pressing the Cancel button on the right.

When the user finishes editing, a blue line serves as a progress indicator for the page currently loading. The loading can be stopped by pressing the Cancel button. After the page finished loading this button is replaced by a Reload button, that forces a reload of the page when pressed.

Page Scrolling

The view of the page can be moved around by pressing and moving a finger.

Page Zooming

Zoom in or out a particular section of the page by pinching fingers.

Bookmark Management

Individual pages can be bookmarked by pressing the Bookmark button. By pressing the same button again the page is removed from the bookmarks.

The Home button lets the user browse the bookmarked pages in a multi-page grid. Each page is represented by its name and icon, if available.

Page Management

The Pages button enables the user to open new pages and to switch between them using the Carousel UI pattern:

The number of pages that can be opened simultaneously is intentionally limited to 10.

User Settings

A settings page is available by pressing the Settings button. The page contains options for enabling a private browsing mode that does not leave traces in the history and cookies.

Virtual Keyboard

The integrated Qt Virtual Keyboard slides in whenever text input is required. It enables typing text in a great variety of different languages.

Features

Qt WebEngine leverages Chromium to provide a state-of-the art, high performance HTML5 web engine.

Video and Audio

Chromium and therefore Qt WebEngine directly integrate with OS services to access video and audio devices. After the user acknowledges access to them, solutions using WebRTC, such as video and audio conferencing, work out-of-the-box, provided that the required codecs are available.

Location Information

Qt WebEngine uses Qt Location to provide pages with location information. Again, the users have to explicitly give their consent to each page attempting to access this information.

Fullscreen Mode

Videos can be played in fullscreen mode.

Developer Features

Developer Tools

Qt WebEngine supports remotely accessing the built-in Chromium Developer Tools. This allows debugging and optimizing individual pages on the device.

For more information, see the Qt WebEngine documentation on Debugging and Profiling.

Simulation of Touch Input

While the Qt WebBrowser is optimized for touch devices, it can also be tested on all the desktop operating systems. Keyboard and mouse input works out of the box. Touch input can be simulated by using several mouse buttons while pressing the Ctrl key.

Platform Requirements

Qt WebBrowser requires the Qt WebEngine, Qt Quick and Qt Virtual Keyboard modules in version 5.7 or newer.

At minimum 1 GB of RAM is advised to provide a seamless experience for different pages. Depending on the exact configuration and the pages visited this can be further optimized.

Qt Quick and Qt WebEngine use OpenGL for rendering. Best performance therefore requires dedicated graphics hardware with drivers supporting OpenGL.