iTerm2 Web Browser

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Overall Reaction

  • Many are initially baffled (“why put a browser in a terminal?”) but some report that, after trying it, it feels surprisingly natural and useful.
  • Others remain firmly unconvinced and see it as unnecessary or even regressive, preferring a minimal, “dumb” terminal that just renders text.

Use Cases and Workflow Benefits

  • Popular scenario: having documentation, dashboards, or data viewers in a browser pane alongside shells and editors in the same iTerm2 window/tab.
  • Mac users note this helps work around macOS’s limited split-screen behavior (only two full-screen apps per space) and reduces window juggling.
  • Examples mentioned: viewing logs/REPL output, Clojure/Portal workflows, YouTube/music with ad blocking, and keeping web docs next to a running process.
  • Integrated pane navigation with existing iTerm2 shortcuts feels like a lightweight tiling window manager inside the terminal.

Security, Scope, and Philosophy

  • Some find SSH-based URL file viewing “oddly compelling” but also an obvious attack vector; the feature is described as a double-edged sword.
  • Concern that embedding a WKWebView adds “yet another browser attack surface” atop an app that has had past security issues.
  • Others argue that since it’s just WKWebView, the risk is not clearly higher than any other webview-using app.
  • Purists object on principle: terminals shouldn’t know about URLs, images, or the web; programs should “do one thing well.”
  • AI integration is controversial: critics see it as part of “enshittification,” supporters note it is off by default and configurable.

Installation and Usage Details

  • The browser is an optional plugin: a separate .app must be installed before the “Profile Type: Web Browser” option appears.
  • Some users struggled until they updated iTerm2 and reinstalled the plugin; the “drop an .app anywhere” plugin model is seen as odd.
  • Tips are shared on opening links in browser tabs, splitting panes with different profiles, and combining browser/terminal panes in one tab.

iTerm2 Itself and Alternatives

  • Strong praise for iTerm2’s overall quality, feature depth, and ongoing development; users highlight Instant Replay, visor, triggers, notifications, toolbelt, timestamp tweaks, RTL text support, and more.
  • Some still prefer alternatives (kitty, Alacritty, Linux terminals) or see limited ergonomic gains for heavy dotfiles/tmux users.
  • Window-management complaints about macOS lead to mentions of tiling tools (like Aerospace) and Linux WMs (i3/sway) as broader context.