IPad – Prevent saved home screen icons opening a browser without address bar

bookmarksipadmobile-safari

I browse using Safari on my iPad.
I find an interesting web page.
I save a link to the page via “Add to Home screen”.
Nice icon, all seems well.

Later, I “click” the icon.
The page opens in the browser, but it does not have the address bar, the other tabs and the standard buttons.
This is very annoying …

How do I stop this behaviour, either when saving the link or when opening the link?

Best Answer

The idea of "Add to Home screen" is to create an app-like experience for web apps, so this will not give a full browswer.

But there is an alternative: Use the Shortcuts app with an "Open URL" action and add the shortcut to your home screen.

  1. Launch the Shortcuts app
  2. Select "Create Shortcut"
  3. Select "Add Action"
  4. Select "Web", scroll down to the Safari section and select "Open URLs"

  5. Tap on the "URL" placeholder and write your URL instead

    Newly created shortcut

  6. Tap on the three dots on top right, assign a name and select "Add to Home Screen"

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