Phi Help

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Quick tips for Phi Browser ​

This page collects Phi gestures and shortcuts that are less obvious from the interface. The keyboard shortcuts shown here are the defaults. You can change them in Settings → Shortcuts.

Shortcut reference ​

ActionShortcut or gesture
Create a Split ViewOption (⌥)-click a tab, Pinned Tab, bookmark, or eligible web link
Switch between recently used tabsControl (⌃) + Tab
Switch in reverse orderControl (⌃) + Shift (⇧) + Tab
Copy the current page URLCommand (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + C
Search open tabsCommand (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + A
Move to the previous or next SpaceCommand (⌘) + Option (⌥) + ← or →
Open one of the first nine SpacesControl (⌃) + 1 to 9

Create a Split View ​

  • Hold Option (⌥) and click another tab, a tab inside a group, a Pinned Tab, a bookmark, or an eligible web link. Phi places it beside your current page.
  • Drag a single tab, Pinned Tab, or bookmark to the left or right side of the current page. The side you choose decides where it appears.
  • Drop an item over a pane in an existing unpinned Split View to replace that pane.

Return to a saved URL ​

A Pinned Tab or bookmark can move away from the URL you originally saved. You can return without losing the page you are viewing.

  • Double-click a Pinned Tab to return it to its saved URL.
  • Click a bookmark's favicon to return it to its saved URL.
  • Hold Command (⌘) while using either gesture to keep the current page open as a separate tab before restoring the saved URL.

Use Group Overview ​

Click a Tab Group header to open Group Overview. It shows a snapshot of each page, with a Split View shown as one combined card.

From Group Overview, you can switch to a page, close a page, create a new tab, or change the group's name and colour. If you use the address bar while Group Overview is open, the new tab joins that group.

Drag a whole Tab Group into the bookmarks area to turn it into a bookmark folder. Phi keeps the order of its tabs and dissolves the group, but the open tabs stay open.

Work with several tabs and bookmarks ​

  • Command (⌘)-click regular tabs and bookmarks to select them one at a time.
  • Shift (⇧)-click to select a range.
  • Available actions can include creating a Tab Group, adding items to a bookmark folder, moving or cloning them to another Space, and closing them.
  • Drag any selected item to move the whole selection. The two sides of a Split View stay together.
  • Press Escape to clear the selection.

Switch, search, and copy ​

Control (⌃) + Tab follows recently used order, not the order of tabs in the window.

  • Tap it once to switch between the current tab and the previous one.
  • Hold it or press it repeatedly to show up to five recently used tabs.
  • Add Shift (⇧) to move through the list in reverse.
  • Press Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + A to search all open tabs.
  • Press Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + C to copy the current tab's URL.

Personalise each Space ​

Open Settings → Spaces, then select a Space.

  • Choose an icon from Phi's built-in set, or use an emoji.
  • Choose a theme colour and adjust its saturation.

Each Space keeps its own icon and theme. Switching Spaces applies the appearance you chose for that Space without changing the others.

Move between Spaces ​

  • Press Command (⌘) + Option (⌥) + ← or → to move to the previous or next Space.
  • Press Control (⌃) + 1 to 9 to open one of the first nine Spaces directly.

Route sites with URL Rules ​

Open Spaces → URL Rules… from the menu bar, or open URL Rules from Settings → Spaces. A rule can match by Domain suffix, Domain, Domain contains, or URL.

Send a match to a regular Space or an Incognito Space. Choose Ask every time if you want Phi to ask before moving the page. When several rules match, the most specific rule wins.

Space routing does not isolate cookies

A URL Rule chooses where a page opens. To keep cookies and signed-in sessions separate, assign the target Spaces to different Profiles.

Keep video visible with Picture-in-Picture ​

Phi can pop out playing video when you switch tabs or Spaces. Choose the behaviour under Settings → General → Auto picture-in-picture.

ModeBehaviour
OffNever open Picture-in-Picture automatically. Manual Picture-in-Picture still works.
NormalPop out playing video when you switch tabs or Spaces.
Park at edgePop out playing video, then park the window at the screen edge until you click it.

Move or resize a Picture-in-Picture window and Phi remembers its position and size the next time that site opens Picture-in-Picture. This is saved per site in a regular Profile. Incognito Spaces do not retain it. If the saved display is no longer connected, Phi uses the default placement.

To park an open Picture-in-Picture window yourself, move the pointer over it and click the down arrow, labelled Park at screen edge. Phi tucks the window against the nearest screen edge and leaves a handle visible. Click the handle to bring the window back. This control works even when automatic Picture-in-Picture is set to Off.

Ask the assistant about your current work ​

  • Select text, right-click it, and choose Ask [your assistant] about… to bring the selection into a conversation.
  • Opening the assistant attaches the current tab by default. If that tab is in a group, Phi can attach the whole group.
  • A Tab Group or Split View can be attached as one unit.

To start conversations without the current tab attached, turn off Automatically add current tab as context to new conversation under Settings → Phi AI → AI Sidebar.

When you use Phi Cloud, the content needed to answer your question is sent to a third-party model provider for processing. With Private AI, it stays on your Mac. See Privacy & Your Data for details.

What's next ​