Open SWF File

View embedded SWF files on Android

Flash has been discontinued on Android since 2012. Due to this, many web developers have adopted the benefits of HTML5, AMP and other technologies, so as not to have to miss Flash much on mobile, but some pages persist in the use of Flash.

While Flash content can still run on Chrome and Firefox for PC, the Android versions of the major browsers do not include Flash support.

Third party browsers

The solution is to use a special browser. In this, the recommended are the Chinese browsers like UC Browser, Dolphin Browser or Puffin Browser. However, not all of these browsers are so "friendly" when it comes to enabling SWF content.

UC Browser requires too many permissions and sends more notifications than we would like, while Dolphin Browser just doesn't work well and requires an additional installation to get Flash working. In this case, the best option for browsing web pages with flash content is Puffin Browser.

Puffin Browser is an alternative Taiwanese browser that continues to be updated periodically and includes support for Flash directly from the factory, without doing anything else. However, not all flash content is playable by this browser.

The steps to follow are:

• Install Puffin Browser directly from Google Play.
• Open the browser already installed.
• Google your preferred SWF content page and then try to run it.

Since Puffin Browser already comes with support for Flash content out of the box, you really don't need to do anything other than surf the net as usual. The only thing you have to keep in mind is that some pages may switch to the mobile optimized layout, without Flash, so you may need to activate the view mode as on the PC. Puffin is very similar to the Google Chrome interface, so it shouldn't be difficult to find View as computer in its menu.

As you can see, this solution is practically automatic and does not require complex configurations, although you should know that you may encounter drawbacks, since SWF is being massively replaced by HTML5.

SWF with special controls on Android

Much of the Flash content is created thinking on a PC, with its keyboard and mouse. This turns toward a problem to operate with the mobile only with touch controls. Puffin Browser shows special on-screen controls with which to emulate a mouse and keyboard control that can get you out of more than one trouble, especially in Flash games.

SWF in full screen theater mode

Another peculiarity of Puffin Browser that makes it a great alternative to consume Flash content is the theater mode. Accessible from the options menu, it detects and displays Flash content in full screen. The result is good in most Flash games on the web, although it can be confusing for pages that only include certain blocks in Flash integrated with the rest of the web.

In summary, in order to continue viewing Flash content on your Android, you must reject traditional browsers and opt for a lesser-known one. After all, there is no shortage of alternatives on Google Play (Flash Fox, Ace Browser, Mercury Browser ...).