Which Web Browser Should You Run On Your Android Device?

[adamovera]

Today is our very first Web Browser Grand Prix on Android. Unlike iOS, Android-based tablets have real competition between browsers. So, how do Chrome, Dolphin, Firefox, Maxthon, Opera Mobile, and Sleipnir stack up against the stock Android browser?

Which Web Browser Should You Run On Your Android Device? : Read more

 

[mayankleoboy1]

"Stock Android Browser" is a myth. There is NO "Stock" android browser.
Each device manufacturer (Samsung, Asus, Lg, HTC) customise/modify the "stock" browser to match the SoC, the TDP, power saving, and specific browser benchmark targeted, for that device.

So this "Stock" browser is actually a modified browser, customised by ASUS to work better with a Tegra3 SoC, in some specifc benchmarks which Asus thinks are more important than others. Its not a representative of all android devices.

 

[mayankleoboy1]

Sunspider and Kraken are crap benchmarks. All browsers target these benchmarks for specifc optimisations, that are never actually used on the web.

 

[aznshinobi]

"Stock Android Browser" is a myth. There is NO "Stock" android browser.
Each device manufacturer (Samsung, Asus, Lg, HTC) customise/modify the "stock" browser to match the SoC, the TDP, power saving, and specific browser benchmark targeted, for that device.

So this "Stock" browser is actually a modified browser, customised by ASUS to work better with a Tegra3 SoC, in some specifc benchmarks which Asus thinks are more important than others. Its not a representative of all android devices.

When you're running a Nexus device, it's a stock browser...

 

[adamovera]

[citation][nom]mayankleoboy1[/nom]Sunspider and Kraken are crap benchmarks. All browsers target these benchmarks for specifc optimisations, that are never actually used on the web.[/citation]
SunSpider is the next to go for sure, but I haven't heard a ton of criticism regarding Kraken yet. Between BrowserMark, Peacekeeper, and RIABench, we could withdraw all the vendor-developed JS tests.

 

[tiret]

give me a browser with flash support then we'll talk

 

[mayankleoboy1]

^ coming soon to firefox. Project Shumway.

 

[tiret]

^ interesting. lets hope it works out... my gf is rather pissed that she can't play farmville on my galaxy tab.

 

[fwupow]

I've already figured out that Chrome isn't so hot, but the reason why Chrome still wins for me is that it synchronizes bookmarks, passwords, history and a bunch of other stuff across all my computers and devices. That is an indispensable feature for me.

 

[wildkitten]

[citation][nom]tiret[/nom]give me a browser with flash support then we'll talk[/citation]
Since Adobe themselves has ended Flash development for all mobile platforms, I don't think you will see many browsers keeping support for it for long. Likely in a year, maybe 18 months, you won't see any support for Flash as, well, what's the point.

 

[Guest]

Firefox Beta has flash support once you download and install the flash apk - I have it working well on my Nexus 7

 

[Guest]

It is not benchmark results that counts when choosing my mobile browser. And what counts?
- some kind of adblocking utility, like urlfilter.ini in Opera, adblock in firefox
- minimum font size. On my 8" 160dpi screen fonts are too small to be read comfortably. In Opera I can declare a minimum font size and have all webpages readable and well formatted.
- declare to be a desktop browser. I most browsers I have to declare this for every site I visit, in Opera I do it once and it is set
- smoothness on any hardware, not only Quad-core. Try stock browser or firefox on a single-core A10 machine and it will freeze for 10s when composing your webpage. Opera won't be butter-smooth, but it will let you scroll througn the page from the beginning.
So Opera is the worst browser according to Thg, but is the best for me, the average user.

 

[Tomtompiper]

Read this on Dolphin on my Galaxy Tab, Dolphin has been a fixture on the Tab for two years and for good reason. Forget the scores, even if it wasn't top I would still use it, the actual user experience is head and shoulders above the competition.

 

[obarthelemy]

[citation][nom]piotrjakub[/nom]It is not benchmark results that counts when choosing my mobile browser. And what counts?- some kind of adblocking utility, like urlfilter.ini in Opera, adblock in firefox- minimum font size. On my 8" 160dpi screen fonts are too small to be read comfortably. In Opera I can declare a minimum font size and have all webpages readable and well formatted.- declare to be a desktop browser. I most browsers I have to declare this for every site I visit, in Opera I do it once and it is set- smoothness on any hardware, not only Quad-core. Try stock browser or firefox on a single-core A10 machine and it will freeze for 10s when composing your webpage. Opera won't be butter-smooth, but it will let you scroll througn the page from the beginning.So Opera is the worst browser according to Thg, but is the best for me, the average user.[/citation]

This. A review of performance only is useless. Features are more important.

 

[obarthelemy]

Also, Opera has a night mode that works, the only browser I could find with one. It's a little hacky though (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1326434)

 

[gilahacker]

"Boat Browser" (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.boatbrowser.free) supports flash just fine. I've used it on a Galaxy S3 and a Nexus 10. Just go download the latest Flash apk from Adobe:

http://helpx.adobe.com/flash-player/kb/archived-flash-player-versions.html#main_Archived_Flash_Player_versions_for_developers

Scroll down a bit to get to the Android listings.

 

[Guest]

naked browser

the ui is very minimal though so might not be newcomer friendly
but the responsiveness is on par with dolphin

 

[swyn01]

Chrome is the default browser for Nexus devices running Jellybean. Browser is not even installed on neither the Galaxy Nexus nor the Nexus 4.

 

[Guest]

Chrome is not only the default for Nexus devices...Razr M, HD, and Maxx HD also come with Chrome as the only browser installed. It's been great for me and I especially like being able to swipe between tabs.

 

[Guest]

so, according to real life browsing opera has fastest browsing, but because it scores last in syntethic benchmarks it comes last?

 

[Mygind]

I've had the TF300T for some month using Dolphin... And It is still slow, slow, slow.

My next buy will be a labtop Core i5 / HD 4000 with a SSD and a mouse with a wire. It will be set up so it is always on standby - and wakes up in 2-4 sec.

Tablets are for todlers and teens

 

[Mygind]

I've had the TF300T for some month using Dolphin... And It is still slow, slow, slow.

My next buy will be a labtop Core i5 / HD 4000 with a SSD and a mouse with a wire. It will be set up so it is always on standby - and wakes up in 2-4 sec.

Tablets are for todlers and teens

 

[amdwilliam1985]

Why is Asus Transformer TF300T being used as the Android test bed? Isn't Nexus 7 or Nexus 10 a way better test bed? Especially when you start comparing it to ipad.

 

[sybertron]

[citation][nom]gilahacker[/nom]"Boat Browser" (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.boatbrowser.free) supports flash just fine. I've used it on a Galaxy S3 and a Nexus 10. Just go download the latest Flash apk from Adobe:http://helpx.adobe.com/flash-playe [...] developersScroll down a bit to get to the Android listings.[/citation]


I agree, Boat Browser is extremely fast with a terrific interface. On top of it all it's listed on the Play store as having 1-5 million installs for both the Large & Mini version. Both of those completely trump the number of users for ones that were included in the review.

Not including it in this review is a huge oversight for such a widely used browser.

 

[jimmyjohnz]

Well I just picked up the Tf300+dock from the $300 Woot deal, so this article is actually really helpful to me. At least it will be whenever I actually receive the darned thing.