Webupon

So, as one of the many of the Americans that are living with slow computers, I’ve been trying to find a browser that I don’t end up hitting my head on the desk after using.  Therefore, I’ve tried just about all of them, and here’s my take:

I had read lots of good things about IE 8, how it was going to have all these great features, and be fast at the same time.  But c’mon people, this is Internet Explorer.  IE 8 makes gains to catch up to Firefox in terms of tabbed browsing features (including a colorful tab grouping feature that is handy), and it is noticeably faster than IE 7, but it still is not up to par with the other major competitors at this list, and doesn’t pass the Acid3 web standards test even a little bit (only recorded a 23/100 on my computer).

The Verdict: *** (3/5 Stars)

The famous open source competitor to Internet Explorer, Firefox is the second most popular browser on the web, holding about 20% of the market.  I have been a Firefox user for years, but I have never really explored my options.  Compared to IE, Firefox is great, and it is a solid product for anyone who wants a good internet experience.  It doesn’t handle Javascript as well as Chrome or Safari.  Overall, though, for users that want a mixture of features and performance this is a great option.

The Verdict: **** (4/5 Stars)

Famous for being “the fastest browser in the world” on Mac computers, I was not sure if I had downloaded the right browser when I got Safari.  Fast?  Oh ya.  The chrome has a redux for Windows and it even looks great, and it passes the Acid3 web standards test.  On the downside, it is a tad overly simplistic and gimmicky and Apple has a tendency to shove Apple products in your face at every corner.  Probably the best option out there if you can get past the fact that it is Apple.

The Verdict: ****’ (4.5/5 stars)

The browser that’s been all news recently, Google’s latest darling is great, but with some minor drawbacks.  Chrome offers some excellent features that could potentially revolutionize the way modern browsers function.  The so-called OmniBar, an address bar that has Google Search, Wikipedia and other popular website search destinations built in.  It also has the best looking interface, private, or Incognito, browsing, super-fast Javascript, and it runs Google applications superbly.  On the downside, it crashes tabs fairly frequently (I would say around 10% of the time it will crash when I am browsing), and sometimes it is just plain gimmicky.  A great idea with some minor glitches that Google developers are constantly fixing.

The Verdict: ****’ (4.5/5 stars)

A highly-rated, little used browser, Opera is excellent.  Take the speed of Google Chrome and mash it with the features of Firefox, and you have Opera.  In addition to those features, it has these things called Mouse Gestures, where by holding right click and moving the mouse in a certain way you can go back, forward, open a new window, and a plethora of other things.  Yet despite all of those things, it just doesn’t feel right.  The pages are fast, and it looks fairly nice, but it just doesn’t feel right.  It can be a little laggy at times, and despite the bright future that Opera 10 has (the Alpha release is blindingly fast), right now it’s just not the one for the average user.

The Verdict: **** (4/5 stars)

The Final Verdict

While other browsers might offer shiny chrome or nifty features, Firefox just plain works.  It is fast enough for the average user, is stable, and has lots of customization for the person who wants more out of their browser.  It also is open-source, which automatically makes it near and dear to me in my heart (the only other open source project on this list is Chrome, which mysteriously does not have a first-party Linux port out).  Looking ahead, the Firefox 3.5 beta is due out in April and it should be a major improvement over the current beta release (3.1 beta 3).  The battle for the best browser is only going to get more intense, as all the above mentioned competitors are sure to put out excellent products in the future.  Only question is, who will be number one?