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Safari vs other browsers?

A

AceCoolie

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 19, 2009
187
0
How many of you are using other browsers vs Safari? Back before iOS5, I used Atomic because Safari sucked and I wanted tabs etc. With iOS5, Apple added tabs as well as a few other features and gave it a big performance boost with the Nitro engine. At that point, I switched over and have been using it instead.

Now, I find myself wondering if I should go back to Atomic. I want to be able to define gestures for page navigation and download files to dropbox etc. My dilemma is performance. I've run browsermark in both browsers and the Safari score is almost twice as high. Does this correlate to real world performance? In testing a few web pages such as engadget, Atomic is about 1 sec faster loading. What kind of real world scenarios is browsermark testing? Will I notice the difference?

I know Atomic has the features I want but I just don't want to always be thinking that I'm running a slower browser every time I use it.
 
U

UrsaMajor

macrumors regular
Jan 4, 2007
130
0
Terra is pretty good. Safari is always my go to, idk just habit. But some sites, mostly flash based crash it.

I need a android tablet just to view flash based stuff. It's still a flash based world.
 
laurenr

laurenr

macrumors 6502a
Jan 9, 2008
937
31
California
For me, the iCab browser is by far the most feature laden, in part, because of its modules. I have Atomic, and many others, but its still my top Browser for the IOS. It is just so highly configurable for one's individual needs.
 
88 King

88 King

macrumors 6502
Jun 18, 2011
377
0
London, UK
I am using atomic browser myself mainly because of the gestures, its much easier using swipe than reach all the way to the top left hand corner everytime you want to go back a page.

Web page loading speed has been fine for most sites I visit, not sure safari is twice faster than atomic browser.

Benchmark scores often do not represent daily use scenarios, so you have to take results with pinch of salt.

Also I understand all the browser app in IOS uses the same web kit engine, it is not like Android where there are different bowsers from Firfox, Opera and chrome. So there really should not be too much differences in performance.
 
Zetaprime

Zetaprime

macrumors 65816
Dec 4, 2011
1,481
262
Ohio, US
I always use iCab. It has the most features and is great for downloading. If they added Flash video support ala Puffin or Skyfire it would be perfect, though Flash is getting less and less important as time goes by.
 
C

cipo

macrumors member
Nov 23, 2010
58
11
Stuttgart, Germany
Funny no one mentioned ad blocking yet, as the lack of this feature in Safari is the main reason I'm using iCab. Sometimes when I turn off ad blocking I just shake my head in disbelief considerung how ridiculous the web looks without it.
 
P

Powermax

macrumors regular
Aug 11, 2006
231
195
I also use iCab, mostly because of ad blocking. I just miss Safari's Reading mode!
 
A

AdonisSMU

macrumors 604
Oct 23, 2010
7,298
3,047
Safari is the fastest and I don't need the bloat ware. Safari FTW!!!

If I wanted a bloated underperforming browser I'd just use IE on my PC.
 
T

turkey1

macrumors member
Feb 13, 2009
33
0
Atomic is my favorite, but I'm pretty sure safari is considerably faster loading most Web pages so I'm using both right now.
 
Last edited:
0dev

0dev

macrumors 68040
Dec 22, 2009
3,947
24
127.0.0.1
Are any of these third party browsers actually anything other than a wrapper for Safari like Dolphin HD is?
 
T

turkey1

macrumors member
Feb 13, 2009
33
0
I think they are all pretty much wrappers, which is why it is surprising that they differ in speed browsermark shows safari being twice as fast. I dont think safari is actually twice the speed, but it seems a hair faster than all the others.
 
MrXiro

MrXiro

macrumors 68040
Nov 2, 2007
3,850
599
Los Angeles
Been using Opera Mini while using my LTE to save some data... it uses compression... I was up to 55mb in a day and a half of surfing already... I've thus far used 4mb today. :)
 
B

Bag302

macrumors regular
Sep 23, 2009
134
6
I've been using perfect browser for a while. My favorite feature is that I can easily adjust the font size for each website I visit and the browser will remember your preference when you return.

No more pinch and zooming!!
 
koigirl

koigirl

macrumors 6502a
Jul 29, 2011
846
401
Raleigh, NC
Okay, I have a question for you. I love to read the NYTimes online and refuse to pay $20/month for digital access. Do any of the browsers that work with iPad have the feature that will reset cookies each time you load so you never reach monthly article limit?
 
nwcs

nwcs

macrumors 68030
Sep 21, 2009
2,722
5,262
Tennessee
I used Atomic for a long while but with iCloud and sync to my Mac and other devices I really don't see a good alternative to Safari. The convenience is worth the minor missing features that Atomic gives me. Same with why I don't use Chrome or another browser on my Mac. And since I use Safari on my work PC I have all my stuff synced there, too. Really nice!
 
M

MartyXB

macrumors member
Apr 16, 2011
77
2
My problem that I had with Safari in the past was that there were a few web sites that when accessed with Safari would bring me to their mobile site. I guess they thought that it was being queried with an iPhone. So I would have to use others like Tera and set it up to respond like it was "Mac OS X Safari 5".

I just tested it. Problem still remains. If I go to the Sprint Family Locator page, as an example, it redirects me to their mobile site. Tera would bring me to the correct site.
 
A

AceCoolie

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jun 19, 2009
187
0
So, it sounds like lots of people are using other browsers and not feeling like they are taking a perf hit. That's good to know.
 
G

G77

macrumors regular
Jan 12, 2010
127
0
I love iCab for added features:

ad blocking
download manager
direct upload to web
direct upload of images to dropbox
modules for huge amount of services (from translation to evernote)
scrollbar for fast movement on the page
fullscreen mode
very broad customization (menus, toolbars , gestures)
not sending me to youtube app for youtube video - this is sooo anoying in Safari

I use safari for quick reference and iCab for serious surfing.
 
A

arterio

macrumors member
Feb 12, 2012
55
0
I'm surprised no one has mentioned Mercury Web Browser Pro. I've been using it on my iPhone 4 for almost a year and absolutely love it. Ad blocking, full screen, full screen with tabs, radial menu for quick and easy access. The list goes on. Can't wait to load it up on my new iPad on Friday.
 
I

IT Troll

macrumors regular
Mar 16, 2012
216
108
Edinburgh
Would it be possible for one of the third party browsers to report a higher resolution on the Retina iPad and give us increased web page screen estate?
 
A

Adam-Jobs

macrumors regular
Mar 28, 2011
221
66
Safari for daily browsing. Terra for porn as you can put a lock code before the app loads up!
 
0dev

0dev

macrumors 68040
Dec 22, 2009
3,947
24
127.0.0.1
G77 said:
I love iCab for added features:

ad blocking
download manager
direct upload to web
direct upload of images to dropbox
modules for huge amount of services (from translation to evernote)
scrollbar for fast movement on the page
fullscreen mode
very broad customization (menus, toolbars , gestures)
not sending me to youtube app for youtube video - this is sooo anoying in Safari

I use safari for quick reference and iCab for serious surfing.
Click to expand...

That actually sounds really awesome, I'll have to check that out. Is it free?
 
M

mush10

macrumors regular
Jul 15, 2008
127
33
I use Atomic. The customizable icons (both feature and transperancy) at the bottom adds usability to the iPad. Ad-Block and User Agent switching make it my go-to.
 
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