iPhone (EU) Non WebKit Browsers

[Blue Hawk]

This is not a thread with „No one needs another browsers“ or „WebKit is great. Anything else sucks“ replies. I would really like to discuss this objectively with you.

As you know Apple has to allow another browser engines in the European Union like Chromium/Blink and Gecko. Of course there are not available yet but I would like to discuss them here when they are available and we can check out which one performs better on the iPhone.

At the moment all browsers are based on WebKit. Somehow Chrome and Aloha are performing better for me than Safari. The other ones aren’t that good for me. The Orion browser allows Firefox and Chrome add ons but with WebKit they’re not working well.

Google already tested a Chromium browser on iOS in 2023 and Mozilla also announced to publish a Gecko based browser as soon as they can. On Android Gecko isn’t working as well as Chromium. I’ve wrote with the Aloha developer and they haven’t decided yet if they want to go on with WebKit or with Chromium.

What are your opinions. Are you going to use or try them?

 

[casperes1996]

My main problem here is that I think the union shot itself in the foot from a competition standpoint. The point of this is to encourage competition by preventing platform gate keeping. And in principle that’s good. But I think it may have the inverse effect. While it will increase the browser competition on iOS as a platform, the web as a platform will become more of a monopoly. Google has already killed off a lot of competition and have exceedingly greater and greater control of web standards. We’re at a pong where we only really have three browsers. Firefox, Safari and Chrome. And Firefox is waning. Safari mainly keeps web competition alive because it’s requires on iOS. With that requirement lifted google can dictate the web standards. As it stands new web standards not compatible with safari are not compatible with iOS. That’s too big a market to ignore. But if they can just say “suck it. Download chrome”, then the incentive to not just steamroll the web in a chrome only direction is lost and the open web hurts.

On the technical side I think it will turn out much like on macOS. Similar performance characteristics. Similar resource usage differences, similar speedometer score differences. And crucially similar differences in supported web features. So I expect safari to run faster with better battery life but chrome to properly run more websites with a larger set of supported web features. May be ideal to have both. Especially also if you develop for the web to have both for testing. Chrome for iOS may still be different in some key ways to chrome for Mac or android.

 

[Blue Hawk]

At one side you’re absolutely right. But I have the feeling that Apple will switch to Blink sooner or later anyway. It’s just a feeling.

 

[Rock_Artist]

right. But I have the feeling that Apple will switch to Blink sooner or later anyway. It’s just a feeling.

That’s interesting feeling. But I’m not sure why would they.
While Chromium/Blink is dominant, as long as for Apple eco-system and especially iOS with major chunk of smartphones, they have no interest “giving up”.

Being a major force, they have more control on shaping the web standards, and for Apple/WebKit they have a major impact on mobile adoption.

By switching to a chromium, they’ll end up having less control and in-ability to promote their own standards.
That doesn’t sounds reasonable at current state of their market share.

 

[Blue Hawk]

WebKit doesn’t really have a future in my opinion since safari isn’t available on Windows anymore.

 

[casperes1996]

WebKit doesn’t really have a future in my opinion since safari isn’t available on Windows anymore.

There are some low-key WebKit browsers on Windows like Otter and Playwright. But ultimately I just don't think Windows matter. It's the only OS without a major WebKit platform, and frankly the majority of modern web usage comes from mobile devices. WebKit has also not been available on Windows for quite a number of years, and even when it was available wasn't as good as on macOS and wasn't that used by that many people. But even without that it's had a future for two decades now

 

[leonremi]

WebKit doesn’t really have a future in my opinion since safari isn’t available on Windows anymore.

Who uses Windows except at work and some hardcore gamers?
For most people, their main "computer IS their iPhone.