Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Mozilla Will Not Release an iOS Version of Firefox Due to Apple's Limitations on Third-Party Browsers
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Chrome for iOS is just a (slightly slower) wrapper for Safari, not a proper browser.
What Mozilla is saying here is they don't want to just make a wrapper for Safari, they want to do things properly and make a full browser, which Apple won't let them do. I think that's perfectly fair of Mozilla and pathetic of Apple.
I think it's sad that people think that a web browser is nothing more than an engine with a wrapper around it. Many desktop browsers use WebKit as their engine, yet many people prefer one WebKit browser to another.
That's why I went Android. Didn't want Apple telling how run my device. Its my device not there's.
Your lack of understanding on the matter is on show for everyone to see....
----------
Hit the nail right on the head. Great post.
Get nitrous on a JB device and be happy!
nitro for all apps that normally couldn't
Fast imdb, Facebook, chrome, etc!
nitro for all apps that normally couldn't
Fast imdb, Facebook, chrome, etc!
Firefox was one of the first apps that I downloaded for my Nexus 4 phone and Nexus 7 tablet. After installing those, I went to the app store expecting to a version there and was disappointed.
Sometimes I really hate Apple.
Sometimes I really hate Apple.
They can.
They can Jailbreak, or they can buy an Android, Windows,Blackberry phone.
No one has ever said you are entitle the the choice that YOU demand.
Dump XUL, write Firefox in Cocoa using AppKit/Foundation Kit natively, include GCD/OpenCL and make it fully thread safe. After all, we want a native application, not a web app.
Funny how Microsoft gets sued for not giving an obvious browser choice. Wonder how long until the same rules apply for smartphones - since they essentially are mini computer.
Totally different situations. Apple don't have 90% of the phone market for a start.
But while you're at it ask why your playstation games wont work on the Mac or Xbox.
Lame-ass Android POS? Android 4.2.2 on the Nexus 4 runs circles around iOS on any device you can put it on + offers total personalization and features. I have an iPhone, I'm not against Apple in any way. I see an amazing device that could be so much more if the OS was open. I see it from a developer standpoint, because I too am one - this is a technology forum, not just a user place to chill and where noobs gather to feast in the latest ignorant comments about their beloved iOS by the mighty Apple.
iOS is limited, it won't let you do anything interesting apart from the limitations imposed by Apple. I agree with Mozilla, but they won't ever open up.
As a regular Joe, I prefer iOS for its simplicity, but as a developer and tech enthusiast, Android is my preferred platform because it allows total customization.
People shouldn't be shading Android just because it's open and allows users to do stuff. Seriously, demo a Nexus yourself, see what you can do with it, and then talk crap about Android if you're still not happy.
As others have too stated, Chrome for iOS is just a (slightly slower) wrapper for Safari, not a proper browser.
Lolz... what kind of "innovation" could be done if all you are allowed to do is putting a fancy front-end around UIWebView - and nothing else?
----------
Strange - my main browser is Firefox on OS X (with 8GB of RAM) and I've never run into the browser's occupying more than 1GB of RAM. And I don't kill / restart it often.
----------
Absolutely agreed. After learning to program Android 4.x some months ago, I was astonished how capable it is, API-wise. iOS is far-far inferior in this regard (too).
Interesting - I didn't know that. So, when using Chrome, it's actually just Safari made to look/act like Chrome?
When visiting a website in Chrome, what does the website see requesting them - Safari or Chrome?
Don't see that ever happening. iOS is (probably) never going to have enough of a monopoly to justify it.
Sorry, but you don't even seem to know what you're speaking about...
----------
I don't think Opera Mini will go and be abandoned. After all, while it has some severe JavaScript limitations (I've published several compliance reports over at the Opera website; can link to these reports if interested), proxy server-based HTML -> OM conversion the ONLY way to really reduce internet traffic. People with slow or severely capped (e.g., in developing countries) Internet access will prefer Opera Mini to anything not involving compression, that is, anything WebKit-based.
Chrome and Safari use the same foundation: Webkit. It was easy for Google to port Chrome since Safari uses the same technology. Firefox uses an own render engine - and that engine is one of Mozilla's core technologies and core innovations.
The problem here is that Apple does not allow anybody to implement an own render engine for iOS because that would compete directly with Apple's own products. It's an anti-competitive restriction that should by illegal (and maybe even is, once somebody invests the money to sue them and get a proper court ruling).
Well, last time Mozilla shoot itself in the foot was about H.264.
This time it took them how many years to decide not to products for the most sought after mobile OS?
This time it took them how many years to decide not to products for the most sought after mobile OS?
This. ^^
With the exception of a handful of enthusiasts, majority of the smartphone users don't care what browser they are using. The self-importance displayed by the small vocal minority who are under the impression that they are Apple, Google or Microsofts bread & butter is mind blowing sometimes.
Microsoft used its computer *monopoly* to drive other browsers out of business.
Apple isn't driving Firefox out of business. Besides, Apple App Store provides browser choices such as Opera Mobile for iOS, and number of Flash browsers for iOS that use their own rendering engines.
Btw, according to users of a certain platform, they are winning and iOS is a minority mobile phone player. Does that sound like Apple is a monopoly?
Come on - server-side rendering (every Flash browser like Puffin etc.) or the proxy-based HTML repacking / simplifying-based Opera Mini (with its severe JavaScript restrictions making almost anything dynamic not working) can in no way provide the same user experience as a HTML renderer running locally.
Exactly. Why believe a technical explanation by someone who knows what he's talking about when there is a perfectly good conspiracy theory.
Except it isn't a conspiracy theory. If I want to run unsigned code, why can't I? What exactly is wrong with jailbreaking? There's only three reasons I can see Apple not wanting the practice:
1. Prevent their techs from fixing screwed up settings because someone didn't know what they were doing (This is, actually, what I've heard the main reasoning is: It saves a lot of time and money not having to fix jailbreaked settings).
2. Force all revenue and transactions with the device to go through the App Store
3. Carriers really disapprove.
Why should Apple care if I buy something from Cydia to run my phone the way I want to? Didn't they already make the money on the sale of the phone? Apple has no reason to allow any type of Jailbreaking, as it would simply be bad for shareholders at this time. And this is a conspiracy theory how?
Oh, why is it that allowing someone to run unsigned code is Jailbreaking? Simple. If I turned on the setting for one second, I could install a jailbreak, and then ban running unsigned code. No risk, and I have a jailbroken device.