With almost 88% of the world’s population owning a cell phone, it’s safe to say that we spend a lot of time on the internet.
As we’ve become accustomed to accessing a wealth of information, entertainment, and communication channels through our smartphones, we’ve also raised our expectations of the technology that enables our browsing.
Now, app developers are working harder than ever to ensure their platforms are better than others on the market. This competition is a boon for consumers, who now have several top-notch, feature-packed browsers to choose from. In this article, we look at the most popular browsers around.
Google Chrome
Google’s Android mobile operating system is the widest-used OS in the world. As of 2023, Android had a market share of around 70%. Also created by Google, the Chrome browser is built into the Android environment to deliver seamless integration and access to cyberspace. When you count its widespread integration among PC users and Android phones, Chrome has the highest market share of browsers in the US and beyond.
The Chrome app has multiple features that make browsing the web more convenient and allow you to keep track of your interests across multiple devices. This is all thanks to the sync feature, which stores the history and bookmarks from your smartphone and makes them accessible through Chrome on your PC.
In addition, the app has one of the highest-rated password managers, a data saver option that reduces data usage, an incognito mode to browse anonymously, and even an entry-level ad blocker. After years of complaints about slowing systems down, Google has also worked to make the app as easy on your resources as possible.
Opera
Opera is one of the few mobile browsers that can even come close to Chrome’s speed. It’s also filled with features that make browsing faster and more secure.
The browser’s built-in free VPN adds security by offering a virtual IP for visiting websites. This helps you stay anonymous and can allow you to play your favorite mobile casino games and make transactions with more confidence.
The app also has an extensive data saver mode that outstrips most competitors. This mode compresses websites, information, and videos, substantially improving savings.
The app’s speed and great features (including incognito and desktop sync) are only let down slightly by the somewhat archaic navigation—which features a menu at the top and bottom of the screen. However, once you’ve got the hang of using these, the app has few things to complain about.
Firefox
With more than 300 million people using Firefox as their default browser on PC, it’s no surprise that the mobile version of the browser is also highly rated. With desktop sync, private browsing, and tracking protection, the app is more than just a scaled-back version of its PC counterpart.
Mobility is the app’s primary focus, allowing you to choose whether you want your URL bar at the top or bottom of the screen. Tabs are also displayed in a grid format in the latest update to help you quickly see what you’ve been browsing across your devices.
Another standout feature is the tab highlight option. If the browser detects that you’ve spent considerable time on a specific tab on a linked device, the tab will automatically be highlighted on your phone.
While the Firefox mobile app can be somewhat slow, this is partly due to the massive library of extensions available. These allow you to add or remove nearly endless additional features and tailor the app to create the perfect browsing experience.
Safari
Exclusively available for iOS devices, Safari has been the preferred browser of many Apple users since it launched alongside the iPhone in 2006. The app shares many of the same features as other browsers that work on the Android OS.
Alongside the basics, Safari offers privacy mode, a password manager, and an extensions store that lets you install custom extensions for anything you need. However, these things pale compared to Safari’s standout feature: speed.
Using fewer resources than Chrome or Firefox, the browser allows lightning-fast browsing and has extensive support for multitasking—enabling you to open as many tabs as you want. Desktop sync is also available to help you continue browsing a website on your other devices.
The biggest drawback to Safari is that it is only available on Apple devices. In addition, the desktop sync is only available for MacOS devices—meaning that if you happen to own an iPhone and a Windows PC, Safari won’t allow you to synchronize across your devices.
DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser
Launched in 2008, DuckDuckGo began as a simple search engine focusing on consumer privacy and security. In 2013, the company released the DuckDuckGo app, which has since morphed into the Privacy Browser, boasting over 50 million downloads.
Like the PC version, the app prioritizes security and anonymity for users. Therefore, it doesn’t allow desktop synchronization or password storage. And while the app views all browsing as private, it is not a VPN.
With extensive tracking blockers, the app ensures that anything you do, search, or view is anonymous. It even has a handy button near the address bar to instantly close open tabs and clear any history. In addition, the app will connect to any site using the highest level of encryption the site allows.
While this level of security comes at the loss of some great features offered by competitors, the Privacy Browser app is certainly worthwhile for anyone looking to upgrade their online safety and anonymity.
