MODS: If this is not the correct forum feel free to move.
I have been using IE with the pocket plus features like tabs, smart scrolling, etc. but have been hearing a lot about the other browsers. I put Opera on for a couple days, but I think I was doing something wrong. Here are my questions:
1. How much space do they all take and can IE be removed if I go with one of the others?
2. Which is better on speed (any proof, or does it just feel faster?)
3. Do Picsel & Opera both have thumb scrolling & extra tabs without 3rd party app?
I would add NetFront 3.5 in this comparision as well.
Ghost26 said:
MODS: If this is not the correct forum feel free to move.
I have been using IE with the pocket plus features like tabs, smart scrolling, etc. but have been hearing a lot about the other browsers. I put Opera on for a couple days, but I think I was doing something wrong. Here are my questions:
1. How much space do they all take and can IE be removed if I go with one of the others?
2. Which is better on speed (any proof, or does it just feel faster?)
3. Do Picsel & Opera both have thumb scrolling & extra tabs without 3rd party app?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1) IE can be removed, but some of the files are used by system programs, and it is minute anyway.
2) PIE is the slowest, and the least accurate at page rendering, although I haven't used Picsel that much so I can't comment... Opera Mobile is brilliant! (Opear Mini, the one that runs in Java is great for not eating your data allowance).
3) Opera Mobile has thumb/finger scrolling, and tabs, not sure about Picsel though... Opera mini doesn't have tabs, and may not do thumb scrolling although I don't use it that much...
Out of those three, Opera Mobile is probably the best, but NetFront 3.5 SMOKES Opera Mobile.
yeah but netfront uses to much resources. if you even have it minumized it would slow down your device
what are the differences between opera mobile & opera mini?
Can they be used effectively without esmertec java [over 2MB] ?
For the record I did read the wiki on web browsers, but I had some more specific questions that I cant find the answers to and you guys have always been helpful
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/NetFront <---
&
opera mini == a java applet which is made to run on all phones with java
from nokia to htc phones with touchscreen
opera mobile is a native windows mobile application which only runs on that platform
native apps in general are better intergrated with the os and is often faster
pie is in the rom and if one removes it one have to cook a rom without
it and as said other programs depend on the files being there
and removing stuff from the dedicated rom space dont give more storage
Netfront CPU issues have been resolved with build 519, just redownload from the Access Website. PIE is the slowest and renders the worst, proof is in the testing done by the great Menneisyys here
You should read up on all his articles and Bibles, there's so much information he offers. Btw, trash Picsel. Just trash it.
Take your pick between Opera Mobile, Opera Mini, NetFront, and possibly SkyFire .
In general
Opera Mobile - high CPU usage, good compliance, speed varies greatly depending on device (so you'll have to try it for yourself). Grab the MAXSD cab of build 1126 to test.
Opera Mini - FAST. Can't do stuff like select text. Must use through a Java Manager (using Jbed, you can create a direct link to Opera Mini, so it's okay.)
NetFront - Even with the fixed CPU usage of build 519, still a memory hog. This one versus Opera Mobile is a pretty close race, it's up to personal preference.
SkyFire - Perfect rendering of everything (even YouTube videos), but that's because this is essentially a VNC app, meaning everything is rendered somewhere else, and you're just viewing a constantly refreshed image of a webpage. I don't like it, personally, but some love it.
They are all scrollable with your finger (pagepan), although only Opera Mobile and NetFront have flick-scrolling.
aahh yeaah opera mini also go passed opera's server which compress stuff and pass it on to the devices
which is why it is fast
but guess if opera's server goes belly up as does it
i personaly use opera mobile but then on pc i also use opera so ..
Azimuth21 said:
Netfront CPU issues have been resolved with build 519, just redownload from the Access Website. PIE is the slowest and renders the worst, proof is in the testing done by the great Menneisyys here
You should read up on all his articles and Bibles, there's so much information he offers. Btw, trash Picsel. Just trash it.
Take your pick between Opera Mobile, Opera Mini, NetFront, and possibly SkyFire .
In general
Opera Mobile - high CPU usage, good compliance, speed varies greatly depending on device (so you'll have to try it for yourself). Grab the MAXSD cab of build 1126 to test.
Opera Mini - FAST. Can't do stuff like select text. Must use through a Java Manager (using Jbed, you can create a direct link to Opera Mini, so it's okay.)
NetFront - Even with the fixed CPU usage of build 519, still a memory hog. This one versus Opera Mobile is a pretty close race, it's up to personal preference.
SkyFire - Perfect rendering of everything (even YouTube videos), but that's because this is essentially a VNC app, meaning everything is rendered somewhere else, and you're just viewing a constantly refreshed image of a webpage. I don't like it, personally, but some love it.
They are all scrollable with your finger (pagepan), although only Opera Mobile and NetFront have flick-scrolling.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you very helpful. I have read almost all that stuff and it is good info, but i like to have it confirmed. sometimes there is so much hype that a better option gets downplayed because it isnt as cool. All I have been hearing about is skyfire. Is it out yet?
Skyfire and Opera Mini 4.1, those are the two best ones I've come across.
Is there a way to get opera to download files other then mpeg ones? I can download avi's or almost anything else for that matter...or is opera just a browser in the literal sense?
Rudegar said:
aahh yeaah opera mini also go passed opera's server which compress stuff and pass it on to the devices
which is why it is fast
but guess if opera's server goes belly up as does it
i personaly use opera mobile but then on pc i also use opera so ..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I know OperaMini goes through opera servers, but the difference is Opera servers compress the webpage, which is then downloaded onto the phone. With Skyfire, the webpage is never downloaded, so it is constantly using data to view the webpage being rendered on a Skyfire server. Therefore, Skyfire wins initial draw speed of a webpage, but loses during any interaction with said page (it must load when you zoom, for example.) Personally I use Opera Mini for the pure speed, but Opera Mobile when I must do something secure (logging into emails, PayPal, etc), because it never passes through a separate server.
@bartybet
I don't know why you can't download anything else with Opera (i'm assuming Opera Mobile), since Opera Mobile's download capabilities are very powerful. Check Menneisyys and his blog, he has a post about mobile browsers and their download abilities, with Opera Mobile topping the list.
So it sounds like it is between netfront and opera mobile.
would you recommend opera 8.65 or the 9.5 pulled from the diamond?
Skyfire id the best to me. That's the only one that you can play videos in.
Ghost26 said:
So it sounds like it is between netfront and opera mobile.
would you recommend opera 8.65 or the 9.5 pulled from the diamond?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
9.5 all the way... way nicer to use, faster, supports flash...etc..
dieKatze88 said:
Out of those three, Opera Mobile is probably the best, but NetFront 3.5 SMOKES Opera Mobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol you funny netfront sucks opera 9.5.1126 owns it
Rudegar said:
aahh yeaah opera mini also go passed opera's server which compress stuff and pass it on to the devices
which is why it is fast
but guess if opera's server goes belly up as does it
i personaly use opera mobile but then on pc i also use opera so ..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, cant wait for the bookmark sync thing to work, Opera Link or something....
On a slightly different note, do you think opera will
a) Update the diamond to the newest version of opera for free
b) Ask Flar to take down all links to opera beta cabs.
These are both if/when a proper version is released.
Rory
ChInEsE ChIcKeN said:
yeah but netfront uses to much resources. if you even have it minumized it would slow down your device
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The CPU usage bug is stated to be fixed in the new (current) version.
steb0ne said:
Skyfire id the best to me. That's the only one that you can play videos in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you have a lot of alternate, REALLY superior means of playing back videos - see my YouTube Bible.
Related
Just wondering what people are using to browse the web (other than the default browser) ?
I've tried Opera Mobile but it seems to play around with some of the text on the input area and screen (odd).
hi, had the same problem with opera. browsing seems fine in terms of speed but the language is distorted. i read the support page of opera, though it supports windows mobile 5.0 they said if you can't find your mobile phone in the support list then it's not compatible. they're suggesting opera mini instead but i haven't tried it yet.
currently im using netfront v3.3 which is so far the most stable for my atom. and browsing is so fast unlike PIE (sucks!). you should try mini-mozilla too.
for opera got funny character in input text. just copy the font arial.ttf from your pc window to atom /windows directory. and soft reset.
What do you know ... copying the font over work .... thanks Mazam.
Just out of interest, how does Opera compare to the others (Netfront etc.), are there really any major differences ?
No, don't use Opera. It's writen in Java and have good support for smartphone. Too bad. It's not really for PDA.
You can try Minimo - Firefox for PPC. Here: http://www.mozilla.org/projects/minimo/
One of the Minimo's good side is it show web pages with java script perfectly. Unlike Opera. Maybe Minimo load slower Opera little bit but it good enough for me.
hhck1986 said:
No, don't use Opera. It's writen in Java and have good support for smartphone. Too bad. It's not really for PDA.
You can try Minimo - Firefox for PPC. Here: http://www.mozilla.org/projects/minimo/
One of the Minimo's good side is it show web pages with java script perfectly. Unlike Opera. Maybe Minimo load slower Opera little bit but it good enough for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what do you mean opera is java platform.. that is opera mini, what i'm using is opera for mobiles...
u can go here http://www.opera.com/products/mobile/products/winmobileppc/
Opera mini 8.5 is bar none the best browser, especially when used with the 'fit to screen' option. After using it, netfront, pie, and all the others feel 'broken'.
Does Opera mobile run in the java applet on a PPC?? Also, does it allow you to view vidoes from websites like youtube??
Thanx
Opera and Java
My experience of using Opera mobile was that I couldn't view videos or operate java applets generally. I don't know of any browser that lets you do this. Be nice if someone could shed some light on how to.
I would also like to be able to stream from the bbc video/radio player effectively. I know you can download an old realplayer mobile CAB and get the radio that way but its too long-winded.
I failed to see the appeal of Opera - certainly wouldn't pay for it. I road-tested it for a week on my Vario II and it was not only slower than PIE but loaded up web pages FAR more erratically.
When opening new web pages Opera displays a constant trickle of downloaded data on the progress bar (in contrast ti PIE's stuttering progress bar) as a means of deceiving you into thinking it's loading up pages faster. In reality it isn't.
I had frequent problems of sign-in boxes not appearing on certain websites too.
Now I use the PIE + application instead - loads better (no pun intended!)
Be interested to hear other people's views on Opera - is it ****, or have i just not given it enough time?
And once again - how do we stream vids/media easily from Youtube/BBC!?!?!
someone must know.....
1) I think the OP was talking about Opera Mini. Opera Mini loads up in the Java Midlet Manager on your PPC. It is a very small very quick web browser that functions excellantly. It does NOT allow you to view basic flash content of any kind. It does a very good job of working quickly and displaying web pages well for a PPC.
2) Opera Mobile is an actual Windows Mobile application. I agree with mrleoni in the aspect that it is quite a bit slower then the built in PIE and it does not work nearly as well IMO. It gives the illusion of being faster, but when you figure in the lag in the app when it's loading web pages up, PIE is much faster. I also use the PIEplus add on for PIE and recommend it. It has some nice features that SHOULD have been built in to PIE but were not, and it just makes PIE that much easier to use.
For general web surfing I use Opera Mini most of the time. Some times I use PIE because I need to see animated gif files (radar) which Mini won't do, or see basic flash things... which brings me to my next point.
3) Flash/Youtube... There is a flash plugin for PIE on Windows Mobile. It will allow you to view/use flash animations. It's actually pretty neat. Nothing nerdier then watching home star runner on your PPC. But, it's like flash version 6 or something. Sites like Youtube stream their video over flash, but it's the latest flash... flash 9 or even 10 now I think. Therefore, there is no way (that I am aware at least) to stream sites like youtube to your PPC.
Final thoughts:
Don't get Opera Mini and Opera Mobile mixed up.
Mini = Java Browser, very fast, very good
Mobile = Windows Mobile Application, slow, laggy, not good
Thanx for the response guys. Yes, i was talking about Opera Mini. I think im gonna try it out. I need webpages to load faster. Even with an overclocked 8125, pages still seem to load kinda slow using PIEplus.
Sorry to get off topic but, how is Minimo compared to Opera Mini? Any faster?
freeyayo50 said:
Sorry to get off topic but, how is Minimo compared to Opera Mini? Any faster?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The worst/slowest browser available!
Everything is better than Minimo! 8)
where can i find pie+? I've been using opera mobile for right now. I like it better than the original pie. but i would like to try it with that addon. I've tried searching the forums and the internet, but im not able to find it. Can someone point me in the right direction.
k2snowboards88 said:
where can i find pie+? I've been using opera mobile for right now. I like it better than the original pie. but i would like to try it with that addon. I've tried searching the forums and the internet, but im not able to find it. Can someone point me in the right direction.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here you go.
Cheers
hrb
http://www.reensoft.com/
GldRush98 said:
Mobile = Windows Mobile Application, slow, laggy, not good
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me disagree. Opera Mobile is still WAY faster than any other fully-fledged PPC browser. It can NOT be compred Opera Mini because the latter receives "dumbed-down" webpages.
Yes, I've thoroughly tested this and yes, I have numeric benchmark results to back up my claims: please see for example this.
k2snowboards88 said:
where can i find pie+? I've been using opera mobile for right now. I like it better than the original pie. but i would like to try it with that addon. I've tried searching the forums and the internet, but im not able to find it. Can someone point me in the right direction.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In addition, check out my PIEPlus review if interested.
rottie said:
freeyayo50 said:
Sorry to get off topic but, how is Minimo compared to Opera Mini? Any faster?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The worst/slowest browser available!
Everything is better than Minimo! 8)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not (necessarily) any more, I'd say. The latest versions of Minimo (I've tested the latest nighyly - make sure you always download the nightly builds, NOT the latest official version, which is some 3 months old and is considerably slower than nightly builds) are pretty usable. Not as quick as Opera Mobile, NetFront or even IEM, but pretty usable, particularly when you take into account that it's free (unlike Opera Mobile and NetFront).
I really recommend my comparisons of the available Web browsers on my blog (also cross-posted here on XDA-Dev in the General forum), it answers almost all questions asked in this thread (for example, Java support in borwsers, the difference between Opera Mini and Mobile etc)
Menneisyys said:
GldRush98 said:
Mobile = Windows Mobile Application, slow, laggy, not good
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me disagree. Opera Mobile is still WAY faster than any other fully-fledged PPC browser. It can NOT be compred Opera Mini because the latter receives "dumbed-down" webpages.
Yes, I've thoroughly tested this and yes, I have numeric benchmark results to back up my claims: please see for example this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That has not been my experience at all.
Some quick testing I just did:
Loading up app:
PIE Load time with PIEplus installed as well = 2 seconds
Opera Mobile load time = 11 seconds
Weatherunground animated radar:
PIE = 20 seconds
Opera = 23 seconds
xda-developers front page
PIE = 17 seconds
Opera = 20 seconds
My own forums, gldrush98.com/forum
PIE = 29 seconds
Opera = 50 seconds
hmm... so PIE is faster at the first 3 sites I tested.
And considering Opera doesn't understand how to handle tel: links, Opera can't save images, and it costs money, and don't even start on how it handles bookmarks (read: poorly)... I don't understand why anyone would say Opera is better. It's pretty much worse on all counts.
Don't get me wrong... I like Opera... Opera Mini is an amazing product and it's free. But Opera Mobile is less then impressive.
I will have to try out the nightly build of minimo though and see if it's better then the current official release.
alright, I've been playing around with the latest minimo nightly.
I must admit, I am impressed. It seems far better then I remember the current release being.
And it does understand tel: links. Very nice. It doesn't have a way to save images though, and it takes quite a bit of time to actually load the browser.
Out of all 3 browser I've played with, I'll admit that Opera did the best job of rendering the pages correctly for a small screen. But I still think PIE is the best choice, and with PIEplus, has matching features to others.
GldRush98 said:
Loading up app:
PIE Load time with PIEplus installed as well = 2 seconds
Opera Mobile load time = 11 seconds
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, it's very slow to load.
Weatherunground animated radar:
PIE = 20 seconds
Opera = 23 seconds
xda-developers front page
PIE = 17 seconds
Opera = 20 seconds
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, interesting; I'll re-test these. (May be an AKU2 improvement? I'll re-run my tests.
I Just Flashed a new ROM to my wizard (TNT 19213) and decided to investigate getting a new web browser to replace internet explorer. Does anyone recommend one over another? Also, how do you load them onto your wizard?
You could try Minimo. It's a mobile browser based on Mozilla.
http://www.mozilla.org/projects/minimo/
They have an exe install you run from your pc or a cab install you can copy to your phone to install from.
opera mini.
Opera mini, no doubt about it
Access NetFront Browser is free, and works similar to the much lauded SkyFire browser (also awesome, but in a closed beta test cycle that seems to be never-ending). The thing that sets these apart from the remaining browsers is that they are full-feature browsers, that show the internet as it would look on your desktop. In my opinion, Skyfire is superior at rendering sites true to their appearance on desktop browsers. NF browser is a little behind, and has a hard time substituting fonts, for example. There are both advantages and disadvantages to both browsers, as with anything. The main disadvantage to both of these is that you either need a wifi connection, or an unlimited data plan, or you're going to rack up a bill quickly, downloading full web sites.
For mobile browsers, there's Mozilla's Minimo, which is nice, and opera mini, which seems to be favored on this bulletin board site, and Microsoft-backed Zumobi (also in beta testing), all of which have nice features, but won't be the "best" for everyone. Keep in mind they are all mobile browsers, which means things like flash, javascript, and other web 2.0 features might not display properly, or might not work at all. All are much easier on the data plan than the full browsers mentioned above, but that means degraded websites only. Frankly, I just use the IE browser when I'm away from a hot-spot. I'm just more selective about what I surf to...
One last thing I almost forgot: All these browsers are free, but there is a pay-for version of Opera that is supposed to be superior to Mini. Opera Mini also requires the use of the MIDlet Manager or some other Java Emulator, making single-click launching much more complicated than necessary.
tried minimo but also like opera mini best,
you will need some java support for running it on your wizard.
i am using esmertecs.
someone on the developement and hacking made a cab instalation of the new opera mini browser that installs java emulator + opera mini and works best. has a dirrect shortcut in the programs folder and loads web pages extremely quickly over gprs.
I havent tried any of the "betas" floating around. Opera mobile is awesome too, but loads pages slower. works best with wifi.
S.V.I said:
someone on the developement and hacking made a cab instalation of the new opera mini browser that installs java emulator + opera mini and works best. has a dirrect shortcut in the programs folder and loads web pages extremely quickly over gprs.
I havent tried any of the "betas" floating around. Opera mobile is awesome too, but loads pages slower. works best with wifi.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats exactly what I was looking for because the cab files are much easier to deal with, do you know where I can download this program?
What web browsers you'll recommend apart from Opera Mobile/Mini, NetFront, IE, SkyFire?
I'm just interested and wan't to try some of the others that will be good .
And I'll add this question here: IE works fine with SPB Phone Suite or it slows it and takes more RAM?
Opera Mobile
Is there any other?
Tried various options, the only stand out browsers were Opera (not mini) and Picsel. The rest do the job, but whether they are convenient to run or have features either of the two offer is what makes me go back to the choices mentioned.
What about having Opera Mobile 10 beta on our Unis!!
I´ll do my test
Watch this beauty
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBUmiDLRcNs
In addition I've found something firefox-like:
1. Minimo http://www-archive.mozilla.org/projects/minimo/
2. Fennec http://www.mozilla.org/projects/fennec/1.0a3-wm/releasenotes/
Will try it now
mesaj said:
In addition I've found something firefox-like:
1. Minimo http://www-archive.mozilla.org/projects/minimo/
2. Fennec http://www.mozilla.org/projects/fennec/1.0a3-wm/releasenotes/
Will try it now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well Fennec is not going to run if you have a 64mb uni... as it needs more ram and look at the install size 20mb +.....
well there are other browsers.... like Bolt (which says it is fast),UCWEB, ibisbrowser, Dorothy Browser (webkit based browser) and Irish.
orb3000 said:
What about having Opera Mobile 10 beta on our Unis!!
I´ll do my test
Watch this beauty
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBUmiDLRcNs
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have been testing Opera 10 beta on my 64mb Uni all day.....Its EXCELLENT!!!!
Not a memory hog like earlier builds and not one crash after extensive use.
why dont you chefs use opera mini ...its 10 times faster than opera 10...
I'm guessing the main reason is that the rendering isn't as good and it doesn't support plugins, since the pages are compressed and rendered through Opera's servers. In addition, the native version of Opera Mini has only been out for around a week. Besides, you can always install it yourself, so it's not even that big a deal.
DaveTheTytnIIGuy said:
I'm guessing the main reason is that the rendering isn't as good and it doesn't support plugins, since the pages are compressed and rendered through Opera's servers. In addition, the native version of Opera Mini has only been out for around a week. Besides, you can always install it yourself, so it's not even that big a deal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree with that, opera mini might be faster but it doesn't provide a complete web experience. Mini doesn't support either flash or interactive sites, like JavaScript based ones. I personally would prefer Opera Mobile 10 beta v2 and, for flash, v3. Even if it consumes memory space like nothing else
when i use opera mini 5 .....and i go to watch a video it works
1milenia said:
when i use opera mini 5 .....and i go to watch a video it works
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That may not be flash, it could be the Streaming Media Program playing the video for you.
DaveTheTytnIIGuy said:
I'm guessing the main reason is that the rendering isn't as good and it doesn't support plugins, since the pages are compressed and rendered through Opera's servers. In addition, the native version of Opera Mini has only been out for around a week. Besides, you can always install it yourself, so it's not even that big a deal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And also, can't be set as default yet.
Opera 10 beta 3 launched Veeeryy slow. It was the only reason for me , for deleting it for ever. Im going to try out the mini version.. thanks for the hint
I have installed opera mini 5 now, but on some pages, like
www.openingstijden.nu or m.opentot.nl it doesnt give any search Results.. can somebody test and confirm this please.