Browsers

Now I'm going to offer a list of the best internet browsers available today. I personally prefer Mozilla Firefox because it has great support for add-ons and apps and because generally is one of the fastest and more stable internet browsers right now.

Mozilla Firefox's most recent updates may be enough of a change to draw in web surfers who migrated to other browsers. The new version of Mozilla Firefox provides updates to the web browser that the service has needed for some time. Firefox has ditched the orange tabbed menu that sat on the top left and replaced it with a three-bar button menu that fits on the main toolbar. This design, called Australis, rounds off the tabs and highlights the tab you are currently on, while the other tabs appear more translucent.

Firefox has always been a fast internet browser, and now it's even faster. It beats most of the competition in terms of speed, and I had no problems loading Firefox or quickly navigating from page to page. Firefox provides a fluid web browsing experience from start to finish and boasts compatibility across the web. Furthermore, Firefox is fully equipped to accommodate multi-touch gestures.

Since its 2008 release, Google Chrome has steadily gained popularity, to the point where it has acquired the largest share of global internet usage. This internet browser upholds Google's reputation of innovation and industry dominance. While this software borrows from other well-established services that came before it, it improves on their methods and is now the standard to which other web browsers aspire.

Google Chrome is remarkably fast. During several timed trials, Chrome initialized our site in 1.5 seconds. That time stayed consistent during subsequent refreshes. Navigation from one site to another ran at a modest 5.3 seconds. That aspect kept it from ranking as the fastest browser.

Having started back in 1995, Opera stands as the second-oldest web browser currently in use. This software runs on a Google Chromium system. It is compatible across every platform and device. Opera is not the most popular desktop or mobile browser out there, but we were impressed with its features and security options, and found it to be one of the top internet browsers in its own right. Opera is the Top Ten Reviews Bronze Award winner for the best internet browsers.

Like most internet browsers, Opera claims to be the fastest browser available, and on most accounts it delivers highly competitive speeds. Opera took 2.2 seconds to boot up an average site initially. Over 10 cold startups, the time decreased to an average of 1.8 seconds. The time it took to visit another site was 3.3 seconds. That impressive time beat out most of its competitors.

Known for its intuitive usability, Safari is Apple's lightweight and sleek internet browser. Safari trails behind the best internet browsers in terms of market share, simply because it was a Mac-only application until 2007. It's not just Safari's late debut to the entire computing world that keeps it from being a top contender in our lineup; the internet browser is fast and easy to use, but it lacks the customization features that so many users seek in a browser these days.

Safari is remarkably fast. It takes under two seconds for the browser to initialize and even less time to click through links on the same site. The best browsing feature of Safari is the Reader button on the right side of the search bar. It allows you to cut all the advertisements and visual distractions in an article and just read.

No list of the best internet browsers would be complete without Internet Explorer. In terms of all existing browsers, Internet Explorer is the longest running. It was once the most popular browser, but suffered because the service was stagnant, while other browsers surpassed it in features and security. As it was once the most popular service, it became a target for malicious attacks and viruses. Recently, Internet Explorer has placed a heavy focus on boosting security and fighting malware.

While Internet Explorer has a good balance of standard features, the experience is hurt by the limited speed at which it performs. In some tests, it took a below-average 4.53 seconds to boot up Top Ten Reviews' site. The average startup, based on 10 different attempts, was cut down to 2.72 seconds. A matter of seconds may seem like a minor issue, but Internet Explorer's average is still double the time of the best browsers in comparison.

Designed and Developed by: Felix J. Soto Paniagua
Date: March 30, 2015
Email: felix.soto-paniagua@bcc.cuny.edu.