(Photo via Shore)
Google’s new browser Chrome finally has a Mac version (extensions to follow). Being a big fan of Internet surfing technology I decided to take a look at most of Chrome’s strengths and weaknesses. After all we all need a dependable browser that allows us to find information fast and effectively with maximum customization power.
SPEED
Google Chrome is the fastest browser I’ve come across to date. It gives Apple’s Safari a run for its money. In a purely not hard core speed test using my massive Google Reader feed list (that numbers in the thousands of feeds) as the Web site to load it took:
6 s on Safari
5-6 s on Firefox
4 s on Google Chrome
I didn’t even try to use Internet Explorer (which doesn’t even have an updated version for the Mac anymore since version 5). That would have just been jokes.
I was surprised to see that Firefox was also somewhat slow. I had thought it was faster. Then again Firefox doesn’t play nice with a lot of Apple’s systems.
What was mysterious was that Google Chrome’s extension page loads the slowest at 28 s even on Chrome. After 1 minute and 10 s give or take, Safari failed to open the page. I didn’t try on Firefox. Quite ironic isn’t it?
EXTENSIONS
It is unfortunate that the Mac version doesn’t have easy access to extensions that its Window version does — not yet anyway. The power of these add-on extensions or customizations is what makes Firefox so powerful and is a major weakness of Safari (since it’s proprietary software of Apple and Apple hates having its browser messed with).
If there is one extension that I’d love to see for Chrome it would be feedly. Feedly’s ability to turn RSS feeds into a magazine style interface would be a major deciding factor for my switch to Chrome (plus the way Chrome saves web archives — see below).
THEMES
The Google Chrome themes by the artists are pretty good. Certainly their selection isn’t as big as Firefox however it’s a fine start. I’m currently using the Vivienne Westwood theme. Some of the themes however use very light colour fonts that are difficult to read in the tab.
BOOKMARKING
Their bookmarking organization system is about as good as Safari’s. Since Google is the master of built in search however you can immediately search your bookmarks straight from the browser.
SEARCH
What I like about Chrome is that they’ve made their address bar longer and integrating search right into it. It actually reminds me of Internet Explorer. Unlike Safari, there’s no need to go to a separate Google Search inbox field.
In Safari, I use a plug in called Glims so I can customize the Safari search engines and choose the one I want. Chrome however doesn’t have that capability — you have to change the default search engine in the Preferences section and only for 4 or 5 big search engines (i.e. Yahoo or Bing).
FILE SAVING
Like Firefox, Google Chrome saves files in both an index file and a folder of attachments. Safari does better by creating a complete enclosed archive with no extra folder of attachments. Having everything in one self contained single file means you don’t have to hunt for the pictures from a web page later.
IN SUMMARY
Google Chrome is one of the strongest web browsers I’ve seen to date. It combines the smooth power and speed of Safari with the potential for a crazy number of community made extensions like Firefox. There are still a few features that could be improved however Google Chrome is definitely going to give Safari and Firefox a run for the money. Google has really outdid themselves this time.
PS. I’m pretty much using Google Chrome as my secondary browser for Internet web site design and other purposes where speed is a big advantage.
RESOURCES
Google Chrome for the Holidays
Especially for MAC users: Google Chrome Review | Graphic and Web …
Google Chrome review – Mac – Macworld UK
Google Chrome for Mac: First Impressions – PC World
Google Chrome Browser Review – PC World
Google’s Chrome: 7 Reasons for It and 7 Reasons Against It – PC World
Google Chrome 2010 – TopTenREVIEWS
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