Why Firefox 3.5 Beats Google Chrome

Firefox, with the launch of version 3.5, has surpassed Google (NSDQ:GOOG) Chrome as a browser of choice, according to data recently collected by Net Applications, a company that tracks Internet usage.

Sure, Google Chrome is faster according to some benchmark tests. Firefox 3.5, however, has proven to be the fastest version Mozilla has unleashed to date. But there are a lot more reasons why users are swayed to choose one browser over another, and speed is not necessarily the deal-maker or deal-breaker.

One advantage Firefox has over Google Chrome: Firefox may still be the only true cross-platform application. Not only capable of running on Windows, Linux and Mac, Firefox can run on Solaris and off a USB flash drive. Google initially released Chrome as a Windows-only product and is still playing catch-up in getting Chrome to run as effortlessly as Firefox does on Mac and Linux.

There are still lots of rumblings about Google Chrome and memory issues, even after the Chrome 2.0 upgrade, which was supposed to address documented memory issues. In this interesting benchmark test, Firefox 3.5 was scored as having used 73 percent less memory during peak usage than Google Chrome.

Another differentiation between Firefox and Chrome: Chrome is a component of the Google ecosystem; Firefox is independent from any search engine. There have been some perhaps unfounded observations about Google's "monopolizing of the Internet," with the most raucous outcry coming from Microsoft. Surely, there is no evidence of any underhanded practices by Google, but the question is still unanswered: Is there a potential for manipulation of advertising revenue, user tracking habits or cookie tracing when using a browser from the same company that runs the most widely used cloud computing platform?

Take a look at Google Chrome's Privacy Policy. By default, Chrome sends user data to Google's servers.

There's been a lot of cybercrying from bloggers and reviewers over the private browsing functionality in Firefox 3.5 and the fact that private and nonprivate browsing cannot be run simultaneously, as is the case in Chrome. However, because Chrome is capable of being run in incognito mode side-by-side with normal mode, Chrome can potentially leave cookies intact when a user may think they have been deleted. In fact, many Firefox users seem to embrace the way Firefox handles private browsing; there is less potential to browse the wrong session in the wrong mode, and testing shows that previously opened tabs are loaded without issue or needed user intervention when ending a private browsing session. Apparently for Firefox fans, the private browsing all-or-nothing mode is not a big deal.

Undoubtedly, what users love about Firefox, in the long run, is the wealth of available add-ons. Add-ons enrich the entire browsing experience and users can tailor the the Firefox application to their individual needs and tastes. Chrome has a fraction of the add-ons available -- understandable because it is a lot newer -- but Google Chrome has a long way to go before it catches up with Firefox in extension availability.

The competition between Chrome and Firefox is at the same time fierce and cooperative. Both have made a significant dent in the lockMicrosoft (NSDQ: MSFT) has had on the desktop browser market. Now as each browser vies to keep a dominant foothold, each will continue to tweak speed and performance, security and other features. In the end, this competition benefits end users the most.

By Samara Lynn, ChannelWeb
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