Special browsers. Which browser to choose for Windows

Greetings, dear readers. If you are reading this article, then you are also thinking about which browser is better to choose today. The number of special programs for viewing sites on the Internet (which are also called browsers) is quite large, but only a few of them are particularly popular. This article will discuss the best and most popular browsers.

Before choosing, of course, you need to understand what you will be doing. I mean how you will use this or that browser. For some, it’s enough to just browse websites and that’s it, while others intend to use the maximum capabilities of the browser, both for watching videos and downloading.

Everything we consider below is purely our opinion and it may differ from yours. But still, based on our opinion, you can draw your own conclusions. We use browsers as much as possible and perform all sorts of different tasks, I hope our review will help you with your choice.

Microsoft Internet Explorer.

This browser should be familiar to every Windows user, since it comes pre-installed with almost every version of this operating system. The latest version of this browser is 11, which is also preinstalled on Windows 8.1 and Windows 10 operating systems.

It is also possible to install the latest version on Windows 7 SP1 and Windows 8, while other versions of Windows have to be content with older versions of Internet Explorer.

This browser may be suitable for the most ordinary, most undemanding users, but in almost any respect it loses to any competitor. It is very problematic to recommend it for use. It's terrible to use.

Pros:

• Comes complete with the Windows operating system, so it is immediately ready to work without any installation.

Minuses:

• Classic but outdated interface, without the ability to change it;
• Slow performance - among the most popular browsers, Internet Explorer is the slowest;
• Lack of ability to synchronize data with the cloud;
• Lack of support for browser extensions;
• Works only on Windows.
• Discontinued development

This browser was released along with the Windows 10 operating system; in fact, it only works in it. In many ways, this browser is a “relaunch” of the abandoned Internet Explorer. Microsoft has seriously improved its browser compared to its predecessor, adding useful features for cloud storage of settings and support for extensions.

It works faster, but the functionality is still weak. Personally, it’s still hard for me to get used to it, but who knows, maybe it will catch up with its competitors. And when asked which browser is better, this one is worth studying and trying.

Pros:

• Pre-installed with Windows 10 operating system;
• Extension support;
• Synchronization of settings with the Microsoft cloud;

Minuses:

• Small number of extensions;
• Weak options for customizing appearance;
• Works only on Windows 10.

The product of the world famous company Google is the most popular browser in the world. Of course, its popularity can be explained by the famous name of its developer, but this will not be the most correct statement - at the moment, Chrome is the leader in terms of speed of working with web pages.

Like any modern browser, Chrome supports synchronization of user data via the “cloud” - user data is synchronized between various devices, from personal computers running Windows, Linux, MacOS to mobile devices running iOS and Android operating systems. There are also a huge number of extensions and themes, which are provided in sufficient quantities in the Chrome Online Store.

Pros:

• The fastest browser to date;
• A huge number of themes and extensions;
• Rapid implementation of the latest technologies;
• Flexible and intuitive browser settings;
• The ability to synchronize data with other devices via the Google cloud.

Minuses:

• Little possibility of changing the program design.

Before the release of Google Chrome, this browser was the most popular competitor to Internet Explorer. Now he is content with “only” second place in the statistics, losing first place to the Google product. In addition to Windows operating systems, this browser can work on many others - MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS.

Among the interesting features, we should highlight the ability to greatly change the appearance of the program, access to almost all settings, as well as work under Windows XP, which is rare in modern browsers.

Pros:

• The ability to install a large number of extensions, which are in abundance;
• Wide possibilities for changing the appearance of the program;
• Flexible and clear settings.

Minuses:

• Occasional problems or delays with support for new technologies.

A browser from the Russian company Yandex, built on the same engine as Google Chrome. The developer has added various components to the browser that significantly expand the functionality of the program - the browser understands mouse gestures, there is a “turbo mode” that allows you to save traffic, but you have to pay for such expanded functionality with much greater consumption of computer resources.

BUT, there is more than one but. I personally like Yandex Browser because it is tailored for the Russian user. In addition to all the good things that Chrome has, a lot of useful things have been added here, in particular user safety and the easy ability to remove intrusive advertising and a beautiful interface with many settings.

The browser is constantly updated, keeping up with the times, just like the Yandex search engine itself. In this browser it is easy to synchronize with your Yandex account and all products of this company. Again, I note that security is excellent, including passwords.

But if the computer is weak, then it’s difficult to use; it eats up a lot of resources, so you’ll have to pay for a good browser in performance.

Pros:

• “Turbo mode”, which speeds up page loading and reduces traffic consumption;
• Mouse gesture support;
• Good user protection on the Internet (payments, passwords, etc.);
• Minimum advertising (you can remove it altogether with add-ons);
• Integration with Yandex search and its products;
• Support for a large number of platforms;
• Flexible and clear settings;
• Ability to change appearance;
• Frequent and useful updates;
• Synchronization of settings via the cloud.

Minuses:

• Not the most democratic consumption of resources.

But why isn’t he in first place, you ask. Trite, but significant: productivity plays a big role.

Opera.

This is one of the old guys. It’s also worth noting, because I myself have been using it quite often lately. At first, I didn’t think at all that this browser would come to life, but no, it has updated quite well. And in a good way.

In terms of speed, it is not much inferior to Firefox. There are built-in ad blockers and a free VPN for those who need it. The modern design and good navigation are also interesting. For those who installed it for the first time, figuring it out is as easy as shelling pears.

Pros:

• There are extensions;
• Intuitive interface;
• Built-in ad blocker;
• Convenient navigation in history;
• Quite fast browser.

Minuses:

• Few extensions;
• Similar to Google Chrome.

Tor Browser (often referred to as simply Tor) is a browser built on Mozilla Firefox for use on the Tor network to provide maximum anonymity on the Internet. The Tor network consists of a huge number of computer servers through which encrypted user traffic passes.

Using this browser all the time to browse the Internet may not seem entirely comfortable due to the not-fastest operating speed of this very Tor network, so in most cases it is used either to access resources blocked by the provider, or when you need to ensure complete anonymity.

Pros:

• Ability to access any website ignoring any blocking;
• Complete anonymity.

Minuses:

• Slow operating speed.

Which browser is better to choose?

If stable and fast performance is important to you, then Google Chrome is a clear choice. It is not for nothing that this browser ranks first in the world, and most modern web resources are developed primarily for compatibility with it. Plus, Chrome is available on almost every popular platform, allowing you to sync your bookmarks and passwords between your computer and phone.

If for some reason you don’t like Chrome, then you should turn your attention to Firefox or Opera. Most of what was said about Chrome is also perfect for them - data synchronization between different devices, support for a wide number of platforms, and in addition to all this, low demands on hardware resources, which may please owners of not the most powerful computers.

For those who value privacy or simply need to frequently access blocked resources, Tor Browser may be useful. It is difficult to use it on an ongoing basis, but it is not at all necessary to make it your main browser - it can easily be installed even on a flash drive.

Personally, I use Yandex Browser more often. The resources allow, although sometimes I swear at the speed of work, but advertising does not torment me, I use many Yandex services and they are all at hand. And now I don’t enter passwords over and over again every time, but save them in the browser. Except for the most important ones))))

In general, this is everyone’s business, install it, try it, if you don’t like it, then you can switch to one browser or another without any problems.

That's all for now, bye everyone, leave your comments below and join us on Odnoklassniki. And also read us on our channel in Yandex.Zen.

Which browser is the best and fastest for Windows? updated: February 13, 2018 by: Subbotin Pavel

The top rankings in terms of functionality, security and speed are occupied by Yandex.Browser, Google Chrome, Opera and Mozilla Firefox. Only you can tell which browser you choose, so let's take a quick look at the features of each browser again.

If we talk about the simplicity of the interface and innovation in total, Yandex Browser will win. The developers have proven that it is possible to create a product that is equally respected by both “dummies” and professionals without strict restrictions for users. The browser is cross-platform, fast, stable, synchronized with Google and Yandex services equally. In fact, it combines the best features of its competitors with two significant additions: a unique search bar with suggestions and a functional bookmark bar codenamed "scoreboard". Recommended for download if you are tired of template solutions and glitches. In addition, this secure browser on a Windows computer is memory-friendly. Other Internet browsers are much more demanding on the resources of computers and laptops.

Orbitum is considered a relatively young web browser that can compete with any well-known browser, both in terms of performance when working with Internet resources, and in terms of the number of available settings and tools. Its main feature is an interactive chat that allows you to be on any page and at the same time correspond with friends from social networks. networks. Try Orbitum and you will be pleased with the high speed of launching web pages, the benefits of using the built-in loader and the useful omnibox. This is a good choice of browser for your computer at home.

Not so common: Amigo and K-Meleon. The latter is a serious competitor to its progenitor Mozilla Firefox. However, while it excels in security, the K-Meleon browser loses in the frequency of updates. Amigo's close connection to social networks can be perceived as an advantage for regular visitors to VK, OK, FB and other social networks. But thanks to many extensions, plugins and minimal CPU load, the browser runs smoothly and without glitches. The program will be appreciated by all categories of users.

Unfortunately, our review did not include such products as the cross-platform Comodo iceDragon, good solutions Pale Moon and Srware Iron, the only browser with advanced anonymity - Tor browser, the once famous Netscape Navigator, Torch Browser, intended for true fans of Rambler Rambler Browser. Each of them deserves special attention, which we will definitely pay in subsequent publications. I would also like to separately mention the good browser UC Browser. Its creators relatively recently began expanding around the world, and are constantly adding useful features to their brainchild, such as integration with video hosting sites. Already now, in the “advantages - disadvantages” competition, the balance is positive, but we doubt that UC can be called a safe browser. It is often installed on smartphones without the user's consent.

Choosing a browser is simple: just download any of the most popular ones and, sooner or later, you will definitely get used to it. But in order for the process of learning and further use to be as comfortable as possible, you must know what to look for and count on. Here is a list of the most famous free browsers for Windows 7/8/10. Downloading them and trying them yourself is the best option, but take the time to read the entire text and save time.

Google Chrome - the forefront of web technologies

Google Chrome is the most popular browser today, installed on almost every computer. At first, Chrome gained popularity for its speed and flexibility in settings, including through the installation of browser extensions. Now this is not the fastest browser, but the most functional with support for all innovations in web technologies. A truly huge library of add-ons allows you to get any functionality.

Chrome has the Chromium engine under its hood, which has become the standard for modern browsers. Most popular browsers are made using the Chromium engine. The engine is responsible for rendering the code of pages and scripts -> into a visible page on the monitor screen.

Browser advantages:

• All kinds of extensions that can replace standard programs
• Failure control allows you to keep your browser working even if there is an error in one of the open windows
• Warning the user about visiting malicious sites
• Import settings from any browser
• Multilingual interface
• Automatic updates
• There is a developer toolbar
• with a Google account
• The built-in task manager allows you to assess which tabs are consuming a lot of processor and memory resources

• Bookmarks are not very convenient, there are no built-in visual bookmarks, but there are
• Works poorly with many open tabs, and eats up a lot of memory, but frees it up the fastest after closing them.

Currently, Google Chrome is considered the best browser for Windows 7 and Windows 8/10. But to each his own. For example, I don’t like the uninformative download manager when opening many tabs. True, there is an extension called The Great Suspender, which, after a specified time, frees memory from unused tabs. But Chrome does not close them, and to see these pages again, you just need to refresh them.

Chrome launches the fastest in Windows 7, but in Windows 7 and 10 things are bad - the loading time increases up to two times!

Opera is the best choice

There is perhaps no browser that is clearer, more understandable and easier to learn for a beginner than Opera. Although Opera now runs on the Chromium engine, it has everything you need for surfing without installing additional extensions.

I used to use Opera because of its convenient visual bookmarks (tiles with the most necessary sites on an empty tab) and the file download manager. Here it is done very conveniently and clearly. Opera is the best browser for working with many open tabs, and in general. You can keep several dozen sites open, and this will not particularly affect the speed of work.

Particularly useful in today's realities, built-in and unlimited traffic. And plus there is a “Turbo” function for compressing transmitted data for . But here you need to experiment. Sometimes, on a slow connection, the opposite effect occurs - the speed decreases even more.

As part of my job, I have to maintain several very advanced computers in working order. In terms of hardware, this is not difficult - fortunately, cars produced 10 years ago are often assembled (soldered) to a higher quality than modern consumer goods. But in terms of software, the task is more difficult. The biggest headache for me is antiviruses and browsers. Both of them are very hungry for RAM, which, alas, is in short supply (for the last 1.5 years, the budget for upgrading computers at school has been approaching zero, and a small upgrade can only be done if the old hardware completely fails). Meanwhile, it is highly advisable to update both the antivirus and the browser periodically. We'll talk about choosing an antivirus some other time, but today I'll try to find the fastest browser for old computers.

First, a little background. Until recently, I installed the old Opera 12 on all old computers. But, alas, one fine day, this once wonderful browser began to display crookedly a vital site - an electronic magazine. Well, I had to say goodbye to the old Opera and look for alternatives.

First of all, of course, I checked how the fresh Opera would behave on old machines. Alas, as expected, Opera 30 (this version was current at the time of my experiment) behaved like a typical Chromium browser: it consumed a lot of memory, forcing the computer to swap heavily (IDE disk, heh...). Things were a little better with other standard chrome clones (Yandex.Browser, Chrome itself). The latest Firefox 40 behaves relatively well, but it has obvious problems with interface rendering (it slows down) and memory consumption is still quite high (especially when opening 2-3 tabs). Well, since the browsers known to everyone cannot cope with the task, let’s try different exotic ones.

Part 1. Looking for a fast browser in the Chromium camp

I was pleasantly surprised in terms of speed. Being an add-on to Internet Explorer, it works very quickly and does not eat up too much memory. But, alas, all this happiness is available only on Windows 7, and my weakest machines run Windows XP. No, the mentioned SlimBrowser works great under Windows XP, but the IE8 engine, alas, is hopelessly outdated and is not much different in rendering quality from the same Opera 12-.

Next, I decided to try out “unusual” variations on the Chromium theme. There were as many as three candidates. The first of them is . It is positioned by the developers as a light and fast browser. In general, this statement is true - for a chromo clone, Midori is really quite light and fast. But, unfortunately, on computers with 1 gigabyte of RAM (and even more so with 512 megabytes) it is not light enough.
The second candidate is Chinese. The younger brother of the well-known Maxthon was born about a year ago. In essence, it is Chromium stripped to the limit. It really works quite quickly, but it still consumes a lot of memory. I would recommend it more as an addition to the main browser on normal machines (when you need to quickly read something without waiting for the main browser to load - Nitro loads almost instantly). But this browser is not suitable for older computers.

Finally, the last Chrome in my experiment is the OpenSource project. The developer positions it as the successor to the good old Opera, but on a modern engine (guess which one?). True, from a technical point of view, this browser is built a little differently - it does not create a separate process for each sneeze. This feature allows Otter (and this is how the name of the browser is translated from English) to save memory quite well. In terms of speed and functionality, Otter is also doing pretty well. But, alas, it is still very crude and not stable enough for everyday use. And the interface, to be honest, leaves much to be desired... Besides, Otter is essentially a one-man show (in the sense of a developer) and, alas, there is almost no hope for quickly bringing the project to a digestible state.

Otter Browser. In the depths of the tundra Otter in spats...

Part 2. Looking for a fast browser in the Gecko camp

Well, since the Chrome community can’t please us with anything in terms of speed, let’s try to turn to the second opposing side and look at browsers based on the Gecko engine. This engine is no less popular among developers, although it has its own specifics. While browsers based on Chromium (and Blink) are mainly built by various commercial companies (Otter is a rare exception), Gecko is more popular among the OpenSource community. Unfortunately, this community, for the most part, is busy changing the basic functionality of Firefox, as a result of which clones of Ognelis (or Firepanda - as you prefer) with different sets of functions are born. Against this background, several projects stand out that make optimized assemblies for certain platforms. Among them, only two focus their efforts on improving the speed of Firefox. The first project is . Within its framework, they make assemblies that work (according to the developers) 25% faster than the original FF. Until recently, the PaleMoon project even had a separate assembly optimized for Windows XP, but due to the cessation of official support for this OS, its release was discontinued. However, to this day there is a separate build for weak Atom-based machines, which can be used on any old computers.
In terms of speed, I was very pleased with PaleMoon - the subjective speed of launching the browser and loading pages on a computer with 1 GB of RAM is even higher than when working with Opera 12 (although it uses a little more memory). The interface, by the way, is rendered noticeably faster than that of its ancestor in the face of FF (the cut Australis has an effect). True, for greater ease of use, the “lunar” browser will have to be modified a little (in particular, and turned on in the settings). In general, the impressions from this browser are the most pleasant. Among other things, PaleMoon supports extensions from FireFox, which means expanding its functionality will be quite simple.

Finally, the last contender for the title of “fastest browser for older computers” is the . This project, which appeared at the dawn of the popularity of Firefox, was in hibernation for many years and only recently began to be revived. Essentially, this is a very distant relative of Firefox, taking only the Gecko engine from its ancestor. Due to its close relationship, K-Meleon does not support extensions from the original Firefox and does not inherit all its problems (working speed in particular). As a result, we have a very fast and quite functional browser. In terms of operating speed today, K-Meleon is the leader. The only thing that prevents us from definitely recommending it for use is the clumsy interface and the fact that it is overloaded with not all the necessary functions.

K-Meleon 74. The fastest browser…

As a conclusion. Based on the results of many days of testing (including on real users), I personally chose PaleMoon (more precisely, its assembly for Atom). In conditions of severe lack of RAM, it works noticeably faster than all other browsers. On computers with 512 megabytes of RAM, K-Meleon showed the best results in terms of memory consumption, but users in almost 100% of cases complain about its inconvenient interface (read: unusual appearance and non-standard arrangement of controls). In theory, all this can be solved by fine-tuning the interface (fortunately, K-Meleon provides such an opportunity), but in practice the difference in the speed of working with PaleMoon is not so great. The final decision, however, is yours.

Updated March 18, 2016
I tested a couple more programs that claim to be the “fastest browser for an old computer.” My impressions are in .

Updated February 19, 2019
It turns out that enthusiasts continue to make PaleMoon builds that work on older computers. Here, in particular, (you need to download the file mypal-28.3.1.win32.installer.exe).

Windows 7 remains the most popular operating system, used by tens of millions of users. We will try to determine which browser is best for them. Perhaps they chose the wrong one?

In the new version of Ya.Browser, the developers decided to implement an unusual interface background - it will become animated. Unlike other browsers, the thumbnails here are represented by recognizable site logos, rather than screenshots of pages. This makes it much easier to understand. Other advantages include a minimalist interface. The program's panels take up at least 20% less space than can be seen in Firefox. What else can please you is the synchronization of open tabs with other devices.

You will also probably be pleasantly surprised by the answers that appear as you type in the address bar. For example, when you ask: “What’s the weather like in Arkhangelsk..”, you will already see that it’s raining in Arkhangelsk right now, and the air temperature is +19.

Another plus is integration with Yandex.Disk, mail and other company services.

Simple and fast. Actually, that's all you need to know about the most popular browser in the world. And this is precisely why millions of users chose him. Tabs open at lightning speed, there are no unnecessary elements in the interface

It is perfect for a weak computer because it requires little RAM. Moreover, the program identifies each open tab as a separate process.

Chrome's place in the Google ecosystem deserves special attention. If you use Android, GMail, Hangouts, Google Drive, YouTube - then this is your browser.

Firefox impresses with its personalization capabilities. How beautiful a browser it will be, and what it should be able to do, is up to you to decide. Thousands of plugins to help! The second reason to download Firefox to your computer is the security system, to which the program developers paid special attention. Built-in anti-virus and anti-phishing monitors, instant ID verification, tracking protection - all this has already been implemented and is ready to serve you.

And if you are a gamer, then you should probably look at the Fire Fox. The fact is that in online games this browser demonstrates a higher response rate than its analogues. It also has fewer crashes.

Opera is considered an advanced browser “for those who understand.” It has a number of built-in options that will be of interest to web developers and designers. In addition, it is convenient to watch videos online - if your Internet is unstable and the speed drops from time to time, you are unlikely to notice it. The situation is the same with loading pages - they shrink and open faster if the Internet connection fails. User protection here is also at the proper level - Opera will not allow unscrupulous sites to steal your passwords and other personal data or install a virus on you.

The first thing that catches your eye is the two interface options: classic and stylized. The latter offers not square miniatures, but round ones of different sizes. He looks very unusual. In addition, UC Browser makes it convenient to work with bookmarks - they are arranged in several rows.

That is, you don’t have to scroll and search for the right tab for a long time, as, for example, in Chrome. It's a small thing, but nice.
No less pleasant is that after installing this browser, you will receive bookmarks from the browser you previously used. That is, they will not have to be transferred. A built-in download manager that works even when the browser is closed is another delight of using the UC browser.

The good old “donkey” in the latest version has significantly increased the level of stability and security. According to these parameters, it is practically not inferior to its competitors. In addition, the developers have reached a new level of rendering - they set a new record for the time spent processing animation, web applications and other multimedia on the Internet.