Testing various browsers under the Android mobile platform

Introduction

Здравствуйте, уважаемые жители хабрасообщества. Сегодня я хотел бы поговорить о различных мобильных браузерах, доступных для мобильный платформы Android. А тестовым стендом станет аппарат HTC Desire. (Для сравнения также будут опубликованы результаты различных тестов для default browser, который предустановлен на мобильную платформу android 2.2 Froyo. В этом случае тестовым стендом станет аппарат Google Nexus One, который практически идентичен аппарату от htc по техническим характеристикам. Результаты стали доступны благодаря DieSlogan)


Острожно, много трафика!

Коротко характеристики аппарата:

Платформа

• ПО: Android Eclair 2.1 (Android 2.X)
• интерфейс HTC Sense
• поддержка Adobe Flash 10.1

Процесор / Чипсет

• Qualcomm QSD8250, 1 ГГц

Память

• Флэш: 512 МБ
• ОЗУ: 576 МБ
• Возможность расширения картой памяти SDCH до 32 Г

Дисплей

• 3.7 inches, resolution 480 x 800 (WVGA)
• AMOLED
• Capacitive touch screen

Communication

• HSPA / UMTS and GSM / GPRS / EDGE networks
• GSM / GPRS / EDGE in the bands 850/900/1800/1900 MHz (version for Europe and Asia)
• 3G - up to 7.2 Mbps download; up to 2 Mbps transmission;
• GPRS - up to 114 kbps download
• EDGE - up to 560 kbps download
• WiFi IEEE 802.11 b / g

Tested browsers:

• Dolphin Browser HD ( Link )
• Opera mini 5.1 ( Link )
• SkyFire ( Link )
• Default browser
• Default browser for android 2.2 Froyo

What will be tested:

1. Analysis add. features and interface
   
   • Multi touch
   • Work in multiple windows (tabs)
   • Bookmark availability
   • Surfing
   • The specific features of each browser
2. JavaScript engine speed
   
   • SunSpider JavaScript Benchmark
   • V8
   
   
3. Compliance
   • Acidid test
   • Acid3 test
   • html5 test

Dolphin browser hd

And so, let's start with our review from this browser.
When launching the browser, we will get the following window.


As you can see, there is a tabbed panel above the address bar, which allows us to work in multi-window mode, without switching each time to the window preview function, to switch from the current to any other.



The bottom toolbar is called up by the Menu button, the left one is accessible by simple “dragging the screen” from left to right. Navigation is quite convenient, access to bookmarks and history can be done quickly, without going into a separate window, but simply moving the visible area.


And now the features specific to this browser: It is possible to install various add-ons / extensions. At this moment available:

1. Adblocker
2. Password manager
3. Screen cut can

And according to the authors, more additions will be available in the near future.

And the second feature is the ability to use the phone’s screen in the form of a kind of primitive tablet to draw a specific set of images, thereby provoking browser actions (it can be convenient for people who find it difficult to hit the necessary buttons (parts of the screen)).

The browser supports multi-touch.

Opera mini 5.1

The next browser in question will be the recently launched Opera mini 5.1 for the Android platform.
When the browser starts, we will be greeted by the familiar to users of the opera (whether it’s desktop or mini version) start page with a preview grid of your start pages.


The address bar is next to the line for search queries. The solution is dictated, as it seems to me by analogy with a desktop browser. Here, in all studied browsers, except Opera mini 5.1, when typing a word in the address bar, which by no regular expression can be a site, it simply automatically substitutes it into the used search engine.



The browser supports the operation mode in several windows (with several sites) at the same time. And we must pay tribute - the transition between the windows is the most convenient of all that have been tested: there is no need to leave the page you are viewing, but at the same time, the list of windows hangs all the time before your eyes, eating up the already valuable space on the screen of your mobile phone . The bottom general toolbar contains everything you might need when viewing a page on the Internet.



A very convenient mode of working with bookmarks and history, even if you have to move away from the windows you are viewing. Everything is organic and not very redundant.

The browser supports multi-touch.

Skyfire

The next browser in our hit parade is SkyFire. According to the developers: the only browser for playing millions of flash-video clips on the Internet (at the moment the information is not relevant and truthful, as special programs have been released by both htc and youtube service, which, with a flash plug-in from Adobe, allow you to play flash -video).
When the browser starts, we will automatically load the start page.



As you can see, in this browser, the toolbar is located under (next to the album option) the address bar permanently. It presents the most commonly used by the user while surfing buttons.



The bottom toolbar is called the Menu button, and provides the user with a set of additional. functions, such as: the ability to share the page you are viewing, through one / several of the most popular communication services, view the list of videos available on the page, and view thematic parts of the page (video / news / tweets).



The browser supports up to 8 simultaneously open windows with digital content from the global network. The ability to navigate through them (windows) exists only if you go to a special menu function, while the browser page you are viewing disappears from view. However, in fairness, it is worth noting that in the function of switching between windows, mini-previews of pages, it is very easy to navigate in already open tabs. Working with bookmarks and history is also not satisfactory.

The browser supports multi-touch.

Default browser

And finally, the last on the list, but not in importance, is the browser pre-installed by htc.
By launching it, we automatically open the start page, which by default is the htc page.


As can be seen from the above screenshots, the browser is always in full screen mode, however, it exits it immediately if there are any system notifications that are reflected in the phone’s task bar. And a very important part is that when viewing a page, it is enough to scroll down a little, and the address bar also disappears, which gives the user the opportunity to view the Internet content of interest to him on the whole screen of the phone.



The bottom toolbar is again called up by familiar Android phone users by pressing the Menu button. Not the most functional toolbar, but what to do. The browser supports multiple windows simultaneously (up to 5 windows). Navigation between open windows is very convenient, albeit made in a separate function, which requires you to leave the page you are viewing.



Work with bookmarks and history is standard, and does not differ much from the browsers discussed earlier.

The browser supports multi-touch.

We pass directly to the comparison of performance and compliance with the standards of the browsers in question.

Javascript benchmarks

SunSpider javascript benchmark

The pre-installed browser is leading in all respects. It is followed by the SkyFire browser and Dolphin browser HD. Opera mini 5.1 could not pass the tests with any attempt, confidently hanging on the first or second javascript. The browser that comes with the Android 2.2 operating system has surpassed its predecessors in almost all respects and is very strong.

V8 benchmark

The table above shows that the fastest browser in most categories turned out to be a browser preinstalled by htc. He lost only in one of the opera mini 5.1 browser metrics. As for opera mini 5.1, it was only from 10 page load that I was able to get through at least part of the tests, the rest of the tests did not pass this browser “flatly”.

We examined how and at what speed browsers execute javascript scripts. Perhaps only Opera mini 5.1 could not cope with this. In fairness, it is worth noting that in all browsers in question (except opera mini 5.1) there is the possibility of forcing the execution of javascript scripts to be disabled.

And again, the browser that came with the updated version of the OS defeated all of its predecessors.

Compliance

Acid2

1. Dolphin browser hd
   
2. Opera mini 5.1
   
3. Skyfire
   
4. Default browser
   

Only the browser pre-installed by htc and dolphin browser were able to display the very picture that the author intended (the orange bar in the eyes of the emoticon disappears if you start dragging the page across the screen, so it seems to me that browsers can forgive).

Acid3

1. Dolphin browser hd
   
2. Opera mini 5.1
   
3. Skyfire
   
4. Default browser
   

In this competition, opera mini 5.1 won (Although what is displayed on the screen well, with a stretch of the nose, you can recognize that the author wanted to convey, but the site issued 97/100 and I believe). Next up are dolphin browser hd and a browser pre-installed by htc. And the SkyFire browser closes the procession in this test. In fairness, it is worth noting that all indicators above 90 points can be considered very successful, especially for mobile browsers. Like its most successful predecessors, the acid3 test pre-installed in the android 2.2 mobile platform the browser passed with a score of 93 out of 100.

html5 test

1. Dolphin browser hd
   
2. Opera mini 5.1
   
3. Skyfire
   
4. Default browser
   

All browsers, with the exception of opera mini 5.1, showed the same result in 151/300, which is very, very good, considering that the html5 markup standard has not yet been approved. As for opera mini 5.1, it has a very modest result in 27/300. As a result of the improvements made by the employees of Google ltd., The results of the browser of the included Android OS upon completion of the html5 test are 173 out of 300 points.

Our testing is over, and I would like to draw some conclusions.

conclusions

Each of the browsers presented above (with the exception of opeera mini 5.1) shows very good results in existing tests. All of them are quite convenient and functional, correctly display almost all existing sites. Opera mini 5.1 is convenient in case it is necessary to severely save traffic, since the entire image, if they are downloaded before downloading to the phone, goes through the compression process on the servers of the opera.

What to choose is up to you. My goal was to compare these browsers and provide the result to you.