What’s the Best Browser for Netbooks?
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There are quite a few options to choose from when picking an Internet Browser – with each browser quite different from the others. For a fast, high-end computer, the choice of browser doesn’t really matter in terms of speed due to the fact that you computer is so fast, the difference in rendering speeds will be barely anything. Netbook owners, however, will have to take in a variety of factors when picking a browser, as netbooks don’t have a very high screen resolution, an ultra-fast CPU, or large amounts of memory available. Read along for our comparison of the major browsers of today to see which browser is best fit for a netbook.
Internet Explorer 9.0
Although many consider Internet Explorer by far the worst browser of all, Microsoft has done a fairly good job stepping things up a notch with IE9. Some of the most important features include full hardware acceleration, a completely revamped interface, and a rendering engine on-par with other browsers.
In terms of resource usage, IE9 is definitely a cut above the previous iterations of IE. I’ve noticed that it seems to be the most heavy on the CPU of all the browsers, and relatively light on memory, even with multiple tabs open.
The new interface may be enough to convince netbook owners to use IE9. It provides by far the most amount of browsing space for each browser. The downside, however, is that the interface isn’t customizable. So if you’re a netbook owner who doesn’t want to spend time fiddling with settings to get a cleaner interface, IE9 is probably the way to go.
Firefox 4.0
Firefox also got an interface overhaul on its upgrade to version 4.0, and it’s pretty much identical to Opera. All the menu buttons have been bundled up into one and tabs have been moved up top. In terms of speed, it’s actually the slowest of all the browsers likely due to one reason – poor hardware acceleration. In our tests, Firefox 4 scored the least in the Peacekeeper browser benchmark.
This version of Firefox uses more memory than its previous iteration, surpassing the memory usage of a cold boot of IE9 and Chrome. As for CPU usage, though, Firefox 4 seems to use the least of all browsers – good for those who like to have a bunch of processor-intensive programs open at once.
Firefox 4 provides the least amount of browsing room for all the browsers. Keep in mind, though, that it is possible to customize the Firefox interface, and you can actually drag around the objects on the toolbar to make Firefox mimic IE9′s interface.
Google Chrome
Automatic updates are a big thing for Google Chrome, and unlike other browsers, you won’t have to grab a new installer file for major upgrades. That’s because Chrome doesn’t change all that much, and pretty much sports the same interface it’s had since version 1.0. Updates are mainly for Chrome’s rendering engine, and as of now, Chrome renders the fastest of all the browsers.
Likely the biggest pushing factor for Chrome is its pure speed. Chrome launches extremely quickly and is relatively stable, even while processing a large number of tabs. Chrome doesn’t seem to use much of your CPU, but Chrome sure is a memory hog. Due to the fact that Chrome will put each tab as a different process, opening a ton of tabs means you’ll begin to run low on memory. This is much less of an issue for netbooks with 2GB of RAM, but if you only have 1GB of RAM, it’s advised to stay away.
The interface for Chrome is the cleanest of all the browsers, and takes up just a little more space than IE9. With a little tweaking, you can hide the address bar altogether, but as of now that’s only in Chrome Canary (beta).
Opera 11.10
What makes Opera 11.10 stand out from other browsers is its massive collection of features. Visual tabs, full custom skin support, Opera Unite, built-in mail interface, you name it – Opera has almost every practical browser feature available right out of the box that other browsers will require add-ons for.
After using Opera for quite a while now, it seems like Opera’s CPU usage is up to par with Firefox 4 – very little. As for memory usage, however, Opera uses quite a lot after a long period of time. I may even go as far as saying Opera uses the most in terms of memory usage, but I’m not exactly sure, as opening many tabs in Chrome may surpass Opera’s memory usage. Just like Chrome, netbooks with only 2GB of RAM should be fine, but netbooks with only 1GB should stay away.
Opera’s interface is pretty much identical to Firefox 4, albeit a little smaller. It is good to keep in mind that Opera does have full skin support, and there are skins available that are dedicated to preserving space for browsing.
Conclusion
Each of the four browsers all have their own ups and downs. As it turns out, there isn’t a browser that just sticks out the most and means everyone should switch to it – it’s mainly a matter of preference.
The most balanced browser in terms of resource usage is Firefox 4, using little CPU and a decent amount of memory. Want the most amount of browsing room without having to do a lot of tweaking? Go with IE9. For those who look for pure speed and don’t really care about memory usage, Chrome is the way to go. Alternatively, if you’re willing to sacrifice a little bit of speed for a boatload of features, Opera is best for you.
In my magazine, it said that IE9 has improved a lot and now it’s really fast, along with a new re-vamped download bar and added ActiveX security measures. And you forgot Safari. :3
Yes, IE9 is definitely a lot better than IE8 ever was. I’m extremely unfamiliar with Safari, mostly because no one really uses it these days (I managed to convince everyone I know to use Opera).
Hey brian would chrome be good for a netbook if you are have only 1GB of ram but are using readyboost off a 4GB sd card
ReadyBoost isn’t the same as RAM, but theoretically it should work – provided you don’t open too many tabs at once.
ok ty
I prefer Midori and Chromium. Mostly Midori, though, as it’s pretty much the most lightweight browser I’ve ever used.
I have been using Firefox on Eee 701 with 2gb memory for some time with no problems. Recently upgraded to Firefox 4 and I am constantly getting pop-ups saying high CPU usage by Firefox. Not good! About 90% of CPU. So – have been looking at the alternatives. Don’t like ie8 (although have it there for emergencies) because it crashes a lot. So was thinking of Chrome – but if you say Firefox is lowest CPU hog – what hope is there?!!! I am thinking I will have to revert to Firefox 3. Does that mean I will have security issues if not up-to-date with Firefox?
Just declined an upgrade to Firefox 5 as some of my add-ons aren’t compatible apparently (virus software add-ons!)
That’s actually very odd that you’ve been getting 90% CPU usage – from my tests, Firefox uses very little CPU. Try doing a complete reinstall.
If that doesn’t work, give Opera or Chrome a shot and see if you get better results.
If you look at resources, throw away windows to begin with and install Ubuntu instead. I never understood why my Toshiba NB200 came with XP Home, which clearly isn’t suitable for a low resource Netbook …
Linux distributions definitely take less resources than Windows, but because the browsers are not drastically different across platforms, the memory usage should be about the same on both Windows and Linux.
i really sad and tension when my firefox is incompatible with my netbook..btw,i think IE is more good…:)