Oh look, cracking down on Big Tech works. Brave, Firefox, Vivaldi surge on iOS - eviltoast
Brave, Mozilla, Vivaldi see browser installs rise on iOS
www.theregister.com
Thanks to Europe forcing Apple to offer a browser choice screen. Now, about ditching WebKit ...

Since Apple implemented a browser choice screen for iPhones earlier this month to comply with Europe’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), Brave Software, Mozilla, and Vivaldi have seen a surge in the number of people installing their web browsers.

It’s an early sign that Europe’s competition rules may actually … get this … enhance competition – an outcome that skeptics deemed unlikely.

  • ForgotAboutDre@lemmy.world
    21·
    8 months ago

    It’s night and day on macos. I wouldn’t be surprised if we start to hear people complain about chrome on iOS in the EU if they implement the chrome engine.

    Apple doesn’t have much of a reason to force it’s own browser on iOS. They aren’t involved in selling adverts like Google and Microsoft. They also aren’t players in web technology in the same way as Google and MS. I suspect their big motivation in keeping chrome, edge and Firefox off the iPhone is to control the user experience an aspect of that being the battery life. The WebKit approach lets them have the browser and features like password managers, without sacrificing power consumption. If it want to keep Safaris user share they wouldn’t have allowed them at all in the iOS store.

    Google doesn’t bother with optimising chrome performance on any platforms. Even their pixels and Chromebooks. It’s just not a factor for them.

    • GiuseppeAndTheYeti@midwest.socialEnglish
      21·
      8 months ago

      I use a Motorola Edge+ 2023 with a 5100 mAh battery. The iPhone 15 Plus has a 4383 mAh battery which is about as close as I can get in comparisons. I run Firefox as my preferred browser AND for YouTube playback with uBlock Origin for a couple hours a day and it still lasts me a whole day. I normally only need to charge it to full in the morning while I eat breakfast and will normally get a low battery alert at 20% around 8pm. That’s about 12 hours with pretty heavy use.

      The iPhone 15 plus was given an active use score of 16.5 hours by gsm arena. So regardless, you’re charging about once a day.

    • TrickDacy@lemmy.world
      33·
      8 months ago

      What?? Apple has a huge vested interest in keeping their browser the only option. That’s why it took regulation to force them to do otherwise

      If their web browser is too good, they risk losing out on app store money because people will just use web apps when they can. So they intentionally hold back the web, directly for profit reasons. Fuck apple.

      • ForgotAboutDre@lemmy.world
        31·
        8 months ago

        Many apps are just web app packaged up in an app. Even on iOS. This wouldn’t work for apple.

        It not like people on Android are using web apps significantly more than iOS. Often on android websites are artificially limiting what you can do on the web app to push you to download their app (many of which are this packaging).

        The biggest hold on web apps is websites.

        Apple had to be forced to allow other browsers to be default because they get billions from Google each year. All because safari defaults to Google search. This is what would motivate apple to restrict the default web browser.

        Changing the web engine isn’t rely a factor in web apps. Safari is very capable. Websites generally work on safari, many that don’t work right on firefox. This isn’t because Firefox or safari is bad, but because Devs develop solely for chrome.

        • TrickDacy@lemmy.world
          15·
          8 months ago

          I couldn’t even begin to correct every misunderstanding you have. Even if I could it would take minimum of an hour. You shouldn’t be so confident.

    • TrickDacy@lemmy.world
      24·
      8 months ago

      I just read your comment again. I don’t think you said one thing that is true. Wow…