Firefox is Back | Firefox Quantum is “Faster Than Chrome”

Logan2017-11-15

I am writing a post using Firefox; dawn of a new day. I’ve always used Firefox for front-end development because it is light years ahead when it comes to viewing source, messing with CSS in the browser, but it was always slower and clunkier than Chrome.

Here is a short list of what Mozilla is claiming about Firefox 57 (Quantum):

A new engine that is 2x faster
30% lighter than Chrome, the RAM eater
Private browsing and tracking protection
New standards for extensions (many old ones will stop working)
See the rest here: www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/

In my own testing, I am seeing that it is neck and neck with Chrome, but slower in HTML5. Hopefully the team at Mozilla keeps moving in this direction.

Here’s a major benefit: you can move away from the “all seeing eye” of Google and start using a browser from a company that has a much better track record (Mozilla). The privacy features are nice and the company credo is one about community and progress over data monitoring and profits. You can stop relying on Google to save your passwords, bookmarks, etc. (all things they use to paint a picture of your digital life) and start using Mozilla. Or, you can just ignore all that and use Lastpass to manage your passwords and forget the rest.

I am going to shift over to Firefox for this week’s Crit Show and I’ll also keep using it at home. After installing a dark theme, it looks a lot cleaner than Chrome (but that’s subjective).