Wednesday, June 18, 2014

A Browser Alternative

Maxthon, The Underdog Browser    4.4.1.2000

Maxthon

It still surprises me that there is not a greater awareness of the options available in browsers.  Everyone with access to the net knows about Internet Explorer, Microsoft’s ubiquitous offering.  Explorer is no doubt the go to most use to surf the internet.  However, there are options. Other big names that come to mind, Firefox, Chrome and Safari are rather well known, even among those who casually use the web.  Names like Avant Browser or SeaMonkey may instigate some serious head scratching.

The world wide web is still populated by an assortment of software to surf the web.  Some come, so go and others become niche market specialties.  It also depends on what part of the world you are located that may also determine which browser you maybe aware.  Well known in its native China, Maxthon Cloud Browser version 4.4.1.2000 provides a unique set of features  that set it apart from the sizable competition.

One big feature of Maxthon is that is has two page rendering engines, Webkit and Trident. What this translates into is a browser that can render a wide spectrum of sites smoothly. It also offers up excellent HTML 5 support. Those factor into creating a browser that is fast and sure footed.

The Maxthon Browser


Not unlike Firefox, Maxthon features a sizable number of extensions.  While Firefox offers a wider assortment of them, one very important extension that all mainstream browsers support is the password keeper Last Pass. Maxthon also supports it.  If you have ever used this free pass code  manager, you realize pretty quickly it makes logging into sites less stressful.

Another big plus for Maxthon are all of the extras baked into the browser.  Screen captures, a reading mode and the ability to store in the cloud content downloaded from the web are real bonuses.  Unique among browsers is that cloud stored content can be access and downloaded from other Maxthon browsers used on other computers.  Just log into an account and the content appears.  Synchronizing content like bookmarks and preferences are common. Maxthon takes the idea further by allowing images and video to be shared as easily.

Browsers that are cross platform are the norm.  Maxthon is available for Android, iOS, Mac and naturally Windows.

The core philosophy behind the browser, it becomes evident after a few uses, is that it supports web standards, offers high performance, a higher number of integrated features than other browsers and portability.

Summation

The better known browsers have something significant to offer. Chrome is providing speed, and more recently a 64 bit browser, Firefox has an extensive range of extensions and Internet Explorer is ubiquitous.  In an already crowded field, it takes something special to make an alternative attractive.  If you download content from the web and like having a slew of slick features already available to you without picking and selecting ad ons, Maxthon makes a good argument for itself as a nice addition to anyone’s browser arsenal.