Which is better: Google Chrome or Opera?

[Milanao]

I've been using Opera for about nine years and have been very happy with it. Opera is very secure and always plugs its security leaks (see Secunia.com). It's easy to use and very fast as well. It has its limitations like Foxit Reader doesn't work for me at least. There may be more but I keep my browsing very simple. It doesn't have that many extensions because they just started using them a few months ago. Opera updates on a regular basis, not constantly like Firefox or Chrome betas. Firefox, in particular, has hundreds of hands in the cookie jar trying to improve it. I don't understand how a final version can come out and a few days later, a beta with 300 fixes is released. Open source doesn't always mean better. Will Opera ever be as customizable as Firefox? No. But, I believe Opera will stay ahead of Chrome. I don't even use some of Opera's big features because I don't need them. Opera portable is very popular (Opera on the go), as is Opera Mini (for cell phones). Go to Opera.com and check out the features for yourself.

I downloaded Chrome and used it for a while. It's a simple browser, not a lot of bells and whistles. It's fast and already has Adobe Flash built in which is a plus for those who have problems loading newer versions. The knock on Chrome and it's a big one: Google tracks your browsing when using Chrome. The privacy issues have always hounded Google, so naturally when Chrome came out those issues were put in the spotlight. To what extent and just what exactly they track versus what Google already keeps on their servers, I really don't know. I don't want anyone keeping track of where I go, no matter where I go. These privacy issues are why some of the other Chromium browsers have gotten more looks. Especially ChromePlus, Comodo Dragon, and SRWare Iron. But there are other Chromium browsers too like Chromium, Rockmelt (integrated with Facebook/Twitter) and Flock. I will say this, the privacy issues matter to me, but obviously based on how many folks use Chrome, those issues don't seem as important to many, many people. Though Chrome betas are constantly being updated, I've only used the stable versions.

Opera just keeps getting better and better. It has a huge following that keeps getting bigger. Hardware acceleration is next up for Opera. Read the reviews at Softonic.com and Download.cnet.com. Join the club, and let me be the first to say, "Welcome to Opera."