Opera: Simply superb. Review on Opera

Previously, I was using Microsoft Internet Explorer. But, due to its extreme slowness and lack of security, I decided to switch to an alternative. I tried Firefox as that was the most hyped browser at the time I made my decision to move from IE(around 2006), but didn't like that at all. While looking up other alternative browsers, I found out about Opera and gave it a try. IT WAS AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE. Since then, I have always used Opera as my default browser and installed it on every computer I used.

Opera is based on Chromium, the rendering engine which is also used in Chrome. So, those who use Chrome should have no difficulty adapting to Opera. Even the Firefox UI these days resembles Chrome, so they should not find it difficult to adapt to Opera either. There are 3 variants of Opera you can choose from: Opera Stable(the standard Opera release), Opera Beta(which has the features that will appear in the future Stable release) and Opera Developer(which has features under test). For those who don't want to use a Chromium-based browser, Opera provides Opera 12.17, which is based on the Presto rendering engine which was previously used by Opera until Opera 15, which was the first Chromium-based version.

The best feature about Opera is the speed. IMO, I feel Opera is the fastest browser. Firefox and Chrome slow down horribly if more than 3 extensions are installed. But with Opera, I have installed around 8 extensions and still the browsing speed is really fast. I also like the feature of "Opera Turbo". Enable it, and you can experience fast browsing even with a slow Internet connection. This is achieved with the help of  proxy server which compresses webpages with a compression rate of 80%, reducing image quality, but at the same time, making the browsing faster. Opera also starts very fast, in fact faster than any other browser.

Opera has a good set of extensions. The list may not be as extensive as Firefox, but still has all the basic extensions I need, such as AdBlock Plus, YouTube video downloader, weather add-on, PDF viewer, Site Advisor etc.

Opera is also a secure browser, and reliable too. It is not as insecure as IE and Firefox and does not infringe on my privacy unlike Chrome. Plus, it never crashes, unlike IE, Firefox and Chrome. I have used this browser for 9 long years and it has never crashed for me even once.

The rendering of the webpages using Opera is awesome too. Unlike in IE or Firefox, where the rendering is too ugly or artificial that I know that I am using that browser, the rendering in Opera is so natural that I totally forgot about what browser I was in and the content just took over. It just felt natural.

Opera is the browser which started the innovative browser features such as tabbed browsing and Speed Dial(where you can create shortcuts to all your most-accessed webpages). All these features were first released in Opera and then only went on to other browsers.

Opera also has a clean and uncluttered UI which is user-friendly. It even has a good download manager. Whenever you download anything through the browser, a downward arrow appears on the top right corner of the browser. By just clicking it, you can see the progress of your download. By far, this is the best browser in-built download manager I have used. And, if you don't want to save your history while browsing, just press Ctrl+Shift+N to enable private browsing.

In Opera, bookmark management is also good and more user-friendly than IE or Firefox, where its a struggle to manage bookmarks. By clicking on the prominent heart symbol next to the browser bar, you can bookmark a page. You can also go to the Bookmarks window and easily arrange your bookmarks in different folders. Opera provides default bookmark folders like Reading List, Videos, Shopping and Travel, but you can also create your own folders. You can even import bookmarks from other browsers.

Opera provides a handy sync feature. By creating and logging in to Opera sync with an Opera account, all browser activity in all the Opera browsers you use will be synchronised, which is a very useful feature. I use Opera in both home and office, both browsers logged in with my account. Now, if I save a bookmark in Opera in the office computer, I don't have to save it again at home and vice-versa.

Sadly, no one seems to use or have even heard about Opera, despite its awesome features. Still people prefer to use the rubbish IE, Firefox and Chrome, ignoring their many flaws. Opera browser was first released in 1994, and since then, its market share has always been <5%. This is due to bad marketing. Opera does not have the corporate seal and money power of Microsoft and Google and also the open-source community support of Firefox. In such a situation, Opera needed to market their browser aggressively, which they never did.

Leaving aside the marketing issue, Opera browser is so far a browser without any significant flaws. I have only 2 words to say about Opera before signing off: SIMPLY SUPERB.