Google’s (just over a) year-old browser, Chrome, is gaining ground. Hitting 30 million users and still growing, Chrome trails behind Apple’s Safari browser for the #3 spot. The top two spots are still dominated by Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (holding 64.64% of the market share) and Mozilla’s Firefox (at 330 million users or 24.07% of the market share), but Chrome is amped and streaking past the competition.
Google’s Chrome had the largest gain in the browser market share from September 2009 to October based on the statistics from Net Applications. Chrome rose from 3.2 percent to 3.6 percent in the market share while falling just behind came Firefox with a .3 percent gain. On the other side of the road, Internet Explorer dropped from 65.7 percent to 64.6 percent. Although the differences may seem small, they represent millions of users. By using Firefox figures in comparison, imagine the numbers when only 24 percent of the market share approximates to a number of users greater than the population of the United States…
I got curious from reading all this hype. So, I started by visiting the Chrome web site. I read through it’s features (speed, simplicity, style) and read about why it was developed (a browser started from scratch to cater to the needs of the modern Internet surfer). For a little while, I even tried to read up on the technology via the Chrome Comic but my attention span fell short after a few pages and I ended up astray at Chrome Experiments. Regaining focus, I eventually clicked back to Chrome and started the installation process.
After a short while of browsing and testing, I’ve got to say that I do like the Chrome browser. I followed the pack and switched to Firefox (from Internet Explorer) a couple of years ago. It’s been a good choice for me, but I’m seriously thinking about going Chrome now. The difference in speed is obvious. Chrome starts up much quicker and loads web pages faster. I almost feel as if my computer has gotten lighter. The browser has a clean, simple interface, and it’s also easy to use which makes the switch very inviting…
But… is it worth all the hassle? There’s probably a reason why IE has been the reigning champion when it comes to browsers; it’s typically packaged with your computer. Most people might just not care what medium they use to get online, as long as they are online. Then again, looks like Google might already be walking down that path.
I’m going to hang on to Chrome and keep trying it out. True to my indecisive nature, my mind hasn’t been made up. Do you have any insight? Have you made the switch or decided against the switch? Share your thoughts and help me with my decision!
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