It’s been about two months since Opera introduced the non-beta version of its Opera 10 desktop browser, and today the Norwegian software developer is following up on that release with that of the latest beta build of Opera Mobile, a custom browser specifically built to give Symbian and Windows Mobile equipped handset users a (much) more pleasant Web browsing experience.
The company’s latest ‘State of the Mobile Web’ report, which was based on usage data from their other mobile browser product, the popular Opera Mini, suggests that mobile web usage is still increasing at a rapid pace. → Read More
Browser maker Opera has released its latest ‘State of the Mobile Web’ report this morning, claiming that there was a huge surge in mobile web usage past September.
Last month, more than 35.6 million people used Opera Mini (which is now serving over 500 million pageviews per day on average on a wide range of mobile devices), up 11.5% compared to August 2009 and more than 150% compared to September 2008. The Norway software developer also claims more than 2 petabytes of data is now processed by its servers on a monthly basis. That’d be 2,000 terabytes. → Read More
Browser maker Opera has released its latest ‘State of the Mobile Web’ report this morning, claiming that there was a huge surge in mobile web usage past September.
Last month, more than 35.6 million people used Opera Mini (which is now serving over 500 million pageviews per day on average on a wide range of mobile devices), up 11.5% compared to August 2009 and more than 150% compared to September 2008. The Norway software developer also claims more than 2 petabytes of data is now processed by its servers on a monthly basis. That’d be 2,000 terabytes. → Read More
There is no question that mobile browsing is taking off. The latest data from Opera shows that nearly 32 million people used its Opera Mini mobile browser in August, 2009, a 147 percent increase over the year before. In terms of pageviews, Opera Mini delivered 13.9 billion last month, a 235 percent annual increase. That means that each person is loading 436 pages a month on their cell phones, or 14 a day. A year ago, Opera Mini users were uploading 323 pages a month, or 10 a day. So both the number of people browsing on mobile phones and usage is going up.
But is Opera Mini the “world’s most popular mobile browser,” as Opera claims in a press release? What about the mobile version of Safari, which is the only browser allowed on the iPhone or iPod Touch. Apple has sold a total of 50 million iPhones and iPod Touches (30 million iPhones, and 20 million Touches), which both come with the Safari mobile browser. → Read More
Opera, the Norwegian software company behind mobile browser Opera Mini, has released its latest State of the Mobile Web report, providing some interesting data points for a detailed look at the evolution of Web browsing on mobile phones.
Looking at global trends, Opera Mini’s nearly 25.4 million users (as measured in May 2009, up 8.4% from the month before and up 36% compared to May 2008) have viewed over 9.6 billion pages. Since April, page-views have gone up 11.0% and increased an amazing 227% since May 2008. Opera says Mini users generated nearly 160 million MB of data for operators worldwide in May 2009, and claims that that would be 1.5 PB worth of data if the company didn’t compress this data up to 90%. → Read More
Attention droids and droidettes: Opera has released a final version (as in non-beta, not the last version ever) of Opera Mini 4.2 for Android. It’s available now in the Android Market and includes the following changes from the last beta: Now you can upload and download files through Opera Mini and save pages for offline viewing Videos will be redirected to the system’s video player Double tap now works for zooming in and out Inline URL entry instead of using native input Fixed password text entry to hide characters Fixed problems with exiting application when back button was pressed Improved trackball speed All internal pages, like the start page, now have font size extra large for easier navigation Beta is so 2008, anyways… → Read More
Back in April, Opera released a technical preview of Opera Mini for the Android SDK. The version of the SDK it was developed for was far from the final version, so by the time the G1 was launched in October, the Opera Mini package wouldn’t even make an attempt at installing itself to the device. Love it or hate it, the G1′s built-in browser has been your only web-perusing option since launch – until today, that is. While there hadn’t been much indication that Opera had continued pushing forward with Opera Mini on Android since that preview release, they’ve gone and pushed an Android version of the just-released Opera Mini 4.2 to the market. Read more at MobileCrunch >> → Read More
Regular readers will note that I’m an avid fan of Opera Mini for cellphones. Most phones’ built-in browser sucks, pure and simple. While Opera Mini isn’t as good as a desktop browser, it’s still easy enough to use on a small screen that it’s a no-brainer. When the Goog finally introduced Android, I was impressed. It’s a step in the right direction and something someone should have done awhile ago. Now Opera is working on an Android-native version of Opera Mini, and that gets me very excited. Two great tastes that taste great together or whatever. What’s notable is that Opera Mini usually runs on a Java virtual machine, however the Android version will run with the OS itself, meaning it’ll be faster, slimmer, and allow for more OS interoperability. That means it will rock. → Read More
I love the Helio Ocean, and I love Opera Mini. When some shadow devs used their fancy footwork to make the two work together, I was a very happy boy. Helio was impressed too, and today announced that the alternative browser would be officially supported on the Helio flagship handset. This is notable for a few reasons. This is a user-driven initiative; the vibrant Ocean community more or less said “we’re going to use Opera Mini on the Ocean, like it or not”. Helio then said, “Well, OK. We’ll help.” This is not the response most carriers would give, and it rather shows how into its users Helio is. It trusts their judgment. The free upgrade is also the first time any carrier has ever said, “Here, use Opera Mini.” It’s always been a third-party download. We’ve also heard that this could be the first of many deals between Helio and Opera. While the new browser doesn’t replace the built-in browser at this time, it might in the future. Those of you with the un-official version might want to upgrade to the official one, as it was made custom or the Ocean and runs a little smoother, or so we hear. Kudos the Helio and Opera for innovating for the users where most carriers and developers would be stingy. → Read More
Let’s be perfectly honest with each other for a few minutes: most built-in mobile Web browsers make me (and probably you) want to scratch my eyeballs out. Any Java-enabled device not running Opera Mini is a travesty. You’re just not living and there are no bones about that. Not only is it faster, but it doesn’t take up a whole lot of space on your device’s already limited memory capacity. I’d like to think most of you are savvy enough to know how good Opera Mini really is and you’re already running it on your device of choice, but if you’re just joining us or have no idea what it is then step into my office and let’s rap about this for a few. → Read More
It’s out of beta, it’s free, and it’s here. Opera Mini 4 works on Java-enabled phones and includes “native Blackberry menus,” faster page rendering, Landscape Mode, and a cool feature that allows you “to synch your Bookmarks and Speed Dial with those on your Computer” via Opera Link. There’s also a virtual mouse feature which gives you a tiny mouse cursor that you can use to scroll around and click things as well as Opera’s Small Screen Rendering feature that helps alleviate having to scroll horizontally by “adjust[ing] the page structure on the fly.” Opera Mini – Free mobile Web browser for your phone [Opera] via SlashPhone → Read More
One of the most popular smartphones on today’s market is the Treo by Palm (and formerly by Handspring). The original versions ran Palm OS, with Windows Mobile coming later. We cover WinMo quite a bit here at the Gear, as it’s on the majority of smartphones people buy right now. That being said, there’s a huge user base for Palm OS-based Treos. What’s sad is that many people don’t take advantage of the elegant but powerful (albeit old) operating system they way they could. If you’re a Treo user, read on. We’ll discuss add-on software and tweaks that will make your trusty handheld faster, easier to use, and far more productive. → Read More
We love it when a device has an enthusiastic following. We love it more when that following comes up with badass ways to hack said device. And we love it when said enthusiastic following hacks said favored device and the results are fantastic. We love the Ocean by Helio, one of the most amazing and overlooked handsets on the market. If you haven’t seriously looked at this thing yet, you should. We love Opera Mini, short of the iPhone’s implementation of Safari, it’s the best mobile Web browser, hands down. And now we love the hacking community at Heliocity, as they’ve bunged up a way to run Opera Mini on the Helio Ocean. → Read More
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