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Google Chrome now works on iOS
- SlimHop 14y agoDoes Chrome on iOS support WebGL?
- pcwalton 14y agoDon't see how it can, as it's just a UIWebView.
- ComputerGuru 14y agoUIWebViews can be configured to run WebGL, though this is not officially supported/sanctioned by Apple.
- Synaesthesia 14y agoSafari doesn't even officially support it yet, on iOS.
- hughw 14y agoJust checked: No.
- nthitz 14y agoDoes it use it's own rendering engine or is it just interface on top of a UIWebView?
- Synaesthesia 14y agoApps on the store have to use UIWebView, which of course doesn't get the Nitro JavaScript engine.
- gcp 14y agoDoes this mean it will be slow as molasses on JavaScript-heavy sites?
- tubbo 14y agoThey "have to"? I was under the impression that you had a choice of UIWebView and your own custom implementation. Are they really going to block sales of an app if it has an alternative JS engine?
- Synaesthesia 14y agoYou might be able to do your own JavaScript implementation, not sure, but I think actually not. (I stand corrected on this). But V8 definitely won't be permitted under the current laws, as it uses executable blocks of code in memory, which are not permitted, for security reasons under iOS. Don't see that rule changing. Let's hope Apple let other browsers be the default though.
- patrickaljord 14y agoIsn't UIWebView a component written by Apple? Why not include Nitro in it? Why would it be a security issue on Chrome but not on Safari? Do people have access to the UIWebView source code? If not, this "security" reason is BS.
- mbrubeck 14y agoThird-party processes on iOS cannot mark data pages as executable, which is a great security feature but it prevents JIT compilers or any other technology that dynamically generates machine code. Apple's built-in apps have an exception to this security mechanism, presumably because Apple is more confident in their own security auditing of those apps. Perhaps with some sandboxing mechanism and/or code auditing process they could allow some third-party apps similar access in the future, but it's not clear whether they feel a need to.
- raldi 14y agoThe "Request Desktop Site" button is the killer feature for power users.
- nixarn 14y agoyeah, that's so far the best feature this app comes with.
- skeletonjelly 14y agoI like how it doesn't just refresh the page, but the original you requested. So if you get redirected to a mobile subdomain and check "request desktop site" you'll get the original domain. Killer!
- ajross 14y agoCan someone clarify? I thought replacing the browser (actually even stronger: rendering web content using anything but the browser) was one of the items forbidden by the app store guidelines?
- glhaynes 14y agoIt's still the system rendering and JavaScript engines. Edit: Which, from the vast majority of users' perspectives, are functionally identical.
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- speg 14y agoWhile Chrome for iOS will include a number of key features, including incognito mode and tab syncing across devices, the browser will still use Apple's WebKit-based engine required by the App Store developer guidelines. It also will lack the Nitro JavaScript engine that Apple uses to speed Safari's performance.
- kyrra 14y agoWhich is why I still like Android as a mobile platform. Google gives users a choice, Apple makes you live within their walled garden.
- anextio 14y agoV8 requires just-in-time compilation, which is not allowed on iOS for security-related reasons.
- ricefield 14y agoSo, no V8 or Nitro, but Chrome/Chromium uses Webkit, so renders should be the same (just slower) right?
- estel 14y ago
- nextstep 14y agoBut, Chrome on iOS will still be a "second class citizen" the way Opera mini and the other browsers on the AppStore. If you want to open a link in Chrome, you will need to copy/paste the URL, no "Open in Chrome" functionality like Safari has. For better or for worse, Apple has not opened up system-wide integration of third party apps, and I don't seem them allowing you to change your default browser anytime soon.
- bgarbiak 14y agoThat shouldn't be that much of a problem as most of the pages on iOS are displayed in an in-app web views (in apps like: Twitter, Facebook, etc.). Ok, "bookmark-icons" will open in Safari - doubt it's a very popular feature though.
- mistercow 14y agoWhat's pretty nauseating about it is that it's exactly the kind of anti-competitive crap that Microsoft pulled in the first browser war, only more so.
- cooldeal 14y agoAnd while Mozilla made really loud noises with threats of complaints and legal action about Windows RT and Microsoft, they completely ignored Apple and made Firefox Sync which just syncs bookmarks etc.
- Zirro 14y ago"they completely ignored Apple and made Firefox Sync which just syncs bookmarks etc." There was plenty of sounds from them at the time when they wanted to release a Firefox for iOS, but that was a few years ago by now and it didn't get picked up in the media like the Windows-complaints.
- cooldeal 14y ago>There was plenty of sounds from them at the time when they wanted to release a Firefox for iOS Really? Care to link to some of them?
- cooldeal 14y agoThe headline should read Google Chrome Skin now works on iOS. For all intents and purposes, the heart of the browser, i.e the rendering and scripting engines are not running on the iPad or iPhone. Would it be accurate to state that IE now works on the iPad if Microsoft ported the IE browser chrome(UI) to the iPad?
- TazeTSchnitzel 14y agoEh, it's WebKit. Not quite the same WebKit, but close enough. It's not like they are using completely different rendering engines.
- recoiledsnake 14y agoThere is no WebGL and other HTML5 features that Chrome has. Also, not only there is no V8 JS Engine support, but I suspect that Apple's NitroJS engine won't work in Chrome because it probably uses UIWebView to render sites.
- TazeTSchnitzel 14y agoYeah, no WebGL's a bummer. But at least it is close to the same engine.
- benatkin 14y agoCome on. It's close to the same engine in the same way Desktop Safari is close to the same engine in Desktop Chrome. You upgrade one, the other remains the same.
- tedunangst 14y agoWell, WebGL doesn't work in Chrome on Android either.
- mbrubeck 14y agoTrue, though that may change soon. And other features like SPDY are already working on Android but presumably not in Chrome for iOS.
- tree_of_item 14y agoIf it's just a WebView with JavaScriptCore, what's the point? Is tab syncing the only benefit?
- kylebrown 14y agoIts not JavaScriptCore, its webkit (UIWebView which is non-Nitro). Tab syncing is one heck of a benefit, I can't wait to switch. Now I'm definitely going to stick with Chrome on my desktop, even though I'd been considering going back to Firefox. Quite disappointing on Apple's part that its only in iOS 6 that Notes and Calendar will be synced with OS X, still not Safari tabs.
- mbrubeck 14y agoDoesn't Safari on iOS 6 include tab sync? http://techcrunch.com/2012/06/11/safari-on-ios-6-to-feature-offline-reading-lists-smart-app-banners-photo-uploads-icloud-tab-syncing/ http://techcrunch.com/2012/06/11/safari-on-ios-6-to-feature-...
- mkaltenecker 14y agoMonths away. And I don’t think that’s really an argument against Chrome on iOS. Different people like to use different browsers on the desktop. If you use Chrome you don’t get tab syncing with mobile Safari. Also, some people might for example have an iPad and an Android phone. With mobile Safari, there is no way to sync tabs between the two. With Chrome there is.
- kylebrown 14y agoThanks, I must've missed that in the wwdc keynote. I feel better now.
- tree_of_item 14y agoIs JavaScriptCore not the WebKit JavaScript engine? My point was that one of Chrome's main allures is V8, and if it's using stock WebKit (and therefore JavaScriptCore) there doesn't seem to be much point in using Chrome at all.
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- emehrkay 14y agoSo does this browser not automatically block third party cookies like the default Safari does?
- georgemcbay 14y agoThis is a poor decision on Google's part. The end result is it tarnishes the Chrome brand. Chrome's features like private browsing and tab/bookmark syncing are nice, but the defining feature of the brand IMO is that it is a very fast web browser. By linking the name to an app that will always be inherently slower than Safari on iOS, the brand is lessened with no significant upside. I understand their desire to allow Chrome desktop users to have some meaningful interop between their desktop and mobile browsers, but I think they would have been much better served by not pretending this is an actual Chrome experience (much in the way Firefox allows some interop but keeps the distinction clear).
- raldi 14y agoDownload it and try it out -- to me, iOS Chrome seems much faster than Safari: http://itunes.apple.com/en/app/chrome/id535886823?l=nl&mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/en/app/chrome/id535886823?l=nl&m...
- adamjernst 14y agoApple will never allow a JIT Javascript engine on any app except their own, for security reasons. (App Store apps can't allocate pages with the executable bit set, which is a good idea really.)
- mtgx 14y agoI'm sure Microsoft could've used 10 excuses like that for IE back in 2000.
- dljsjr 14y agoWhile that does, technically, "matter", it doesn't really matter to users. I've been using it for a few minutes and I too can confirm that it feels very, very fast. Which is all that matters. In fact, a few years ago, Mozilla confirmed that seeming faster is much nicer than actually being faster: http://www.johnwaynehill.com/blog/2010/06/16/perceived-speed-performace/ http://www.johnwaynehill.com/blog/2010/06/16/perceived-speed... The point is, the Chrome guys executed well enough on their iOS app that the inherent performance issues really don't seem to be a problem (though I've only been using the app for about 5 minutes so my opinion is limited). And it's quite a pretty app. It brings just enough of the Holographic UI to look nice without looking alien on iOS. They did well.
- dedene 14y agoIt's available now: http://itunes.apple.com/be/app/chrome/id535886823?l=nl&mt=8 http://itunes.apple.com/be/app/chrome/id535886823?l=nl&m...
- Albuca 14y agoiOS Chrome requires iOS 4.3, while Android Chrome requires Android 4.0. Ironically that means that 99% of the iOS users can use Chrome, while only 10% of the Android users can.
- dannygarcia 14y agoIt's ridiculous that there are no debugging / console tools included. It's difficult for me to take this browser seriously as a web developer – especially when compared to Mobile Safari in iOS6.
- TazeTSchnitzel 14y agoGive them time, I'm sure they'll add that soon. Although having to use UIWebView might constrain them.
- JBiserkov 14y agoThe icon is similar to Gmail on iOS - "wide" black margins. Any idea why? Everything else seems to be working just fine, not slow or anything. The omnibox is really nice.
- vibrunazo 14y agoProbably in protest of iOS icon guidelines :P
- Jyaif 14y agoYour icons _must_ be (rounded) squares. You can't use transparency.
- deleted 14y ago[deleted]
- JBiserkov 14y ago(rounded) square side = 114px = 2*57 tau=2pi area:= tau*r*r/2 Chrome: margin: 16px; radius: 41px = 57-16; area:= 840.5*tau Wordpress: margin: 12px; radius: 45px = 57-12; area:= 1012.5*tau Clock: margin: 9px; radius: 48px = 57- 9; area:= 1152.0*tau Circle: margin: 0px; radius: 57px = 57- 0; area:= 1624.5*tau (Measurments taken from a screenshot on iPod touch "retina" resolution.) So Chrome's circle area is 73% of Clock's and only 52% of the theoretical limit. While I was playing with this I got inspired by Google+ for iOS and Metro and asked "What if it doesn't fit, but insead fills the (rounded) square?" See for yourself. http://biserkov.com/pics/Chrome-on-iOS-icon-ideas.png http://biserkov.com/pics/Chrome-on-iOS-icon-ideas.png Blue circle radius: 21px; White circle radius: 25px Disclaimer: I used the svg Chrome logo from Wikipedia. I'm no designer.
- mwyvern 14y agoI am disappointed that extensions are not supported.
- wlesieutre 14y agoIt doesn't seem to let you set custom search engines, which is a bit disappointing. More options than Google, Yahoo, and Bing was one of the reasons I'd been hoping for this. Even without that, the easily accessible incognito mode (Safari's is through the system wide Settings app), request desktop site, and bookmark sync is still worth more to me than Nitro/V8. On the jailbreak side, Browser Changer doesn't support Chrome yet. Hopefully that will come soon.
- TazeTSchnitzel 14y agoI'd imagine custom search engines etc. will come soon. They just want to get it out there for now.
- Xyzodiac 14y agoSeriously though, I can't get Chrome on my Android phone because it's stuck on Gingerbread but I can if I buy an iPhone. That makes loads of sense Google.
- redrory 14y agoI've fiddled around with it for 10-15 minutes and I love it. It feels much more responsive. Switching and creating tabs are much faster. I'm on a 3GS