Using the Numion website loading stopwatch tool, we measured how long it took each browser to load and. Though the performance of your Web connection and your CPU do more to determine your overall surfing speed, your browser also has a role to play. We love the simple navigation panel, the helpful new tab page and the seamless switching between desktop and Metro modes. Internet Explorer maintains two different and unrelated browsers at the same time, one for desktop and one for Metro.

Chrome provides easy access to the re-launch tool, but its tiny interface makes the option hard to find, and neither browser maintains your open tabs. You can easily re-launch the browser in your preferred format by tapping the Options button next to the Awesome Bar, and your open tabs are preserved whenever you switch. When it comes to switching between Desktop and Metro modes, Firefox offers the most seamless transition. Internet Explorer suggests frequent sites, but only within a black panel above the keyboard, which affords it less space.

But when it comes to scrolling through the tabs you have open, Internet Explorer has the edge, displaying them just above the address bar when you hit Tabs while Firefox docks them at the top of the screen.Įach time you open a new tab, Firefox displays a pretty speed dial of your recent, most visited pages and your most frequented bookmarks so you don't have to waste time typing URLs. Internet Explorer and Firefox both helpfully suggest sites you might be looking for as you enter a URL or keyword in the address bar, and these results are tiled just above the field so you can easily tap them. However, Firefox goes a step further to make things easier and prettier by overlaying translucent Back and New Tab buttons on the left and right of the screen so you don't have to leave a full screen just to open a new tab.Īll three browsers support swiping left and right to move through back and forward through visited pages. These bottom panels in both Firefox and Internet Explorer auto-hide so you can enjoy full-screen viewing.

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