Firefox

Given that Firefox has over 160 million active users, we’re surprised Mozilla’s taken so long to release a mobile version. Finally, the company is releasing Firefox for mobile, its first browser for phones, codename Fennec. It incorporates Firefox 3’s browsing engine and will become available for Windows Mobile and Linux phones worldwide at the end of the year. We asked Jay Sullivan, who oversees the project in Mozilla’s labs, to give us the scoop.

LAPTOP: Why is Firefox just now entering the mobile broswer space?

JAY SULLIVAN: The devices and the networks are getting to the point where you can have a complete and compelling browsing experience on phones. And that hasn’t been the case up until the last six months to a year, in terms of hardware, the speed of the networks, the screens. The timing is good.

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Reuters is reporting that Firefox 3 is ready for the masses. Firefox 3 is now in its Beta 4 stage, and the company is ready for you—the average Web user—to try it out. We reviewed the second beta version of Firefox 3 a few months ago and felt that the open-source browser was almost there.

At this point we can safely say Firefox has just about reached its final destination. I have been surfing for the last two hours using the latest version, and it has been a pleasure getting acquainted. The download was pain-free and when I launched the new browser all my bookmarks and settings were ported over, including my StumbleUpon and Fasterfox extensions. The only difference with my surfing experience was the improved interface. Read the rest of this entry »