My last look at the BrowserWars was back in April of this year. At that time I noted that big changes were underway. The slow and steady growth of Firefox had stopped. Firefox and Internet Explorer were both starting to fade and the sole contender to gain in market share was Google Chrome.
Today Chrome is still gaining rapidly but some think that Internet Explorer may be back in the race with the introduction of Internet Explorer 9. Although the boost for IE is more a matter of conjecture than actual fact, at least some watchers are reporting gains for IE. 
All statistics are dependent on collection methods, but by looking at several we get an idea of the overall trends. This one from 3Schools shows a .5% rise in IE market share. That’s the first increase they’ve shown for IE in about a year and a half.
Because we’re basically a Windows site, I’ve mostly ignored Safari and their position in the market. Here’s what I had to say about them last time: “At the end of 2009, Safari was in the number 3 position, followed closely by Chrome. Now Chrome is in the number three position and has opened up its lead on Safari.”
I think it’s important to notice that Safari is still gaining market share, although not as fast as Google Chrome. I expect this to continue with the growth of the iPad and similar devices. There are no less than about 40 “iPad like” tablets slated to hit the streets in the next year. The mobility trend is going to do nothing but grow and this is going to give the BrowserWars new life.
Take a look at what NETMARKETSHARE is showing for Safari’s position.
I’ve read may bloggers and reviewers touting IE9 as the savior for IE’s failing performance. I don’t agree with them. I gave my opinion back when IE9 Beta was released. You can read it here.
Is IE9 a nice improvement over IE8, yes? Am I using IE9 Beta along with Chrome, yes, but I don’t think it’s going to change the current trend. That trend is, growth for Chrome, growth for Safari, and stagnation and loss for Internet Explorer and FireFox.
The next quarter is going to be interesting. Christmas will see the introduction of many iPad like devices hitting the streets. iPad is the fastest selling electronics device ever. How will the growth of tablets and mobile devices effect the browser wars? I’ll let you know at the begining of 2011.
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Chrome is the choice for me. It is fast, has a small footprint and is elegant. The proof is in how IE9 and Firefox are changing to be more “Chrome-like”. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Interesting, I’ve tied a number of browsers and in my experiance I found Opera the fastest whilst still being stable. My order of preference is
1) Opera
2) IE9
3) Firefox
4) Safari
In fairness I have not tried Chrome, I’ve always been put off by all the supplemental rubbish it seemed to want to make you load.
Before you jump on the Google Chrome bandwagon, you should look at Google’s political aspirations. “nuff said.
I read the headline “Most Important Windows Security Patch Ever” and wondered if you were going to recommend a Linux based ‘patch’.
I fought vista daily for 13 months until it finally died completely and wouldn’t recognize any input devices.
A “Live CD” from ubuntu brought the computer back to life with all the windows files intact, so I lost nothing.
I did, however, gain a lot. PEACE OF MIND!
I have Firefox 3.6 and love it. Have had it a few years now. I have tried Chrome but for some reason it didnt take. My choice for FF was against IE at the time and FF was alot faster and safer(at that time).
I have Google Chrome with ABP installed. I’m sure there are other add on apps out there. Have to look is all.
Chrome does have an ad blocker add on.
What’s really great about Chrome, besides speed, is stability.
I have not had one crash!
What do you see on the horizon for some of these newer browsers such as Wyzo and Luncascape?
Does chrome have an ad blocker ? ha.. don’t think so… advertising is their game