Why i will never come back

Opinion message from

Mitja Rutnik

I have used the Android version of Google Chrome for years, but have never been really happy with the overall experience. The browser did not seem as intuitive to me as I would like. It lacked the customization I wanted, so I went looking for a better alternative. After trying several of its competitors, including Firefox and Opera, I came across Samsung Internet. I was immediately impressed. I’ve been using it regularly for about a year now and think it’s miles ahead of Google Chrome. Let’s go over a few reasons why.

Compared to Chrome, Samsung Internet has a much better toolbar. On the one hand, it is located at the bottom of the browser instead of the top. It might sound strange to Chrome junkies, but it means I don’t have to do any hand gymnastics to access it.

Related: The 15 best Android browsers

Then there are the features and customization options. With Chrome, you only have three buttons on the toolbar (Home, Tabs, and Menu), while Samsung Internet offers a host of buttons. You can choose between 25 different options. These include downloads, history, and bookmarks, to name a few – check them all out in the image below. And the best part is that you can customize the toolbar to your liking by adding only the buttons that you use regularly.

The Samsung Internet Toolbar also allows me to do things faster. I can open a new tab just by long pressing the Tabs button. I can also access Secret / Incognito mode to browse privately with one click. Performing the same tasks on Chrome requires extra taping as well as the boring experience of stretching my fingers up the screen. Speaking of stretching, I can search the Samsung Internet again by long pressing the Home button. I don’t need to press the address bar at all like I do on Chrome.

I know it might seem like it is difficult here, but when you do dozens of searches a day, open countless new tabs, and frequently use Secret / Incognito Mode, you quickly realize how important it is to do these things with as little effort as possible.

The Samsung Internet home page is more customizable than Chrome.

Samsung’s browser also has a better homepage than Chrome. The biggest difference between the two is the customization available. Samsung Internet allows me to place shortcuts to my favorite websites on the home page. Therefore, I don’t have to enter the site address every time I want to visit it. Chrome, on the other hand, only shows you the most visited websites, which you can also enable on Samsung Internet. However, this isn’t always a good idea, as you might not want some of your frequently visited websites to show up on the home page.

Website shortcuts that you manually add to the Samsung Internet home page also appear below the address bar when you search from any page. It makes the overall experience even better. To give you an example, if you are on Android Authority website and long press Home button to search again, you will see all your website shortcuts at the top of the browser.

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Dark mode is also better on Samsung Internet. While Chrome applies its dark mode to the toolbar at the top – which disappears when you scroll – and the Settings menu, Samsung Internet applies it to the pages you visit as well. If you’re reading an article on a site that has a white background and black text, turning on dark mode will change the colors. The background will change to black and the text to white. It takes some getting used to, but you really see the benefit of reading something in a darker environment – your eyes will thank you.

You can even pair Samsung Internet’s dark mode with high contrast mode. It adjusts the colors of fonts and other components on a page to make them stand out against the background. You can see what it looks like in action in the screenshot above.

Samsung’s browser also has a few other cool features that you won’t find on its main competitor. It sports a floating scroll button that takes me back to the top of a page when I touch it. Plus, it comes with a built-in QR reader which is still useful from time to time. It also has a built-in ad blocker which can be turned on or off in the browser. I don’t need to open a separate app like with Chrome.

Read more: 20 Chrome tips and tricks you should know

Of course, Chrome also has its advantages over Samsung Internet. It allows you to translate text quickly thanks to the integration of Google Translate and has a simplified mode that records data while browsing. The Google browser also has a great Discover feature. It shows you a bunch of articles that you might be interested in on the homepage that are organized based on your search history and Google profile. Yet despite its advantages, the overall experience is not as good as what you get with Samsung Internet.

This is my opinion, and now I want to hear yours! If you don’t agree with me, head over to the comments section below. Tell me why I’m wrong, and maybe you can change your mind. I’ll do my best to respond to as many comments as possible so that we can strike up a proper conversation. Also share your opinion if you agree with my opinion – I’d like to see how many people are on my side and if anyone has been convinced to try Samsung Internet!