Chrome for iPad and iPhone in the Works?
For those looking for an alternative to using Safari for browsing the web, it may soon be an option to use Google’s Chrome web browser on all of your iOS devices. Of course, third-party web browsers seems doomed to fail.
While Apple does allow this software to be installed and used, they do not allow you to change your default web browser settings which means “all links in emails, texts or other apps will always open in Safari, regardless of what other browsers are installed.”
As I recall, this model did not work well for Microsoft all of those years ago (though it would appear Windows 8 does the same thing as happens on iOS by favoring Internet Explorer). Now, if only Google had their open mobile operating system where they should be able to make the rules…
While the idea of having options is always a nice one, I am struggling to think of a reason why a person would need to use Chrome over Safari on their iPhone or iPad. Certainly bookmarks can be synced between devices with both browsers, and Chrome does offer the ‘open tabs’ syncing which allows you to move from device to device without losing your browsing history and locations –but Apple is likely to add this functionality as well with the forward movement of the iCloud.
One speculation is that Chrome coming to iOS is actually good for Apple and I agree –as users see features in Chrome they will begin to demand them in Safari, driving their native web browser onward and upward.
For those who are a little more privacy conscious, you may want to do a little research on Chrome before you set to using it. Google has recently come under fire with allegations that they knowingly circumvented privacy settings in an effort to promote the use of their Google+ social network.
