Mozilla takes on Google Chrome by launching faster new Firefox Quantum browser

Meet Firefox Quantum that has improved speed and lower RAM usage compared to Chrome

In the month of September, we had reported how Mozilla has decided to take on Google’s Chrome with its latest version of web browser known as “Firefox Quantum” that would be available to all Firefox users beginning November 14.

Finally launched on November 14, the new, super fast version ‘Firefox Quantum’ (or Firefox 57) completely overhauls the original browser and is available for download on Windows, macOS and Linux-based computing devices as well as on iOS and Android smartphones. Firefox Quantum is the outcome of around 700 authors across the world contributing code to the browser since August 6th 2017.

According to Mozilla, the new browser is twice as fast as Firefox 52 from six months ago. “It’s by far the biggest update we’ve had since we launched Firefox 1.0 in 2004,” the company wrote in a blog post.

“Firefox Quantum is over twice as fast as Firefox from 6 months ago, built on a completely overhauled core engine with brand new technology stolen from our advanced research group, and graced with a beautiful new look designed to get out of the way and let you do what you do best.”

Quantum now comes with a new CSS engine called Quantum CSS or Stylo. Quantum CSS allows the browser to take advantage of the modern hardware with multi-core processes and low power consumption. While Mozilla has claimed Quantum CSS to be twice as fast as the older Firefox browser, there are some operations that can load up to 18 times faster because of it. It is also claimed that Firefox Quantum uses 30 percent less memory than its competitors like Chrome, Edge, and Safari on Windows operating systems.

Further, Mozilla has also made changes to enhance the outward appearance of the browser. It boasts a stylish new user interface (UI), dubbed as Photon, which streamlines a number of elements included in previous versions of Firefox. It is designed to provide smooth and fast performance when browsing your favorite websites.

“To create Photon, our user research team studied how people browsed the web,” wrote Mozilla’s Mark Mayo. “We looked at real world hardware to make Firefox look great on any display, and we made sure that Firefox looks and works like Firefox regardless of the device you’re using. Our designers created a system that scales to more than just current hardware but lets us expand in the future.”

Other features include Pocket, the read-later client, which has now been improved by Mozilla to display Pocket bookmarking app recommendations, popular topics along with your most visited pages. The library button clubs shortcuts to Pocket saves, bookmarks, browser screenshots, downloads and browsing history in a single window. It also includes a new Screenshots tool, which lets you capture images of your browsing sessions and share them directly from within Firefox.

Also, a new feature called Tracking Protection which works by default in the Private browsing window blocks widespread requests for online user tracking. This reduces the average page loading time by around 44 percent, claims Mozilla.

Firefox browser also now supports WASM and WebVR, which allows you to take full advantage of the 360-degree content by using a compatible VR headset on the browser.

Check out the new Firefox Quantum in action:

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