Native Firefox Android browser adds speed, Flash, HTML5 and a fresh look (hands-on)

[![DNP Native Firefox Android browser adds speed, fresh look, Flash, HTML5 and, er, speed][1] ][2]

After a [brief stretch][3] in beta followed by some vague [teasing][4], Firefox's native Android app update is finally set to hit Google Play. While there are a raft of other bells and whistles -- a new welcome page, curvy [Australis tabs][5], Flash and HTML5 support, for starters -- the company is giving the browser's newfound speed the MVP treatment. That rapidity is as good a place as any to start a quick hands-on, especially since the native browser lag on our older Galaxy S handset often makes us want to hurl it through a pane of glass. Mozilla claims it built Firefox to a new benchmark it developed called Eideticker, resulting in an overall browser experience twice as fast as the stock Android one. As advertised, initial loading is quasi-instant, and navigation, zooming and tab switching seemed smooth as well, even on the two-gen-old phone.

Feature-wise, preferences and other desktop settings imported easily with Firefox Sync's shared password system, and the unfortunately named "Awesome Page" is the new home screen shown above, from which it's fairly simple to launch your preferred sites. Flash and HTML5 generally displayed correctly despite a few minor rendering bugs, and appearance-wise, the curved tabs and other design touches make it one of the more elegant Android browsers we've played with. We were disappointed that the browser didn't detect and display mobile sites by default, but the installation of the Phony 3.2 add-in allows mobile site detection based on the criteria of various android browsers, and seems to work well. We also didn't like that tabbed browsing now requires two taps, unlike the previous version, but we imagine that the new way was required for the increased speed. Overall, Firefox is a welcome addition to the Android ecosystem -- we bet you're just as eager to start browsing as we are, so stay tuned for the app to hit Google Play later today, or jump past the break for a quick speed demo from the kind folks at Mozilla.

**Gallery: [Firefox for Android native browser hands-on][6]**

[![][7]][8][![][9]][10][![][11]][12][![][13]][14][![][15]][16]

[Continue reading _Native Firefox Android browser adds speed, Flash, HTML5 and a fresh look (hands-on)_][2]

[Native Firefox Android browser adds speed, Flash, HTML5 and a fresh look (hands-on)][2] originally appeared on [Engadget][17] on Tue, 26 Jun 2012 09:30:00 EDT. Please see our [terms for use of feeds][18].

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[3]: http://www.engadget.com/2012/05/15/firefox-native-version-hits-android-in-beta/
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