Really nice new ICS browser: Browser+

[Vance]

The Android sites have been tweeting this morning about a new variation of the ICS browser called Browser+:

https://market.android.com/details?...wxLDUwMSwiY29tLmJlYW5zb2Z0LmJyb3dzZXJwbHVzIl0.

It is not an entirely new browser, like Dolphin, just the ICS browser with some nice additions. Most useful is the Quick Controls (accessible in Settings-Labs), which are available on the stock ICS browser, but a LOT more useful in Browser+.

You now have immediate access to bookmarks, a refresh, and a Forward and Back option.

Another cool feature is that when you hover on the "pages" button, a list of them show up and you can scroll through them all while on the "Quick" pull up.

Very nice, especially if you already like the ICS browser and don't want to switch to an entirely different app.

 

[clb2196]

Ah, they took the full quick controls menu from Honeycomb. Sweet! I've been wanting that. I'll definitely check it out, thanks.

 

[wysts43]

Very nice! Thanks for the heads up!

 

[Droid Ninja]

I just wish they had a different icon. The features of Browser Plus can only be accessed by launching their app to get to the web browser. Their green icon looks hideous in my app dock. Wish I could just launch the stock browser and have access to these awesome features... or make their app icon look more ICS friendly

 

[Vance]

Droid Ninja, I agree entirely about the icon, pretty ugly.

It really doesn't effect me, though, since I access the web using the bookmarks widget, and that will go right to Browser Plus once you set the default. But even there, the general browser button that is on the bottom of the widget still goes to the old stock browser.

Maybe Google will upgrade their stock browser with ideas presented by these third parties. Until then, the extra features make the new browser worth it, especially since I don't have to see that icon!! :0)

 

[ckelly33]

I just wish they had a different icon. The features of Browser Plus can only be accessed by launching their app to get to the web browser. Their green icon looks hideous in my app dock. Wish I could just launch the stock browser and have access to these awesome features... or make their app icon look more ICS friendly

I didn't like dolphin's icon either. I use an app called "browser shortcut" in the market. It is free and is the Chrome icon which can be used as a launcher for any browser.

It fits better with the colors of ICS but still not as sharp as the original browser icon.

 

[Droid Ninja]

I didn't like dolphin's icon either. I use an app called "browser shortcut" in the market. It is free and is the Chrome icon which can be used as a launcher for any browser.

It fits better with the colors of ICS but still not as sharp as the original browser icon.

I did that. It is a slight improvement. The chrome icon is much nicer to look at than the ugly green box. Stock ICS browser is nicer though. Wish there was some way to make that the icon.

 

[Vance]

I didn't like dolphin's icon either. I use an app called "browser shortcut" in the market. It is free and is the Chrome icon which can be used as a launcher for any browser.

It fits better with the colors of ICS but still not as sharp as the original browser icon.

That is a nice upgrade! The only downside is that it goes straight to your home screen every time, while the Browser Plus icon goes to your last visited page, like the stock icon would do. I am not sure which is more useful, actually. I think since I can always get to my homescreen using the widget, I would rather it default to the last page. But, it is SO much better looking I will likely stick with the Chrome icon!

 

[Droid Ninja]

The developer has already updated the "ugly" icon for the app to a much nicer ICS friendly one. I like the new one a lot.

Yes it prolly was not hard at all for the dev to change the app icon, but to hear an outcry from the community and fix it so quickly..... Impressive.


+1 to this Dev

 

[Vance]

The developer has already updated the "ugly" icon for the app to a much nicer ICS friendly one. I like the new one a lot.

Yes it prolly was not hard at all for the dev to change the app icon, but to hear an outcry from the community and fix it so quickly..... Impressive.


+1 to this Dev

Very cool, I just checked and updated!

 

[icsammich]

Really enjoy this app. I prefer desktop mode and the UA is a great constant.

What I don't like is the reload of each webpage when I go from portrait to landscape. That is ok if I'm on wifi and 4g. But on 3g it is beyond frustrating.

 

[NF3RNO]

This gave me a few random restarts, also it was very laggy on heavy Desktop pages. I like the Extra quick controls, but this was just too buggy for me. Hopefully It will be better after the beta.

 

[BubbaNexus]

meh.....


i'll wait for the 4.0.3 update to include this.

 

[Vance]

Really enjoy this app. I prefer desktop mode and the UA is a great constant.

What I don't like is the reload of each webpage when I go from portrait to landscape. That is ok if I'm on wifi and 4g. But on 3g it is beyond frustrating.

I had not noticed that before, I wonder why it does that. Luckily I almost never use the browser in landscape or that would annoy me, too!

 

[Droid Ninja]

One step forward, two steps back.

The icon was fine. They fixed it.

The app was updated again today. Now, the icon is ugly again and half the size of all the other icons?!?!

Whats going on here?

 

[clb2196]

Update seems to have broken it for me. I can open it from the market, but it doesn't show in my list of downloaded apps, or in my app drawer, and my shortcut is gone.

 

[Vance]

With that new update, my widget was gone and I had to put it back, and there was a new icon in the bottom corner. Oddly, I don't even see the icon in the app tray (which is not a problem for me since I use the widget only). I am thinking that the previous (improved) icon was too close to the ICS stock icon, basically just the stock one with a "+" on it. Maybe had some "rights" problem.

If the new icon is like the one in the corner of the widget (an blue globe with white land forms), it is at least an improvement over the first one, but half the size? That is odd.

I think this is a small operation and they are making it work as they go. It seems they basically took the stock browser API and added in additional functionality and got it up on the market, and are solving problems as they go. I guess we are beta testers! :0)

 

[Vance]

Update seems to have broken it for me. I can open it from the market, but it doesn't show in my list of downloaded apps, or in my app drawer, and my shortcut is gone.

Same for me, but I was able to put my widget back in place. I see no icon in the tray.

 

[speede541]

Name has been changed to "ICS Browser +" after the update last night. So it's still there with my apps, just sorted to a new location.

 

[bhill]

I think the new icon is great...normal size when I put it back in my tray. Not sure what you're all saying about a 1/2-size one?

 

[Vance]

Name has been changed to "ICS Browser +" after the update last night. So it's still there with my apps, just sorted to a new location.

Ah, there it is! Thanks! And mine is full size as well.

 

[Vance]

Really enjoy this app. I prefer desktop mode and the UA is a great constant.

What I don't like is the reload of each webpage when I go from portrait to landscape. That is ok if I'm on wifi and 4g. But on 3g it is beyond frustrating.

They seemed to have fixed this problem in the last update.

 

[clb2196]

Name has been changed to "ICS Browser +" after the update last night. So it's still there with my apps, just sorted to a new location.

Ha. Thanks! I found it.

 

[sperho]

Uninstalled. Browser+ crashed on my phone about 6 times before I decided to go back to the stock browser. The stock browser hasn't crashed since. I also noticed a few rendering glitches after selecting a previously-opened tab. YMMV, just throwing it out there...

 

[Vance]

Uninstalled. Browser+ crashed on my phone about 6 times before I decided to go back to the stock browser. The stock browser hasn't crashed since. I also noticed a few rendering glitches after selecting a previously-opened tab. YMMV, just throwing it out there...

Yes, that is good to know. I have not had any crashing problems at all yet, but there mention of it by some in the comments, and while they said that was fixed in the latest update (which was just a couple of hours ago for me), it might still be a problem for some users.