Google Chrome is the most widely used web browser in the world. This browser is closed source, and as its name suggests, using it implies going through Google’s ring and giving it all our data. Chrome is a browser built on the basis of Chromium, an open source engine that anyone can download to use as the main browser or use as the basis to create a different web browser. This has allowed several developers to create browsers based on Chrome, with “exclusive” functions of this browser, but without going through the Google hoop. However, this is going to change.
Although we can think that Chrome and Chromium are the same, in reality both web browsers have many differences. Although it is Google who mainly controls both developments, the OpenSource browser does not have the same PDF viewer as Google’s, nor does it have synchronization functions in the cloud. It is not even capable of searching and installing updates, having to resort to other programs, such as chrlauncher, to take care of this.
In addition to these problems, third-party browsers that are based on Chromium will also give us other problems, such as the ones we will see below.
Chromium-based third-party browser issues
We lose functions very soon
Download a browser identical to Chrome, with the same functions, but without certain parts of the code (the tracking or advertising systems, for example) without going through the Google ring? Sounds good. But in practice we are going to find ourselves with many handicaps. Especially from March of this year.
There have been many alternative web browser developers who have been abusing Google’s APIs . This allowed them, for example, to allow users to use Google Sync to store their data (bookmarks, etc.) on servers, geolocation and use functions such as Click to Call that are exclusive to the Google browser. This has led Google to make the decision to block the use of the API to prevent further abuse of it. And the change will take effect on March 15, 2021 .
From then on, if we use a Chromium-based browser, other than Google’s, we will be faced with a functional browser. And small developers are not going to be able to implement these types of functions on their own.
Insufficient maintenance
Google updates its browser periodically to add new features, and as soon as possible to fix vulnerabilities. However, what about the other browsers? If behind the development there is a large company, such as Microsoft, the maintenance will be equal to, or higher than, that offered by Google. But the advantage of Chromium being OpenSource is that anyone can create their own web browser. But keep in mind that the capabilities of a small developer are not the same as those of Google or Microsoft.
Even if a browser is based on Chromium it does not mean that it receives security updates and fixes at the same time. What’s more, they wo n’t even have automatic updates like Google’s or Microsoft’s browsers. And that implies that we will have to wait for the new version to be available (which can take days) and, in addition, update by hand.
Using “good” Chromium browsers
The API restrictions only affect Chromium-based browsers that were using Google services illegally. This means that there are other browsers, such as Edge , Opera or Vivaldi , which although they are based on this engine, do not abuse Google’s APIs. Its developers have created their own infrastructure, totally independent from Google’s, which allows users to have functions such as, for example, synchronization of bookmarks and passwords. Also, both Microsoft and Opera and Vivaldi are serious developers who offer outstanding maintenance when it comes to fixing bugs, vulnerabilities and innovating to improve the browsing experience.
These browsers, although they are based on Chromium, are excellent alternatives to Chrome that have nothing to envy the Google browser. Especially Edge, Microsoft’s new browser that is going to give a lot of war.
