Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Best alternative browser for iPhone shootout!

The iPhone offers one of the best mobile browsing experiences on any smartphone platform. The built in Safari browser is great, and will only get better with iOS 6 features like iCloud tabs, image uploads, and smart banners. Still, it isn't, won't, and will never be for everyone. That why alternatives like Chrome, Atomic, and Mercury are so popular. But which one is the best? And which one is the best for you?
That's what we're here to find out!
Note 1: App Store browsers can't use their own HTML or JavaScript rendering engines. For security and control reasons, all App Store apps have to use Apple's UIWebView to render pages, and they don't have access to the faster, yet less secure, Nitro JavaScript engine Safari uses. This means App Store web browsers will all display websites pretty much the same, and none of them will load JavaScript pages faster than Safari. However, the interfaces and features they offer can make them compelling anyway.
Note 2: We're only looking at full, native alternate browsers in this shootout. Proxy browsers like Skyfire and Opera render content on their own servers and then send that content to your iPhone. There are pros and cons to both approaches, but they're different enough that we'll look at them separately, in their own shootout.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Interface and usability
Google's Chrome for iPhone is just like its Mac and Windows counterpart when it comes to look and feel. There's nothing complicated to confuse you, and everything you need to move around and navigate is right there. Just start typing an address in the search bar or type in a search term to search Google and your on your way. Unfortunately, If you want to access a JavaScript bookmarklet (like Instapaper) you'll have to start typing it in the omnibar as well.
Along the top you'll find a back button, address bar, options button, and tabs button. Tap the option button to add a bookmark, refresh the page, access existing bookmarks, open a new tab, view opened pages on other synced devices, and more.
Tap the tabs button next to the option button to view all currently open tabs or add a new one by tapping the new tab option in the upper left. Tabs will show up in a clean list view. Scroll through all open tabs and just tap on the one you'd like to re-open. You can click the little "x" in the corner of a tab to completely close it out.
Chrome for iPhone doesn't have any overwhelming menus to fiddle around with. The options most users need regularly are easy to find.
Atomic browser for iPhone isn't as simple as Chrome but it does manage to pack quite a punch. Upon launching the app you'll notice you have a lot more buttons and options to work with.
While more buttons in some apps means confusion, this isn't the case with Atomic. All options are well labeled and explained so even beginner users will know what they're looking at. Unlike Chrome which has no buttons along the bottom, this is where you'll find most of your options in Atomic.
By default you'll see a button for tabs, add/share/print, downloads, settings/advanced features, and toggle fullscreen. You can edit these buttons within settings and choose what buttons you'd like to appear along the bottom. If you never use the downloads section, just remove it within settings and replace it with an option you find more useful.
The nice thing about Atomic is that it offers the features that advanced users will want but does it in a way that isn't confusing to mainstream users. Everything is accessible enough that anyone that manages to stumble across a setting will know what it does, but if you don't choose to use advanced settings, they stay out of your way.
Mercury browser for iPhone is strikingly similar to Atomic browser and that isn't a bad thing. Just like Atomic, you'll find most of your toggles and settings along the bottom of the screen. The top of the screen will show your address and search bar as well as your tabs. From the top you can do things like add a bookmark to favorites by tapping the star icon, refresh the page, or open existing bookmarks.
Anything else you need to do can be done via the bottom bar. You've got your standard share/browser options button, a settings button, a fullscreen toggle button, and a button that gives you an almost fullscreen browser which replaces the button bar with a subtler set of controls and only shows tabs along the top instead of a full address bar.
Overall, Mercury does a very nice job of laying out toggles and settings. The ability to toggle between a couple different view modes is a nice option for when you're frequently changing web pages and want some options present but still want to enjoy browsing with as much screen real estate as possible.
If you've become accustomed to the sleek design and interface you get with the desktop version of Chrome you'll love the iPhone version. While Mercury and Atomic both provide great interfaces, Chrome is still a step ahead.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Tabbed browsing
Chrome, Mercury, and Atomic all allow you to enjoy a tabbed browsing experience on your iPhone. The challenge with tabs is to make them accessible without wasting any of the precious, tiny screen real estate.
While Atomic and Mercury approach tabs the same way the classic desktop app approaches them, Chrome does things differently and makes a completely separate section for tabs. Instead of having to scroll horizontally through tabs or use what little screen space there is to work with, Google has managed to not only make great use of space a fun, interactive, eye-pleasing experience for using tabs.
Once you tap into the tab section in Chrome you'll see a card-style layout that presents a preview of the web page and the title. You can flip between tabs, scroll through them horizontally, and close them out quickly and fluidly. Being able to see a preview of a page is awesome for times when you've got multiple pages open on the same website. A cramped tab view doesn't allow you to see enough of the title to know which one is which but the way Chrome handles tabs solves that problem via the preview feature.
When it comes to tabbed browsing on the iPhone, Chrome does it the best.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Bookmark syncing
Most users will probably have quite a few bookmarks saved within their desktop browsers. While Safari offers native sync for bookmarks through iCloud, it doesn't really help you much if you use other browsers on your desktop such as Chrome or Firefox (unless you use a 3rd party service such as Xmarks to fill in the gap). This is where some of our alternate browsers can better fit your workflow.
Chrome allows you to sync up with your Google account to bring bookmarks down from your desktop Mac or Windows PC fairly easily. Under sync, simply sign into your Google account and all your bookmarks will be zapped down to your iPhone pretty much instantly. If you use Chrome as your main browser on your desktop computer, this process will be painless, quick, and super simple. If you don't, you can still use Xmarks or another type of service to bring them into Chrome.
Chrome for iPhone actually takes bookmark syncing one step further and adds page syncing as well. If you've got Chrome open on one of your computers you can actually sync those same tabs to your iPhone. If you want Chrome to open your desktop tabs from your computer on your iPhone automagically you can do this by enabling the Chrome to Mobile option within sync settings. I've used this feature numerous times if I had a bunch of tabs open on my computer at home or in the office and needed to head out. I can quickly pick back up what I was doing on the go effortlessly. It's a great feature and something that a lot of multitaskers will really enjoy.
(Safari will be getting this feature with iOS 6.)
Atomic also will allow you to sync bookmarks through their own process, but it's not nearly as clean and easy as what Chrome offers. You'll need to create a password and navigate to an Atomic-specific website on your computer and upload your bookmarks for syncing.
Mercury offers better support when it comes to bookmarks syncing than Atomic, but it's still not as painless as Chrome. Through settings in Mercury, you can choose to import bookmarks manually or you can use Firefox Sync in order to bring down your Firefox bookmarks. You'll still need to access them on your computer and enable Firefox Sync in order to add your device but after that it's pretty painless.
Chrome has a much better syncing solution when it comes to bookmarks than both Atomic and Mercury.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Gesture support
When it comes to gesture support both Atomic and Mercury give you tons of options for setting gestures based controls. Chrome doesn't offer any at all.
You can access gesture options in the settings panel of both Mercury and Atomic. You can choose between two-finger gestures, shake gestures, and more. With the iPhone's limited screen real estate I don't really see gestures being a huge advantage -- or deal-breaker -- for most.
However, both Atomic and Mercury are universal apps that also run on the iPad, and that's where the multitasking gestures really make navigating the web much easier. If you plan on using either of these browsers on your iPad as well, you should weigh in gesture support and the fact that Chrome doesn't have any.
Tie between Mercury and Atomic as they both offer great gesture support.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Additional features
The ability to sync and view open tabs in Chrome, and access them between desktop and iPhone, is a great feature. Another great feature of Chrome is the voice search. Just tap the microphone in the URL box to start dictating instead of typing. Voice search supports multiple languages so odds are whatever language you need will probably be there.
Chrome also offers an Incognito mode for browsing, which is basically a private browsing session. So if you need that feature, Chrome will have you covered. Chrome will also cover all the basics like searching a page, viewing the desktop version of a site, e-mailing and sharing a page.
Atomic and Mercury both offer a ton of extra features for advanced users such as ad blocking, browser identification, download abilities, and more. If you're looking for something that will give you tons of options and you don't mind giving up a bit of ease of use, Atomic or Mercury will be a better choice.
Atomic also offers Dropbox integration so if you're looking for something with that feature, Atomic is currently the only alternative browser out of the three that will offer it.
When it comes to additional features, Atomic and Mercury both offer roughly the same feature set, but Atomic offers more in terms of advanced settings.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Cost
A higher price tag doesn't always mean a better app or experience, and cheap or free are sometimes worth even less than you pay for them. When it comes to alternative browsers, however, it's hard to compete with free-as-in-Google.
Chrome is a great app and it's available for free in the App Store. Atomic and Mercury will both cost you $0.99 for the Pro versions. All three apps offer iPad support without an additional purchase as well. If you aren't sure which one is right for you yet, Atomic and Mercury also offer free lite versions so you can grab those and take them for a test drive before deciding.
Given the fact that the full version of Chrome is free and universally compatible with iPhone and iPad, Chrome will be the best option for users who want the cheapest solution.
Chrome vs. Atomic vs. Mercury: Conclusion
Chrome, Atomic, and Mercury are all great alternative solutions to Safari, but they're aimed at completely different users.
If you want complete control over your browser like you do on a desktop computer, you'll want to check out either Atomic or Mercury. Both offer tons of options and allow you to customize your browsing experience exactly the way you'd like. For Dropbox users, however, Atomic's Dropbox integration puts it ahead.
If you want a browser that has a better layout than Safari and allows you easy access to bookmarks and other open tabs across all your desktop computers, Chrome is it. There may not be gesture support or a ton of customization options, but it works flawlessly and has a beautiful interface.
That, and the free price tag, make Google Chrome our favorite alternate browser for iPhone.
Chrome - Free - Download Now (opens in new tab)
Atomic - $0.99 - Download Now (opens in new tab)
Mercury - $0.99 - Download Now (opens in new tab)
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You should check out Grazing. 3.0 is being developed right now and will blow the others out of the water. Although the current version is pretty great too. Has a ton of features and looks way better than these IMO (may be a tie with Chrome on looks actually).
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iCab is the best browser. How come no one ever talks about it? Is it because they aren't some big conglomerate that sends out tons of free codes?
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I used the top 3 that our forum members voted for.
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You might want to include iCab Mobile in the comparison as well (and I'm surprised that it is often left out of iOS browser discussions while Atomic and Mercury are included, as most of the reviews and user sentiments I've seen agree on its superiority in many regards). It has perhaps even more features than both Mercury and Atomic, to my mind a sleeker interface than either, and some power features that almost rival Chrome's syncing for convenience.
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I used to be an Atomic user and I loved that browser but have recently switched to Mercury and it has become my new favorite. It's basically the same thing but looks a little nicer and is easier to navigate in my opinion. I've downloaded Chrome and think its decent browser but it doesn't have as many features as Atomic or Mercury even though it is probably a better UI. It is my primary browser on my computer so I was excited to check it out but am staying with Mercury. I really dislike Safari. It's not user friendly in my opinion and so far behind 3rd party options. Apple needs to let users choose a default browser and open up access to the javascript engine Safari uses.
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Dolphin. but i'm trying chrome at the moment.
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I have used many browsers and by far the best one I have found is Mercury. The main reason being is fullscreen browsing is the major plus. No other browsers come close to Mercury or even Atomic in that reason. Though I found that the gestures on Mercury beats Atomic hands down. It is on both my iPad and iPhone.
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atomic in a big big way ;its the only browser that doesnt make you use mobile sites
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You guys should try this one - http://www.fenrir-inc.com/us/iphone/apps/sleipnir-mobile.html
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MY Top 5 Best Browser
1. Google Chrome
2. Mercury
3. Dolphin
4. Atomic
5. Opera Mini -
allyson, i couldn't disagree more with your statement that 'While Mercury and Atomic both provide great interfaces, Chrome is still a step ahead.' in fact, for all the reasons stated below, chrome is at least 1 step behind, if not more. the only thing that saves chrome is the sync feature. first off, chrome for iOS does NOT give you a history of your browsing!!!! wtf?? this is a total deal breaker as far as i am concerned. why can't google implement the history feature in its mobile browser when their competition does? (yes, on iOS it now has the back history for each particular tab but still no central history list showing the whole browsing history across all tabs in one convenient place--ridiculous). MERCURY also allows the user to set many custom gestures. there even is an ad and pop-up block. auto form fill is there as well. and you also get to link MERCURY to your dropbox if you so choose. and that's not all. just like the desktop version of chrome, the user can change the browser theme. font size and page brightness can all be adjusted as well as lock rotation. MERCURY also let's you configure your tab style, your address bar style, whether or not you want a scroll bar, how to start up, bookmark options for export/import as well as bookmarklets, privacy options similar to what you have on the desktop but for some weird reason chrome doesn't make those available in its mobile browser. the user can also manage files, easily share with evernote, social net apps, or email. and you also get a private mode and can change the user agent for those sites who are designed to serve content only to IE or some other browser. chrome LACKS ALL these features. so let's be objective: how could chrome possibly be 1 step ahead of MERCURY? MERCURY is what chrome for iOS should have been and clearly is not. ok, chrome's sync feature is awesome and i'd wish that mercury had that as well. but other than that, MERCURY is just as fast, and more user friendly and not difficult to use at all.
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