Live data from Hacker News

Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

wsj.com

31–40 of 131 posts

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#32

Hardly “dethroning” Google. UC is for low end feature phones that cannot run any other browser.

I don't think you read the article. :) The article specifically talks about smartphones, not feature phones. It mentions how Chrome is an issue for cheaper smartphones with less storage: "The UC Browser app takes up 31 megabytes of space, compared with Chrome’s 125 megabytes". And aside from a smaller app size, UC also compresses data and blocks ads to reduce data requirements (data tends to be expensive in emerging…

There is Chromium based Yandex Browser Lite which requires only 1mb of storage size https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.yandex.bro...

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#33
post #26

There have been reports talking about security issues in UC Browser [0] for a while [1] now [2]. It was also removed from Google Play Store [3] (although temporarily). Kinda surprises me to see it as the 'dominant' browser. Maybe people are indifferent. [0] https://citizenlab.ca/2015/05/a-chatty-squirrel-privacy-and-... [1] https://citizenlab.ca/2016/08/a-tough-nut-to-crack-look-priv... [2] https://tech.blorge.com/20…

Consider that Qihoo 360 used to do a lot of "security" work for IE. Given how shady Qihoo 360 was, Alibaba is definitely an improvement!

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#34

Hardly “dethroning” Google. UC is for low end feature phones that cannot run any other browser.

I don't know why you're getting downvoted. Although UC does make an Android version, they are much better known for supporting Java even if Android comprises more than half of their total users.

Note that it's been banned from the PlayStore as well for inflating installs "with malicious redirect ads":

http://indianexpress.com/article/technology/social/uc-browse...

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#35
post #26

There have been reports talking about security issues in UC Browser [0] for a while [1] now [2]. It was also removed from Google Play Store [3] (although temporarily). Kinda surprises me to see it as the 'dominant' browser. Maybe people are indifferent. [0] https://citizenlab.ca/2015/05/a-chatty-squirrel-privacy-and-... [1] https://citizenlab.ca/2016/08/a-tough-nut-to-crack-look-priv... [2] https://tech.blorge.com/20…

Yes, and for using "misleading and unhealthy" methods of promoting/inflating installs. That makes me wonder at the 500M total.

http://indianexpress.com/article/technology/social/uc-browse...

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#36
post #21

If you’re in iOS, UC is a great way to pop out videos so you can, for example, watch a YouTube video while reading Hacker News. It also enables you to listen to just about any video in the background, when you switch to other apps.

You can also enlarge the default font size similar to desktop browser. Can not do that on Chrome, Firefox and Safari. Reading this site on UC is much easier on my eyes.

This text reflow feature is key to my choosing a mobile browser. I use Opera mainly for this reason.

Text reflow used to be standard. Does anyone know why Chrome and Firefox removed it?

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#37

If you’re in iOS, UC is a great way to pop out videos so you can, for example, watch a YouTube video while reading Hacker News. It also enables you to listen to just about any video in the background, when you switch to other apps.

Sounds handy! Can anyone speak to how it treats privacy?

Privacy? On low-end smartphones with some trojan factory preinstalled?

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2017/03/prein...

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#39
post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think you read the article. :) The article specifically talks about smartphones, not feature phones. It mentions how Chrome is an issue for cheaper smartphones with less storage: "The UC Browser app takes up 31 megabytes of space, compared with Chrome’s 125 megabytes". And aside from a smaller app size, UC also compresses data and blocks ads to reduce data requirements (data tends to be expensive in emerging…

There is Chromium based Yandex Browser Lite which requires only 1mb of storage size https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.yandex.bro...

Probably uses the native Android Webview...

Re: Alibaba’s UC Browser is dominating in Asian markets with lower-end smartphones

#40
post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think you read the article. :) The article specifically talks about smartphones, not feature phones. It mentions how Chrome is an issue for cheaper smartphones with less storage: "The UC Browser app takes up 31 megabytes of space, compared with Chrome’s 125 megabytes". And aside from a smaller app size, UC also compresses data and blocks ads to reduce data requirements (data tends to be expensive in emerging…

Right but this part... >giving owner Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. an advantage in the race among technology giants to capture the next generation of internet users ...seems suspect. Most western Chrome users started off with Netscape, Internet Explorer, Safari, etc., and then switched when they got better machines and got tech-savvier and realized it was a better browser. So just because a browser reaches a user first…

I think you overestimate most people. There’s a reason why IE is still supported on the web. People will continue to use what they know if it isn’t negatively impacting them. Most people don’t use all the extra features in the browser. They just want Facebook to work.

That said, I don’t trust the security of this browser so I don’t think it’s a good thing people are using it.

Post reply on HN