New BrowsersA singing metal burning lupine.

Now that Firefox 4 has just been released and I, as a proper web-developer, has to have it installed and test everything with it. It once again looks clear to me who is the winner so far. But, first, let us meet the contestants!

Internet explorer

The large, bulky but slightly sniffling hunk of man in the first corner. Rough, tough, big and still the most popular... Well, most used anyway. Ridden with diseases, imperfect even in the last incarnation. It makes me wonder who would install it manually.

• Most used because it comes with Windows.
• Slowest of the 'new' browsers.
• Updates infrequently, but with lots of noise.

Safari

The pretty, slightly questionable lad in the other corner. Or perhaps a girl, no one knows. But surprisingly fast and functional. Contains some neat features that help even the simplest person to use bookmarks.

• Default on Apple products.
• Good performance and the looks!
• Tries to be special a little too much.

Firefox

The little nagging bully, able to hit a fly at 10 paces with his slingshot. The first versions perhaps reminded us of the lost Netscape contender a little too much, but nowadays, honestly, it just looks like a Chrome or IE9 copy with lacking features.

• Second most used, which is impressive as it does not come preinstalled.
• Some interesting new features, and very versatile with plugins.
• Promises to update more in the future, but nags users with update messages.

Opera

The sneaky wizz-kid hiding around and playing with mobile phones. While Opera is a lot older than most people would expect, it's still relatively unknown. Used on the Wii and on a lot of mobile devices, it's incredibly useful, but mostly for geeks.

• Least used, despite all of it's features.
• Lowest network usage on mobile devices
• While functionally ahead of the curve, the design and usability are lacking.

Chrome

The youngest kid of the bunch, but not to be underestimated. Fought himself to the third place in such a short amount of time and brought forth some of the best new ideas that other contestants have quickly copied.

• Third most used browser, and the fastest riser.
• Quickest in updating, fastest browser and best looks.
• Sometimes has random features appearing/disappearing.

The match doesn't look pretty, folks. What do you think will happen?

On a personal note: I prefer Chrome for various reasons (mostly speed). And it is also the one I would suggest for "inexperienced users". It's fast, safe and sound. And while it lacks the plugin support of Firefox, the community is rapidly filling that gap.