Opera Mini for iPhone submitted to Apple for approval (video)
By Thomas Ricker 
posted March 23rd 2010 8:01AM
posted March 23rd 2010 8:01AM
Can you feel the tension? Opera is now in the throes of the App Store approval process. The wait is on to see if Apple will loosen its grip and approve the fast (very fast) Opera Mini browser for iPhone app that we checked out at MWC. Remember, Opera Mini relies on Opera's servers to render and compress pages before sending them back to the iPhone for display. As such, there's no code interpretation being done by the software -- a definite no no for approval. So the only thing that could cause Apple to reject the app would be a perceived duplication of core iPhone functionality even though it already approved several WebKit-based browsers. Whatever happens, this is going to be good.Update: Opera just threw up a counter tracking how long the approval process has taken. You know, 'cause everyone likes to be backed into a corner. Makes you wonder if Opera is serious about this or just doing it for the publicity -- one of several angles we mulled earlier.
Opera Mini submitted to Apple's App Store
Oslo, Norway – March 23, 2010
Opera Mini for iPhone was officially submitted to the Apple iPhone App store today. A select few first saw it at Mobile World Congress 2010 in February. Now, the "fast like a rocket" browser is taking its first big step towards giving users a new way to browse on the iPhone.
Early reviews of Opera Mini for iPhone praised the sheer browsing speed, powering through Web pages up to six times faster than Safari. Due to server-side rendering, Opera Mini compresses data by up to 90 percent before sending it to the phone, resulting in rapid page loading and more Web per MB for the end user. Those familiar with iPhone roaming charges will relish Opera Mini's ability to deliver more for less, giving users the Web they want quickly, without, the high costs.
"The Opera Mini for iPhone sneak peek during MWC told us that we have something special," said Jon von Tetzchner, Co-founder, Opera Software. "Opera has put every effort into creating a customized, stylized, feature-rich and highly responsive browser that masterfully combines iPhone capabilities with Opera's renowned Web experience, and the result is a high performing browser for the iPhone."
Opera Mini is the world's most popular mobile Web browser, famed for bringing the Web to nearly any mobile phone. Its speed, usability and navigation-friendly design have catapulted this browser onto more than 50 million mobile phones worldwide. Creating a version for iPhone is part of Opera's mission to bring the Web to all platforms and all devices.
Oslo, Norway – March 23, 2010
Opera Mini for iPhone was officially submitted to the Apple iPhone App store today. A select few first saw it at Mobile World Congress 2010 in February. Now, the "fast like a rocket" browser is taking its first big step towards giving users a new way to browse on the iPhone.
Early reviews of Opera Mini for iPhone praised the sheer browsing speed, powering through Web pages up to six times faster than Safari. Due to server-side rendering, Opera Mini compresses data by up to 90 percent before sending it to the phone, resulting in rapid page loading and more Web per MB for the end user. Those familiar with iPhone roaming charges will relish Opera Mini's ability to deliver more for less, giving users the Web they want quickly, without, the high costs.
"The Opera Mini for iPhone sneak peek during MWC told us that we have something special," said Jon von Tetzchner, Co-founder, Opera Software. "Opera has put every effort into creating a customized, stylized, feature-rich and highly responsive browser that masterfully combines iPhone capabilities with Opera's renowned Web experience, and the result is a high performing browser for the iPhone."
Opera Mini is the world's most popular mobile Web browser, famed for bringing the Web to nearly any mobile phone. Its speed, usability and navigation-friendly design have catapulted this browser onto more than 50 million mobile phones worldwide. Creating a version for iPhone is part of Opera's mission to bring the Web to all platforms and all devices.
Hahahahahahahaa.
Awesome.
@sshole
In all seriousness... I hope it gets through...
In all seriousness.. I don't think it will :/
@sshole it will be news when apple will reject it ! but honestly i like my iphone web browser .... mobile safari or whatever .. i have used opera mini on other phones but i think i would stick to iphone's default !
@sshole
Hahaha, @sshole
@sshole iPhone's web browser is no doubt the best but its always good to have a choice specially when you have a service like AT&T's and could possibly 'speed' up the browsing experience on the road.
@viditbhargava
Best browser is without a doubt the builtin browser in Nokia N900. Opera Mobile would be good contender but there's no (yet) good device for it as Symbian flagships are just coming and WinMo, well, is WinMo.
@sshole:
This would be the first and only app I would ever buy. I hate Safari with a passion, it's a slow piece of shit and I think it's bullshit that I can't uninstall it.
Which brings me to....aren't there anti-trust lawsuits against not being able to uninstall browsers...ahem EU against Microsoft.
@sshole Meanwhile my n900 has 3 different browsers, MicroB, Firefox and Midori... And flash... and syncs my bookmarks with the web... and does webgl and...
tsk... ill stop here :D
@Jordan
Difference here is that apple makes the hardware and software, Microsoft only makes the software and forced IE on all computers running windows
@SeveringGecko:
I don't care if Apple slapped their logo on it or not. Apple is denying anybody else existence on their platform - anti-competitive.
@sshole Best username ever?
@sshole
That video forgot to mention that Opera Mini doesn't support dynamic content on a web page which might force the browser to refresh the page a lot more.
Here's an example: if you hit the reply button on Engadget in order to add a reply the browser automatically scrolls down to the bottom of the page - on Opera Mini it'll have to reload the whole page first.
I've been using Opera Mini on my Nokia for years and it's definitely a great browser but it's lack of support for dynamic content is a little bit frustrating.
@sshole Seeing opera touting itself as the fastest browser on earth: http://bit.ly/opera-fastest-browser-fact-fiction
Now landing to iPhone is just a pleasure, the problem is, we all know how its hard to submit an App to the apple kingdom -- Hopefully this one will push-through. And don't make this a PR stunt, pls.
@yyy
Just get the engadget app and you'll never look back ; )
@SeveringGecko No, I don't think that is the EU's point at all. Make crap software and have 90% marketshare, making hardware wont save you from an antitrust case, let's look at the goal of antitrust, to prevent a company from getting too big that it is at the detriment of the marketplace (people and/or consumers). Let's look at government philosophy (relatively speaking); US - business focused, EU - consumer focused. If Apple had a 90% marketshare and a shitty browser, yes, they would have an installation screen.
@juanvaldez
you don't truly understand what a monopoly is then.
A monopoly is when one company controls a market so well, other companies can not make any money. Apple has one device in a sea of many that only has a smaller percentage of the world market share. If Apple was doing things like say, making people use the iPhone as the only way to have a $15 a month data plan opposed to a $20 a month data plan, that would be considered "anticompetitive" but they are not. They are only controlling their device and not preventing RIM or Win phone 7 or android from being able to compete.
As opposed to Microsoft in the 90's where they said they would not allow an OEM to use windows unless they put internet explorer and only internet explorer on the computer.
Apple only controls the App store and its device and they are not forcing consumers to buy apple or nothing at all, and that is where the difference is.
mo·nop·o·ly [muh-nop-uh-lee] Show IPA
–noun,plural-lies.
1.
exclusive control of a commodity or service in a particular market, or a control that makes possible the manipulation of prices. Compare duopoly, oligopoly.
@sshole
down ranked for having an opinion favouring apple ? my god ..... i give up ....
@sshole
Upvoted for clever name
If this thing scores 100 on the Acid 3 test I will definitely replace safari with it.
@PerfectCr I agree I laugh every time I see someone respond to him.
@sshole This is the best vaporware ever.
@Drago
The version of it on my Droid scores a 97
@sshole everyone should do an app store search for "opera mini", no matches, but maybe they'll see the trend and the demand.
@viditbhargava
best, how?
opera is faster more user friendly, everything...
Other than that, if apple turn this down i hope to see it going to the EU (IE ballot screen but for iphone anyone?) Not having this would be, in my mind, pretty damned hypocritical on operas side...
@sshole for some reason i was expecting a recorded video of a full sized internet explorer browser on windows xp.
old school style.
@AnAnt
Did you used to be on iPodhacking.com!?
And in relation to the article, I think Apple will let it pass, because otherwise it would be obvious that whatever they say goes to the wider community.
@sshole Been using opera desktop and mini for my N1 phone. and yes its pretty fast. Former: http://bit.ly/opera-is-fast-very-very-fast
I do hope it'll got the approval, but I'm wondering' , does opera really need to put that counter on their site, its like mocking the response time of apple, right?
@SeveringGecko Europe and the US don't agree on what constitutes a monopoly, and when/what should be done about it. (I'm a European lawyer)
@Jordan There are already a handful of different browsers on the app store such as "BOLT" or "Oceanus Web Browser". I would also like to say in all honesty that although it does seem very slow on here, safari still outperforms some other mobile web browsers including some android web browsers so it is not the worst of all. However Apple does not offer a true "Smart phone" in the first place as it lacks many standard features.
@Jordan
Probably because the IE engines are prehistoric in comparison to everything else. Nobody who knows anything cares about IE getting slammed into the ground. Its not justice but why care when they refuse to evolve and adapt to standards today? Can't just stick bells and whistles on a gremlin and call it bad ass because it looks ok on the surface. Its still the same piece of shit gremlin underneath.
@sshole - Yea that “death clock” on Opera’s web site is awesome! This should be interesting to watch. If Opera’s App bid fails (or takes months) it will only confirm further that almost 30 years later, “Apple has become the very thing that they despised the most!” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYecfV3ubP8
i like opera.. i think it's quite a cute browser.
@Bookmark since when did software become cute?!
@tracdoor
when there's smileys in the code
@tracdoor
One you've tried Pocket Internet Explorer, Opera mini is very cute
@TheKingOfHyrule
yep, codes make me feel sexy sometimes haha
@Bookmark
I think he's trying to emasculate it... probably works for apple.
In any case, I can't wait to finally have a good reason to change one of the four icons in my iPhone dock. Out with Safari, in with Opera.
@Funke Tobias Dr No... you are wrong... something makes me think, bookmark here is a female?
I wonder how this will turn out.
/s
@Edobe Also I the video was hilarious. You notice the guy did the browser test on the edge network because that's more of a "real world" scenario. And he didn't wait for the pages to finish loading before going to the next page.
@Edobe
nice troll. he always waited for the page to load to open a new one. (he only zoomed in before loading.)
and yes, edge is a very common scenario when you're outside, like if you're traveling on a bus/car/train and so on..
@Edobe Actually, he did let all the pages finish loading. What he did is zoom in before the page was finished loading, potentially speeding up load times because of some sort of server-side compression stuff, because once he zoomed in the page finished loading quite quickly. But, hey, it's an advertisement, what do you expect? Complete fairness?
Still, really fast.
@Endadget I'm certainly not trolling, I would love to have opera mini on my iPod touch, I currently use Opera mini 5 beta on my Droid. I was just pointing out what I observed when watching the video, You're the only troll here.
@Edobe Actually I believe he used EDGE because the was the realest test of the speed of opera, not because EDGE is a more real world test. Me thinks that once on Wi-Fi and 3G the compression they use isn't nearly as much of a benefit (if it's a benefit at all) as mobile safari perform quit quickly. So for advertisement purposes they showed an EDGE only comparison...
@Edobe
Um... With AT&T, EDGE is totally real world scenario.
*BADUM CHING!*
God damn Apple Just let in already!
Your not God Steve, your not God.
you cant get everything your way.
@abedinthehouse Actually, he is. It's his company, he can have it his way...that's worked out pretty well for him so far.
@ScottyB
Not quite. Apple is a publicly traded company. His holiness is just another employee. He can be fired too.
@abedinthehouse He is god.
@(Unverified)
It would be a very brave board who propose to fire Steve Jobs.
Fortune CEO of the decade. Why the hell would you fire him?