A lot of excitement has been generated by an announcement from Opera this morning. According to the software firm the mobile version of its internet browser, Opera Mini, will be demonstrated as an iPhone app during Mobile World Congress. This is a welcome announcement for Opera fans with iPhones, who have so far been denied access to their browser of choice. But what does Apple think about this
The company foresees zero issues with the approval of the app, and hopes Apple will “not deny their users a choice in Web browsing experience”. Frankly, I hope Apple won’t block the app from appearing in the App Store either.
Once the app is completed and live in the App Store, Opera Software hopes people will be enticed to leave the iPhone’s Safari browser for what it is primarily based on the speed of its own product. The company says that Opera Mini for iPhone is up to 6 times faster than the native browser thanks to its compression technology, based on internal tests.
What we think?
In all ways but one, the Opera Mini browser for iPhone is ready to roll. But if Apple doesn’t want Opera Mini on iPhone, then Opera Mini won’t go on iPhone. Not all the grandstanding, press releases and graphics in the world will change that.
Still, I wish Opera the best of luck. It’s mobile browser is world-class, and it’s a shame that it doesn’t run on iPhone already.
