Many good things come out of the East. The sun for one, and mobile apps like UC Browser.
Its main pitch is the ability to download fast and reliably, which is the distillation of any great browser when you think about it.
But the UC Browser is way more than a functional, no-nonsense browser with an emphasis on speed and security. It is actually quite a smart browser, with a proprietary engine under the hood and a built-in video player. This is no Chromium retread.
What it is, is a rather `smooth experience' browser that's great for surfing the net, general browsing, downloading files, and watching videos.
The most recent incarnation of the UC Browser features an upgrade to its unique U4 engine. The result, says the developer, is a 20% performance improvement over the previous version, particularly so in terms of web connection, stability, support, security, and video support.
Don't worry too much if UC Browser hasn't pinged on your personal radar before. The app has been subject to download over 500 million times on Google Play alone, while almost 22 million users have taken time out of their day to leave a review.
A Chinese company has developed UC Browser. However, they operate out of Singapore, and the company is officially branded as UCWeb Singapore Pte. Ltd.
● Fast downloads
● Draggable small window for video watching
● One tap background video playing
● Compression to save data
● Ad Blocking
● Incognito mode
● Unique Facebook mode to speed up connections to the platform
● Night mode
The UC Browser is no slouch; it's a fast browser and claims to save up to 60% on data traffic thanks to compression.
The ad blocking is pretty good as well, so that helps with page download speeds as well.
● It's free
● Supports English, Russian, and Vietnamese
● Clean, intuitive interface
● Fast and secure
● Not outrageously innovative
● Limited ability to use extensions
UC Browser is downloadable from Google Play and Apple's App Store. If you are an Android user, app requirements vary by device.
iOS users need to have 112.1 MB of storage space and run iOS 7.0 or later.
App user reviews result in the app getting a 3.9 out of five at Google Play and a 4.4 out of five at the App Store.
Most reviews highlight how fast the browser is. More recently update has come in for the usual moans from the regular cadre of disgruntled set-in-their-ways users. So you can judge that for yourself by looking at the amount of five stars the app gets in the review graphs.
As well as the Android and iOS platforms, you can also obtain UC Browser direct from the m.ucweb.com website. You can't go wrong; the site is just one page with two download buttons, the right-hand one for UC Browser and the left for another app called UC Turbo.
You can also extend the functionality of UC Browser through the use of add-ons.
