Difference Between Opera and Opera Mini

Key Difference – Opera vs Opera Mini
 

Google play store has a lot of different icons, which makes it very confusing to choose which Opera browser to install. So let us take a closer look at Opera Mini and Opera browser, two of the main browsers used with mobile phones .The key difference between Opera Mobile and Opera Mini is that Opera Mini uses compression technology to help load web pages on mobile phones faster whereas Opera for Mobile is ideal to view secured web pages and to open up multiple web pages.

CONTENTS
1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Opera
3. What is Opera Mini
4. Advantages of Opera and Opera Mini
5. Side by Side Comparison – Opera vs Opera Mini
6. Summary

In play store, you will find silver Opera icons for Opera Mini and Opera browser. These icons represent test versions. Before adding new features to the main browser, these new features are tested on the silver “beta ” version as a tryout. Beta testing will help engineers get feedback for improvements and identify bugs to fix them. This will help before the update is released for the final browser.  If you do not want to experiment and want to focus on the real thing, you will need to install the red opera icon.

The opera browsers are very user-friendly and easy to use. The browsers provide a fast browsing experience on mobile data. Opera mini is able to support faster speeds when browsing compared with other popular browsers.

Opera is designed for PocketPCs, smartphones, and PDAs. It is a strong browser that comes with many features and supports secure websites. Opera Mini, on the other hand, is a java powered browser specially designed browser for cell phones without a full browser. It is not the best option for secured websites.

Opera Browser– Features and Specifications

The opera browser for android is designed to give you a full browsing experience. This means that the websites you want to access will open up as with your desktop computer. It is best to use this browser on a high-end smartphone connected to the internet via a Wi-Fi connection. You can watch high-quality videos and listen to high-quality audio and view pages that are not optimized for mobile viewing.

The opera browser does not compress the web pages by default. You have the option to turn to opera turbo to save data and speed up the connection. Opera turbo will compress the web page up 50%. This will contain rich media and provide a full browsing experience on a high-end smart device.

Figure 01: Screenshot of Opera 43.0

Opera Mini – Features and Specifications

Opera Mini is a cloud-based web browser that consumes less space on your phone. All the browsing that happens through the opera Mini browser is through the opera servers. These servers help in compressing web pages, including images and text. It can compress it down to 10 % of the original size. This is the reason behind Opera Mini being able to open up websites even if the network is congested, fluctuating or bad. For these reasons, Opera Mini is the best when it comes to travel. Outside the city, it can be very helpful to reduce roaming and network charges. If you are stuck in a crowded place or commute, web browsing can be speeded up, and you can get the content that you need at a faster pace.

Figure 01: Opera Mini Logo

Advantages of Opera and Opera Mini

Advantages of Opera

• User Interface – Opera for mobile devices come with features that make it easy for browsing the internet. It includes standard desktop browser features like going back and forth on sites, refresh button, etc. Favorite web pages can be accessed via the action menu which also comes with a bookmark feature for users.
• Page Zoom – You have the ability to zoom into the page you are viewing to up to 200% and zoom out to 25 %. The 25 % zoom will help to fit as much content as possible onto a mobile screen as it would on a desktop screen although the text may be unreadable.
• Multiple windows – Opera mobile will help you to open multiple windows, and it will help in flipping back and forth between open web pages.
• Security – Opera will support secured web pages. Opera Mini is not the best when it comes to secured web pages.

Advantages of Opera Mini

• Performance – Opera Mini works by sending a request to the Opera server. The Opera server downloads the page, compresses it and send it to the browser that requested the information. Because of the compression that takes place on the pages, it can improve the performance and web pages can load faster compared with other web browsers.
• Mobile turning – When the compression takes place, the opera servers optimize the content to be displayed on a mobile screen. The pages will look better on the mobile screen due to this reason.
• Touch Zooming – The opera mini version has options for zooming. It also comes with a better interface. You can toggle between the regular and zoom in the version with ease.

What is the difference between Opera and Opera Mini?

Summary – Opera vs Opera Mini

The difference between Opera and Opera Mini may come down to personal preference. If you require multiple windows or want to go to a secured website, opera browser would be ideal. On the other hand, Opera Mini is the ideal choice if you require zooming features and if you do not require multiple windows and do not visit secured websites. Some choose to install both browsers on their devices due to their unique advantages.

Image Courtesy:
1. “Opera Web Browser” By OperaSoftware ASA (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “Opera Mini logo horizontal” By Source (Fair use) via Commons Wikimedia

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