N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Just got an N9. I knew that the browser would not have the ability to save passwords. But I am shocked to find it has no settings at all. And it lacks even the ability to save a bookmark (but there are quasi- bookmarks saved as applications, which is not the same at all.) I truly can not get over how basic it is. No font size settings. No options. No find on page. No save page as...Quite literally nothing but going to websites. This is a gorgeous phone and the OS is very slick, but wow....and since I read alot before buying without discovering this I thought a thread was in order.

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

wow is it really that crippled ...I thought I saw opera for the n9 or does that suck as well?

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

So far I have found tutorials explaining how to install Opera, because regular installing doesn't work. It will be worth looking into...

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

i was looking at the opera install and found this

Add to apps - Creates an icon in the N9's app launcher. The N9 browser doesn't use bookmarks, Add to apps is the only way to save a link to a web page on the device itself. I rather like this because it gives Webapps equal standing with native apps. However, I bookmark a lot of pages and I'm afraid that the single flat (no folders) app laucher page will quickly be overwhelmed by Webapp icons on my N9. The next firmware release for the N9 is supposed to include launcher folders. If the page has an apple-touch-icon the shortcut uses it, otherwise it displays a screenshot of the page. The image below, center shows a number of Webapps shorts. WapReview, Google+ and Identica are the only ones that have apple-touch-icons.

http://wapreview.mobi/15548/?wpmp_switcher=mobile

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Actually, it appears to save passwords. Did for this site even after a reboot. So there's that...

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

I have to agree, the browser is very very basic. Compared to the very usable and rather advanced microB of N900, the browser on the N9 is like taking a few hundred steps backwards.

Opera and fennec seems to be available, but that's no excuse for such a prime device to have such a crappy browser. I suppose its part of the apple-fying of devices whereby things are so simplified that even a toddler can use it. This can be seen in the lack of configurability all over harmattan as opposed to the flexibility and freedom of fremantle. For shame Nokia. We are not toddlers. No need to treat us like Apple treats its babies.
/rant

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Honestly, other than the lack of settings, the browser is quite nice. Functions well and reformats text quickly on zoom in/out.

I do agree it needs some type of settings though. The only ones I can find are in Settings-device-web- and it's only clear cache or something.
Oh well, suits me enough. Fennec and Opera are both quick enough to do more advanced things with.

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Compared to the n900 version, it blows chunks. half or more of the settings are missing and in spite of supporting multiple tabs, I only use one because the buttons to show a list of all open tabs so one can go to each individually or close then only works infrequently.

But still much better than the built in browser which, as you pointed out, doesn't have any options at all.

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

This is working nicely for me. I particularly like the sync feature which keeps passwords and bookmarks synced between my mobile and my desktops.
http://everythingn9.com/firefox-fenn...-the-nokia-n9/

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

The virtual keyboard of Opera is crappy... and the browser is landscape only. As a result, I almost never use it.

In the beginning I used the built-in browser because I rather liked its simplicity and cleanness, its speed, and the way it formats websites, and the ability to add icons to the main app screen suits me well because it treats web apps the same as real apps.

But I've since started to use Fennec a lot more - not because it's inherently so much better (it has its issues too and this version was not designed specifically for Harmattan) but because mobile sites, I've learned, generally suck. For some reason site designers tend to dumb down their sites for mobile, and generally have less content available on the mobile sites. Really bugs me, so I've taken to going to the desktop sites now, which I can only do with Fennec.

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Welcome to the commercial mobile space - the OP (and many others) have just discovered what plagues also the TouchPad et al. For those devices that are clearly made and also MARKETED 'for the web', the crappiness of the therefore necessary software that's included (or available on 'their markets') is astounding.

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

It needs at least bookmarks, copy&paste, find on page and password saving. And better html5 support (i.e. faster).

Hopefully pr1.2 will deliver...btw where is the pr1.2 thread?

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

doesnt really bother me at all. Fennec and nokia browser combinatoin works fine for me,

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Also, the current unofficial Opera version for Harmattan is quite old (released sometime in the summer), the N900 version is newer and has more options (portrait mode, etc.). An up-to-date official Opera version for Harmattan would be really nice. :)

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

Dear OP, did you already try Fennec (Firefox Mobile) Since it also doesn't feature Flash and does run reasonably fast it may be your best option.


Maybe built in one will improve but why would they? Nokia really knows how to profile the N9 as a phone.

Its browser does translate well the device's lack of ambition to be the next Nokia Internet Tablet (a long descending generation of devices for professional mobile web based usage) and so to say direct follow up of Nokia N900.

And so does the display.

Browser even limits the amount of browser windows you can open. So if you want to surf real hard, you need to hack the built in browser first or use multiple browsers.

Where is the config for this thing? :confused:


For me the most disappointing is the fact that the N9 browser is being recognized as Safari (vs Firefox for MicroB on the N900)

Since Apple has a habit of stimulating the dumbing down of websites to so called mobile versions, and worse, stimulate the use of special fronts called "apps" I am now left no choice but to move to Fennec if I want my mail client Zoho.com rendered correctly (talking about the thin client).

Yes on iPhone there is an app for that, so I am not supposed to have a browser based experience.

I am also missing from N900:

-One hand circular movement to zoom (why trying hard to need 2 fingers to zoom if you can do it with one :rolleyes: )

Even a right click option "open in new window" requires more effort on the N9 as it jumps away from your finger, requiring repositioning.

-hold back arrow or swipe back to see real time history cache

-virtual cursor

What Firefox / Fennec does well is open in new tab on background instead of brining the new page up front.

Also save as PDF and many other options are there. I am quite happy with Fennec on N9. It saves the day somehow. :)

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

It is being detected as Safari and it can do pretty much anything that the iPhone browser can do. That means HTML5 websites designed for iPhones work pretty good (including stuff like geolocation, multitouch for zooming maps etc...).

Unfortunately not all websites have fancy mobile versions that take advantage of every feature that is available. Some webmasters still seem to live in the age of wap and love forcing "dumbed-down" mobile version of their site on every mobile device, which is... aggravating.

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

There was one supposedly coming, but I haven't heard anything for ages :(
There's also a optimized version of Fennec that'll be release in the store eventually.
(see fennec thread at forum.meego.com)

Re: N9 browser has *no* settings
 

^ or if you don't want to wait for 1.2 use MeeFolders.