Safari 4 and its Bagful of Lies

Apple really knows how to do something in style. Safari 4 is just another perfect example. They took something as mundane as a web browser and made is stylish and sexy. The Apple factor is evident in Safari from the moment you fire it up. Be it the sleek intro sequence or the stylish presentation of top sites or history search in coverflow style. But then, Apple just had to show their arrogance and spoil the fun with some outright shoddy marketing techniques.

150 features of Safari 4 (a clever gimmick since if you try you can always come up with 150 features in any modern day browser) is a prominent part of Apple’s marketing strategy. And this is where things get really sour. Let us examine some of the claims made by Apple :

Acid 3 Compliance

Apple Claims: Safari is the first — and only — web browser to pass Acid 3.
The Truth is :Webkit released a public build that achieved Acid 3 compliance on March 2006, 2008. On the very same day Opera announced that it had also aced the Acid 3 test and soon afterwards released an internal build Wingogi that passed Acid 3 test. Opera 10 (currently in alpha) also passes Acid 3 test.

Built-in Google Search

Apple Claims : Safari was the first popular browser to build a search field into its user interface.
The Truth is : Opera was the first browser to offer Integrated Search (in 2000, with the release of Opera 5). It’s one of many Opera Innovations that has been adapted by almost all other browsers. Apple implemented this feature in 2003.

RSS Reader

Apple Claims : The first browser to feature a built-in RSS reader, Safari is the ideal way to browse the entire web without using a second application.

The Truth is : Opera added RSS Feed reader in v7.5 Preview 1 in Dec, 2003. Safari on the other hand got a feed reader in April, 2005 (in Safari v2.0).

Movable Tabs

Apple Claims : Safari was the first browser to let you organize tabs by dragging and dropping. Movable tabs give you the power to organize your sites exactly the way you want.
The Truth is : Safari got this feature in late 2007 with the release of Safari 3.0. Opera v7 (released in 2003) as well as Firefox 1.5 (released in 2005) got this feature years ahead of Safari.

It’s sad to see a company like Apple resort to outright lying to promote their own product. It’s almost as if browsers like Firefox and Opera don’t even exist. To be honest Safari 4 is an excellent browser. It’s the fastest browser yet (defeating Chrome, Minefield, Opera and Ie by a significant margin). It’s elegant with an interesting set of features. It’s beyond me why Apple needed to engage in deceptive marketing.

Via myOpera forums and Dustin Willson