I tried Vivaldi for a month but switched back to Opera

taronpro

Originally I tried to move away from Opera because Vivaldi is more customizable, privacy-respecting, and the developers are more approachable.

However, on Android Vivaldi still can't measure up with Opera. That's why I switched back eventually. Nevertheless I hope Vivaldi on Android improves and I can switch back at some point in the future.

I have put a quick comparison below:

Desktop

Vivaldi better:

Web panels (instead of just predefined IM websites)
Custom CSS, e.g. can hide native adblock icon if you prefer using uBlock Origin
Tab order config built-in (e.g. open new tabs on far right, focus on last active tab after closing; like Opera 12)
Clean history on exit automatically
Can remove search engines
Can sync extensions
Tab stacks (but Opera has workspaces instead)
Can move multiple tabs into a new window (Opera can only move one tab to new window, or multiple tabs into another workspace)

Opera better:

Workspaces (but Vivaldi has tab stacks instead)
RSS (although possible with addon in any browser)
Site-specific cookie settings (Vivaldi: only possible in hidden Chromium settings, not the normal settings interface)
Opera UI feels faster, (subjectively) looks better, and appears less buggy (e.g. Vivaldi sometimes doesn't register a click on a link and I have to click twice)

Android

Vivaldi better:

Adblocker with own filter lists
Opera sometimes adds sponsored links to speed dial

Opera better:

Text wrap when zooming
Scheduled dark mode for websites
Translate function built in
Data compression (also helps circumvent some website blocks on public wifi) and "VPN"
Can freely choose download folder for each file anywhere on phone (Vivaldi: only Download folder or SD card)
Can swipe between tabs on bottom bar (since Vivaldi v3.2, swiping on bottom bar to change tabs doesn't work anymore; this however can be considered fixed as you can now move the URL bar to bottom in the snapshot version)
Vivaldi is more buggy and freezes sometimes and is slower on certain websites for no apparent reason

General

Vivaldi better:

Privacy
Send link to devices (Opera Flow only works with Opera Touch, not the normal Android Opera)
Not owned by China
You get the feeling that the Vivaldi developers think of passion first, money second, while for Opera it's the opposite

Opera better:

Own Opera user agent string, so by using Opera you don't boost the measured Chrome market share

luetage

@taronpro said in I tried Vivaldi for a month but switched back to Opera:

Own Opera user agent string, so by using Opera you don't boost the measured Chrome market share

Opera is a chromium browser. The market share only matters in the sense that web developers tend to build or create towards the dominant engine. When Firefox or Safari loses market share, that means there is less incentive to factor in these browsers. Using Opera instead of Vivaldi because Opera has a different user agent doesn’t help one bit in this regard. There are only two things you can do: Either switch to Firefox/Safari, or use a user agent switcher extension to simulate one or the other. The second option is rather futile.

In my opinion the number one reason to use Vivaldi over Opera is the fact that it’s a European browser.

BoneTone

Vivaldi Android is only a few months old. How many years, and how many browsers (ugh), has Opera been developing? Obviously Vivaldi isn't going to be as mature as Opera right now. That said, I'm very impressed with how far along Vivaldi Android is already, even the Beta was very stable and contained novel & unique features. Vivaldi is very much under active development, updates are coming frequently, so it's rapidly improving as well. For my needs, it's already the best mobile browser available, and I can't count how many I've tested -- if you can name it, I've probably installed it at one point or another. That was somewhat a professional necessity, not entirely personal curiosity. But it did allow me to explore the mobile browser landscape and find what works best for me. If something else works best for you, by all means use it; nobody's going to hold it against you.

Since you're interested in Vivaldi, however, just make sure to manage your expectations appropriately. Vivaldi Android's a very young browser, it's unlikely to have every bell & whistle you like from whatever other browser you've been using. Being so new, and so crucial to the Vivaldi ecosystem, it's development is a priority for the dev team; that dev team is very small, however. The resources available to Opera, and of course Chrome, Firefox & Edge, are far greater. So while Vivaldi is constantly improving, there's a limit to how much can be done in any given timeframe. Understanding these realities should help one appreciate the work that's being done, and avoid disappointment when one's favorite functionality isn't yet part of the browser.

luetage

@BoneTone That’s not really a fair comparison, Opera only has a headstart of 2 years, they switched to Chromium in 2013 and Vivaldi came in 2015. Moreover some Vivaldi developers also worked for Opera… I’m aware we’re talking Android here, but Vivaldi could have decided to go mobile first. I always wondered why they didn’t.

Catweazle

If I would look apart from Vivaldi, another browser for Android, Opera would be the last option. To say that Vivaldi is more private is an understatement, considering that Opera Android comes with 10 trackers, that make it practically spyware.
See report Exodus. Privacy
https://reports.exodus-privacy.eu.org/en/reports/com.opera.browser/latest/

Komposten

@luetage But if you factor in the 10x larger work force at Opera they suddenly have quite a few more years worth of dev time.

luetage

@Komposten Yeah, used to. But what is left of them? There were quite significant layoffs in the browser development department years ago, then it was sold.

ahmuro

I gotta say I love Opera and to me it is almost the perfect browser. Is fast, the UI is pretty and feels light and speedy and it has lots of useful features.

But I am never going back to Opera. And it is mainly an ethical choice.

Obviously I care about my privacy and dislike all the trackers and ads that Opera uses and promotes, but that's really the least of my problems. I understand that browsers are free to the user but developing them is expensive and require revenue sources, and this puts developers in a difficult position. I would be willing to pay upfront for a browser, but not for a subscription, and most users would pay neither. The days of the direct revenue business model are gone for browser developers. This is hard for developers and I understand it. So I'm kind of okay with ads and trackers that I can control.

But, as you mention, Opera flow for example is not available to use on the regular Opera for Android. I don't know why, but I know that it bothers me greatly and it is troublesome, and I also know that me and many other users have been requesting that feature for years, to no result or even response. Opera is what they say it is and you use what they give you. I am not okay with that. I have been using Vivaldi for android since the release of the beta back in september I think and I have sent feedback two times about missing features, and in a few months those features were ready to use. I was also using the new Firefox some weeks ago and liked the bottom UI so I was thinking about how nice would be to have something like that in Vivaldi. Well it is already here. They know what we want and listen to what we say. And that is important to me.

Finally, China. The whole thing about China. Without going too deeply to avoid politics talk, I am no longer comfortable using so many of the Chinese things I used to use. There are many things going on over there that I cannot support and I'm willing to make some compromises about it. Even ignoring the politics of it, as a company Opera has become a very different and kind of unethical company that I don't want to be client of. Jus of the top of my head the scandal of the abusive money loans in Africa and india I think come to mind. So just as a business and as a regime, I don't want to use Opera for being a chinese product.

So yeah. Does Vivaldi have minor annoying bugs? A few. Do the UI feels sluggish sometimes? For sure. Are features missing? Certainly. But I have confidence that all that is going in the better direction with time, and I have also confidence that Opera is going the opposite way. It's a shame and I'm sad about it. I remember the first time I used Opera when I was a teenager and I feel very nostalgic about it. That big red ad banner at the top right. But it was so great compared to IE and I remember it very fondly, but that is gone and things are what they are now. And now I am with Vivaldi.