Opera Mini approved for iPhone OS
After about a 20-day review process, Apple has approved the Opera Mini (free, App Store) Web browser for distribution in the company's App Store. Opera Mini is a potential challenger to Apple's pre-installed Safari and touts its speed and compression abilities:
Users of the app will notice an uptake in speed, especially on slower networks such as the 2G Edge network. Surfing the Web with the Opera Mini App on iPhone and iPod touch will also help users save money because of its data compression capabilities.
The tabs and bookmark implementations seem a little more logical than Safari's but I haven't yet fully tested Opera Mini's speed. Other features include sync, password storage, speed dial (one click favorites) and long-click menus that execute tasks.
ZDNet's Matt Miller admits that he was way off when he wrote that he doubted we would ever see Opera Mini approved by Apple for the iPhone. As for me, I'm glad that Apple allowed a competing Web browser into its store because competition ultimately benefits the consumer.
Have you used Opera?
Update: Mercury was the first third-party iPhone OS Web browser and there are now a handful in the App Store. Tip @cosmos503