- For many Mac users,
Safari is one of those built-in apps that often gets ignored
or forgotten about.
That's because a lot of Mac users including myself,
opt to use Google Chrome instead.
And I had to ask the question, why?
Why is it that so many users skip right past Safari
and download Google Chrome
and don't even consider it a valid option.
I wanted to take another look at this topic in 2022
and find out if Safari could be used,
as my personal browser of choice.
Thanks to Aura for sponsoring this video.
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Since becoming a Mac user,
I've always had a love-hate relationship with Safari.
I want to like it.
I really do,
but I've always defaulted back to Google Chrome.
I think that's largely,
because I started out as a Windows user
and I became comfortable with Google Chrome over on Windows.
Over the years,
I've become more reliant on Chrome extensions,
and I've actually realized
that I can use other browsers besides Google Chrome,
as long as they're based on Chromium.
Chromium is the open source web engine
that runs Chrome, Opera, Microsoft Edge,
and other major browsers.
Now, I've realized I can use Opera.
I can use Brave.
I'm able to use the browsers
that have all the same extensions I'm used to having
in Chrome.
But what if you wanna get away from Chromium?
What if you don't want Google collecting your browsing data
and your personal information?
Well, your choices are limited.
Safari and Firefox are really the two mainstream browsers
that are still using their own independent web engines.
So, I went on a quest to see
if I could start using Safari this year in 2022
and see if it would fit my needs once again.
So, I switched to Safari
and I immediately became uncomfortable,
as soon as I launch the app.
That's because I'm used to the Chrome interface
and there's always that friction
when getting used to a new browser.
The biggest thing that bothers me about Safari's interface
is the fact that the bookmarks bar cannot show favicons.
Those are those little icons in Google Chrome or Opera
on the bookmarks bar next to the website.
You might have Facebook
and then the little Facebook icon next to it.
It's a visual.
It helps me look at the bookmarks bar and go,
"I know exactly what this website is,"
without having to read the text.
I just see it in my peripheral vision.
I click it and I know where I'm going.
So, without that,
the Safari bookmarks bar is only plain text
and everything just gets lost on there.
I'm also not a big fan of the tabs,
being underneath the URL bar.
And this is something I just have to get used to.
It's not the end of the world and I will get used to it,
but it's annoying when other browsers,
typically have the tabs above the URL bar.
I did also try the compact mode in Safari,
which is where the URL bar
and other tabs are sort of put on the same line.
And I didn't really care for it.
It just feels like it's not very versatile.
And while it may be a good fit
for some users with basic needs,
if you have way too many tabs open,
like I tend to do,
I don't think the compact interface would work very well.
So, once getting past that initial UI shock phase,
of using Safari,
the functionality was pretty good.
I like that Safari has a built-in tracker blocker,
although it's not an ad blocker.
So, you do still need to go get a third party extension
to get rid of ads,
but they do have that built in tracker blocker
to make sure that you're not constantly getting tracked,
by ad services and other things.
It's really interesting,
you can click the little icon
and see that like seven different sources
in the code are tracking what you're doing.
I appreciate that Apple is privacy minded in that regard.
I also really enjoyed the reader mode feature.
You can just press Command + Shift + R on any webpage
and get to a straight down view,
where you can read your article or read the page
with no distractions.
It basically strips out all of the ads and the sidebars
and anything on the page that could be distracting.
It's just you and the article.
And you can really focus in.
So, I'm a big fan of some of those exclusive features.
However,
there are some things that Chrome does better,
things like user profiles,
being able to have a work profile and a personal profile
and having a different set of bookmarks
and a different set of history and cookies,
between the profiles
and the ability to automatically translate a page,
using Google Translate when you visit it.
Safari does have some sort of autotranslation feature in it,
but I don't think it's gonna be as accurate,
as Google Translate.
Not that Google Translate is very accurate,
because I don't think it is.
But generally I think Google excels in this area.
And now we get to the friction point of Safari for me
or so I thought, and that's extensions.
I am really particular about my browser extensions.
I have extensions I'm used to using in Chrome
and many of those I need in a browser.
It's not just a convenience.
It's become something I can't go without,
things like 1Password, AdGuard, Honey, Rakuten and vidIQ.
vidIQ is a tool I use as a creator on YouTube.
So, it's probably not something that a lot of you are using,
but this is the set of extensions that I require.
And most of these extensions,
I actually found are available on Safari,
but vidIQ is missing and more on that later.
I will say that the experience for getting extensions
on Safari is not great.
You have to get it through the Mac App Store,
which doesn't make sense to me,
especially because there's no dedicated search section
for Safari extensions.
You can get to this landing page
and browse through different Safari extensions,
but there's no search within the landing page.
And the search in the Mac App Store
is going to be searching the whole app store.
So, if I search for a VPN,
is it a Safari extension?
Is it a Mac app?
Is it both?
Nobody really knows.
It's this big confusion point.
And I really wish that it would be easier
to get extensions on Safari.
However, crucial plugins were missing for me in Safari,
the main one being vidIQ.
I'm not gonna get into what vidIQ does
or why it's important for me,
but I make this point to say,
I know many of you are reliant on specific Chrome extensions
and vidIQ does not have a Safari extension.
It only runs on Chrome and Chromium browsers.
And without vidIQ,
it's hard for me to imagine myself switching
to Safari full-time.
Now, I do wanna take some time to acknowledge
the Apple exclusive features you'll enjoy when using Safari.
First, you can use iCloud tabs to sync your tabs,
between your Mac and your iPhone.
You can also use Apple Pay in Safari for Mac,
which is incredible.
I really wish that I could use Apple Pay
on the daily in Chrome,
but nope, you can only use it in Safari for Mac.
So, that is a huge point for using Safari
if you're an Apple Pay fan.
I also appreciate Apple's privacy first mindset.
The fact that they have that built in tracker blocker,
the fact that in past keynotes,
they've gone on and on about,
just destroying Facebook's ad tracking business,
really shows that Apple is committed to your privacy.
And this is a complete different mindset from Google Chrome,
who's a data company.
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So overall, my experience with Safari was decent,
but is decent enough to pull me away from Google Chrome
and make the switch?
Well, I'm just torn.
As I mentioned earlier,
it's really important for me to have vidIQ.
And for many of you, it might be really important
to have exclusive browser extensions or user profiles
or other things that Chrome just does better.
And this goes back to the big question, why consider Safari?
Why not just use Google Chrome and use what's comfortable?
And I think for many of us,
it's that we want to get away from Chromium.
Chromium is that open source web engine that runs Chrome
and Opera and Microsoft Edge and Brave Browser,
all these different browsers.
And it's been shown that Chromium
is likely tracking your data
and reporting what you're doing back to Google.
Now, one thing that crossed my mind,
was the fact that Apple has a higher market cap,
than Alphabet which is Google's parent company.
Apple is literally worth more money on the stock market,
than Google.
So, is it really valid to say,
I want to get away from Google,
'cause they're this powerful, big, scary company,
that I'm gonna go take my data
and hand it to an even bigger company?
And that honestly just comes down to how you view Apple.
I would argue,
they have a completely different business model than Google,
they're in the business of providing hardware
and services for money.
Google is in the business of providing free services
and collecting data and making their money that way.
So is Apple, any more trustworthy than Google,
when it comes to your personal data and privacy?
I think so,
but that's a decision
that you're gonna have to make for yourself.
So in the end,
am I switching to Safari?
Was it able to pull me away from Google Chrome?
Nope.
I regret to say it, but no,
I'll be sticking to Google Chrome.
Look, if Safari added support for vidIQ
and if they added favicons in the bookmarks bar,
I would switch tomorrow or today,
whenever they release the update,
I would switch.
But unfortunately I just need vidIQ
and certain browser extensions.
And I really would like to see favicons in my bookmarks bar.
And those features are keeping me from switching.
If you don't need vidIQ
and chances are you probably don't
or if you don't need certain browser extensions
that are Chrome exclusive,
I think Safari is really worth giving a shot.
I can say this is the best experience I've ever had
with Safari.
They've come a long way.
The fact that I can use most of my extensions natively
in Safari and it's faster and it's snappier
and it's more privacy focused,
really makes it a tempting choice.
I really would like to switch
and I'm looking forward to seeing what updates Apple
is able to do to Safari in the future.
Maybe it's time to stop ignoring Safari and give it a try.
And by the way,
if you're wondering if I would ever consider switching
to another Chromium browser like Opera,
be sure to check out that video right here.
Thanks to Aura for sponsoring this video,
get your two week free trial,
at the link in the description below.
And with that said,
I'll catch you guys next time.