One of the most debated pieces of software is the web browser. There are many options to choose from, so there’s quite a lot of competition in the web browser market. How does a less known Slim Browser compare?
Slim Browser is a lightweight browser based on Internet Explorer and the IE Trident rendering engine. The download size is 2 MB with the final installation being around 3 MB only.
When I first started the browser, the first thing that came to my mind is Internet Explorer 6. The buttons and design are quite old and outdated.
Tabs can be turned into windows within the browser window. The Slim Browser looks similar to Internet Explorer 6.
The familiar Minimize, Restore/Maximize, and Close buttons apply to the current tab only, which can be turned into a window within the main window. The main exit buttons and the up/down arrows, and the big X in the corner.
Personal data like bookmarks and history seem to be shared with Internet Explorer.
Web standard support is awful with Slim Browser as shown by Acid2 and Acid3 tests with similar results as Internet Explorer 7.
Acid2 (left) and Acid3 (right) Web Standards Test Results for Slim Browser.
In addition to regular IE features, Slim Browser packs in useful other features such as URL Alias and an Ad Blocker, which is claimed to be a deprecated but working feature.
Adblocker Options
There is a large collection of skins available on the Slim Browser website.
'Vista2' Skin
Slim Browser supports plugins, although the online collection (at the time of writing) only offers 3. It can also run Internet Explorer toolbars, however there is no guarantee that they will work well or work at all.
A built in ScriptPad allows users to edit JScript, VBScript, and HTML with syntax highlighting.
Edit and execute JScript, VBScript, and HTML with ScriptPad
Privacy controls allow users to easily remove browsing traces.
Slim Browser Privacy Controls
Speed
How does it compare to the competition when it comes to speed? To test this, I ran the JS Benchmark on several browsers.
Javascript Benchmark Test Results. Higher is Better.
Slim Browser is a decent very lightweight yet a bit slow web browser that can be installed as a portable application. The default interface is very busy, but toolbars can easily be customized.
RAM usage started off at 10 MB but it continued to rise as I continued browsing the web with it. The peak so far is 50 MB.
Slim Browser 4.12 (Build 18)
Performance: 3.5
Features: 4.5
Ease of Use: 3.5
Value for Money: 5
Appearance: 3
Final Rating: 3.925
Slim Browser is a great Internet Explorer based browser which lacks some modern IE features (like a built in source code viewer rather than using Notepad) but packs in some extras.
Slim Browser (FlashPeak)
Requires Windows 98 or higher and Internet Explorer 5 or higher (Windows only)
What are your thoughts about Slim Browser?
Meh. I don’t like it. It doesn’t look that good. You should’ve given the appearance a 1 or a 2.
Also, taken from SlimBrowser’s website…
“SlimBrowser is a tabbed multiple-site web browser software. It incorporates a large collection of powerful features…”
Every other popular browser is tabbed. It’s nothing special. It doesn’t even come close to powerful features when compared to Chrome, Firefox, or even IE. The only reason I would ever use this is because it’s small. Its small size and relatively uncluttered interface are pretty cool, as well as its skins. But it stills looks bad. I don’t think this browser can compete with the other popular ones.
The interface is extremely cluttered by default and since many of the features and menus are taken straight from IE, such as the main context menu, it seems like the small size is because many of the features are taken care of by Internet Explorer, which needs to be installed. Skins, such as the Vista2 I used, makes text impossible to read.
By the way, the extra features of SlimBrowser can mostly be available in other browsers through extensions such as IE7Pro for Internet Explorer.
May I interest you in CNET’s Review?