Marvin is a Features Author for Android Police. His media career began as an editorial assistant at a now-defunct print publication. He has since transitioned to digital media as an editor, attended technology events in over 10 countries, and earned his master's degree in journalism.
He enjoys film photography, outdoor running, and alternative coffee brewing during his leisure time.
I've been seeing lots of praise for Samsung Browser from several Samsung Galaxy users and colleagues. The reviews were so good that I was tempted to try it out myself, even though I don't own a Samsung phone.
Being the curious cat that I am, I decided to give Samsung Browser a shot. I wanted to see what the fuss was all about.
The test setup was simple: the Samsung Browser app on my non-Samsung phone. It was a recipe for success, with a minor setback.
Samsung Browser delivered a polished web experience that almost ousted my go-to browsers, except for one ecosystem-specific deal-breaker.
What makes Samsung Browser genuinely great
Samsung knows how to optimize its apps
Samsung Browser strictly follows the One UI mantra. It's clean and enables one-handed use with a bottom-centric layout. It's perfect for modern smartphone screens.
In fairness, other browsers like Brave and Vivaldi strongly encourage bottom-bar usage as well, but Samsung Browser turned this style into an art form.
This layout is turned on by default. The point is to make every item reachable during one-handed use.
For example, when I bring up the three-dot menu on the lower-right edge, I can access all the options with my right thumb. I don't have to stretch or take my left hand out of my pocket.
For a truly one-handed experience, place the address bar at the bottom. Go to Settings > Layout and menus, then switch on Show address bar at bottom.
Speed is another reason I considered migrating to Samsung Browser. When I heard others say it's faster than Chrome or Firefox, I didn't believe them at first. After I loaded Samsung Browser with my usual tab groups, I was impressed.
Samsung Browser was faster than my other mobile browsers. The difference was clear when I had several tabs open, and Samsung Browser maintained its smooth scrolling.
It was especially fast at loading complex websites. I didn't have to wait long for images, videos, and interactive elements like polls to load. It's even more impressive when I factor in the old midrange processor I have on my phone.
Finally, the customization is extensive. Besides moving the address bar to the bottom, I can also show the tab or bookmarks bar below web pages.
If that's not enough, I edited the bottom toolbar. By default, it shows the usual icons, such as home, tabs, and bookmarks, but I swapped them for other functions.
For instance, I added quick access to my history or secret mode (Samsung's equivalent of incognito mode). I found it useful to remove the back button since I use the side-swipe navigation gesture to return to the previous web page.
Although the main menu was well optimized with the most commonly used options, Samsung was nice enough to let me adjust it further.
I removed the functions I rarely used, including text size, dark sites, and desktop site. Deleting these options made the interface look even cleaner.
Samsung Browser looks simple on the outside, but is surprisingly customizable under the hood. Other mobile browsers spend so much time on advanced features that they neglect the basics.
Fragmented add-on experience is a deal-breaker
The only reason why I can't continue
Here's my issue with Samsung Browser on my non-Samsung phone: Full extension support is dependent on the Galaxy Store. To install add-ons, I'd need to download them through Samsung's proprietary app store.
Sounds simple enough, right? The problem is I can't download the Galaxy Store app without a workaround. Samsung's app store is exclusive to Galaxy devices, so outsiders can't access it.
Opening the add-ons page in Samsung Browser's main menu shows only one category: ad blockers. The Get More Add-ons option at the bottom is grayed out for non-Samsung phones like mine.
Selecting the add-ons category shows six ad blockers I can download. Nothing more, nothing less. When I pick any of them, I'm directed to Google Play, where I have to download the ad blockers separately.
Downloading any of the six apps places them in my launcher's app drawer. They don't automatically hide themselves within Samsung Browser.
Having separate apps for ad blockers undermines Samsung Browser's simplicity. While the browser is clean and minimalist, the extensions are not.
After downloading an ad blocker, I can activate it or leave it off in favor of another. The saving grace is that I can test-drive individual ad blockers without reinstalling them one by one.
Unlike Firefox's extensive list of add-ons on any Android device or Brave's built-in ad-blocking functionality, Samsung Browser's add-on implementation feels half-baked on non-Samsung devices.
Not only am I forced to use a select few ad blockers, but I also can't explore other extensions to improve the browsing experience.
For non-Samsung users like me, we're relegated to using Samsung Browser as-is out of the box. I can't do anything beyond customizing the menu items and user interface.
Samsung Browser will stay archived for now
Samsung made an excellent Android browser available to everyone. It's too bad it relies on Samsung devices to unlock its full potential.
I go back to Samsung Browser from time to time to enjoy a smooth browsing experience. Its mix of smooth scrolling, layout customization, and one-handed navigation beats any other mobile browser.
I'll definitely use Samsung Browser full-time when I own a Galaxy smartphone. In the meantime, I'll keep looking for its best features scattered across my other Android browsers.