Opera Archive

Hindenburg alleged that when the Opera browser continued losing users (due to competition from Google and Apple), the company shifted gears to building mobile apps that provided predatory short-term loans. The interest rates on those loans ranged from 365-876% per year, and loan terms from 7-29 days. Opera also falsely advertised longer loan terms and lower interest rates in the app descriptions, because the Google Play Store had rules against predatory loan services. The loan apps specifically targeted customers in Kenya, India, and Nigeria. Hindenburg also confirmed through user reports and a former employee that two of the apps, OKash and OPesa, asked for permission to the phone contacts during the setup process. The service would then start sending threatening messages to the user’s contacts when a borrower was late on their payments. The issue was also covered by local media prior to Hindenburg’s report. The money from these loan apps amounted to 42.5% of Opera’s revenue by mid-2019. Yes, almost half of Opera’s revenue came from extracting money from people in developing countries with false advertising and direct harassment. ↫ Corbin Davenport As if this wasn’t horrible enough, Opera also pushed the usual crypto and NFT scams, and is now chasing that “AI” high by adding spicy autocomplete to its Chromium skin. Much like Brave – good people don’t let friends use Brave – Opera is just a veneer around shady business practices, and you just shouldn’t use this garbage. Just use Firefox.

It's great to see Opera back to making interesting browsers, even if the features specified aren't exactly my thing.

I wonder what Opera really has to offer at this point - and I don't mean that as in, what does it have to offer as a browser to us as consumers, but what does it have to offer as a takeover target. I'm assuming the days of Opera Mini - which did well on things like the Wii - are over, so what's the package, here?

Very interesting feature - but I'll be interested in real-world tests and benchmarks.

After the release of the desktop version of the new Opera - based on Chrome and the WebKit-fork Blink - it has now made its way to Android. It's available free of charge in the Play Store for both tablets and smartphones.

Opera 15, the brand new version of Opera based on Chromium and Blink, has been released today. I'm still missing a bookmarks bar and a bookmark import feature. Other than that, I'm really liking Opera 15. I hope they bring those two features back soon, because I cannot use a browser without them.

The new WebKit Opera for Android has been released. "Opera 14 for Android is built on top of Chromium 26, with a total overhaul of the UI in native code, making it fit well with the latest Android design guidelines. Go get the build from Google Play or point your browser to m.opera.com, and give it a spin!"

"Opera Software announced a new and retooled version of their browser in February, and demonstrated it during Mobile World Congress. The Opera browser beta is live in the Play Store. It's a free download for just about any Android device, so get to it." The first Opera browser with WebKit.

This is actually pretty big news - both exciting and tragic at the same time. Opera has revealed Opera Ice, its next mobile browser, to PocketLint. This new browser represent a big shift in both user interface as well as rendering engine, since it has a new, unique interface, as well as a new rendering engine... New to Opera, that is, as it's a WebKit-browser.

I'm not sure if such a thing exists anymore (what, with both Firefox and Chrome doing the release-all-the-time thing), but browser season 2012 has been opened! Opera 12 has just been released, bringing with it all sorts of updates and improvements. She may not be the most popular of the pack, but she sure has the most loyal fanbase.

"Opera 11.50 introduces a new and novel type of browser extension: Speed Dial extensions. Instead of handy thumbnails and links to your top sites, you can embed your Speed Dial with extensions that keep you updated - instantly - on what is happening around the Web." Other cool stuff includes more updates to the interface, password synchronisation between your Opera installations, and lots under-the-hood stuff.

Jon S. von Tetzchner has been with Opera for a long time - in fact, he co-founded the browser maker back in 1995, and led the company to great success; the desktop version may play a niche role, the various mobile versions surely do not. Today though, he has announced he will be leaving the company due to differences with the board and management.

"Opera has officially announced its much-loved web browser will be appearing on Sony TVs and Blu-ray players . There's no specific details, but it given its low-key presence at CES a few weeks ago (Sony Insider grabbed a video of it in action on the show floor -- embedded after the break -- unfortunately hampered by slow connection speeds) it will spread at least across the company's 22 new connected HDTVs."

Opera 11 has been released. "Tab stacking is a better way to organize your open tabs. Simply drag one tab on top of another to create a stack. Extensions help you personalize your browser and enhance what Opera can do. With the flick of your wrist, mouse gestures let you navigate back and forwards, open new pages, close tabs and so much more. In Opera 11, you now have a handy visual guide to the wonders of mouse gestures. We changed the address bar, so you can make better sense of the security levels of the sites you visit. Opera 11 now displays a clear badge indicating the security level and allowing immediate, one-click access to security and trust information about the site."