Browser Wars: Opera Claims 50 Percent Battery Efficiency Over Chrome

Can a browser help improve laptop battery life? Opera claims it can help users get 50 percent more battery life from their computers.

The claims Opera made was targeted at Google Chrome, which is the most popular browser. Opera on the other hand is the least popular, if user percentages are any indication. The claims may seem tall but Opera says it has included a now power-saver mode in its browser that can be activated when a laptop is unplugged from a power source.

How does Opera achieve what it claims? According to The Verge, reducing memory consumption of background tabs, pausing unused plug-ins and by reducing the frame rate on video playback. The tests were conducted thrice on a Lenovo machine before announcing the results. Opera also admitted that the power-saver mode features an ad-blocker that further lowers power consumption. The company also said the power-saver mode wakes CPU less often.

"We are the first major browser to include a dedicated power saving mode, designed to extend your laptop battery life by up to 50% compared with, for example, Google Chrome," Opera's VP, Engineering Services Paweł Miniewicz said. "Depending on your type of hardware, it can mean several hours more browsing before you need to recharge your laptop."

The tests were conducted on machines running windows. It is not known how the power-saver mode will function on devices running other operating systems. Besides power saver, Opera also announced it was integrating VPN feature into private browsing.

"After the initial developer release of the integrated VPN feature in our Opera browser, we got tons of positive feedback and suggestions from you. One of the most common requests we heard was to make it easier to browse with some websites in VPN mode, while at the same time keep browsing other websites with VPN turned OFF. We also realized many people really wanted to use our browser VPN in combination with private browsing," Miniewicz added.