Web Browser Grand Prix VIII: Chrome 16, Firefox 9, And Mac OS X

Java And Silverlight Performance Benchmarks

GUIMark Java

Firefox and Chrome take the lead for Java performance in Windows 7, both earning close to 40 FPS. Opera earns a solid third-place finish at nearly 34 frames per second. Safari and IE9 bring up the rear at just over 32 FPS. All five Windows browsers score a perfectly playable 30+ FPS.

On the other hand, the four Mac OS X browsers only score in the 20 FPS range. Opera is the first-place finisher with a score that barely exceeds 20 FPS. Safari earns exactly 20 FPS to place second. Google Chrome comes in third at just under 19 FPS, and Firefox finishes last, right under 18 FPS.

Encog Silverlight

The Encog Silverlight Benchmark scores are close. But this time it's Opera that takes the lead in Windows. Firefox comes in second place, IE9 places third, Chrome earns fourth, and Safari winds up in fifth.

The placing changes significantly in Mac OS X, with Safari coming in first, followed by Opera, then Chrome, and then Firefox. The OS X scores are only about half of what we've seen in Windows. Remember, shorter bars are better here.