The 2014 Readers' Choice Awards Winners: Web Browsers

By Scott Orgera

Web Browsers Expert

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2014 Readers' Choice Awards Winners: Web Browsers

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2014 About.com Readers' Choice Awards - About.com

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Updated April 13, 2016.

In early 2014, About Web Browsers participated in the About.com Readers' Choice Awards. This was the fifth time the Web Browsers site partook in the festivities, with readers choosing from five finalists in each of the eleven categories. Ranging from Best iPad Browser to Best Google Chrome Theme, the browser portion of the awards offered up something for Web surfers on all platforms.

After an intense one month voting period that spanned parts of February and March, the polls were closed and votes were tallied to determine a winner in each category.

We appreciate everyone that took part in the awards process this year, from the readers who voted to the finalists themselves, and are proud to present the winners of the 2014 About.com Readers' Choice Awards: Web Browsers. Click Next to view the results!

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Best Major Desktop Browser

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2014 About.com best desktop browser - About.com

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The Best Major Desktop Browser category featured some of the biggest in the business, each a household name with a strong share of the overall market. While Google Chrome supporters made their presence known, in the end the victor was last year's reigning champion - Mozilla Firefox. With 39% of the vote, coincidentally the same percentage as in 2013, Firefox holds on to the crown for another year.

This is Firefox's third victory in five years in the Best Major Desktop Browser category.

Final Voting Results

*Firefox - 39%
Chrome - 30%
Opera - 16%
Internet Explorer - 10%
Safari - 3%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Firefox

2012 Winner: Opera

2011 Winner: Firefox

2010 Winner: Opera

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Best Android Browser

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The Best Android Browser category featured finalists from some of the industry's major players such as Google and Mozilla. When all was said and done, however, it was the reigning champion who stole the show once again. With a whopping 93% of the vote, Maxthon Cloud Browser blew away the competition for the second year in a row. While last year's margin of victory was impressive, About.com readers showed even more love for the multi-platform browser in 2014.

Congratulations to our 2014 Best Android Browser, Maxthon Cloud Browser!

Final Voting Results

*Maxthon Cloud Browser - 93%
Chrome - 2%
Dolphin Browser - 1%
Firefox - 1%
Puffin - 1%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Maxthon Cloud Browser

2012 Winner: UC Browser

2011 Winner: N/A

2010 Winner: N/A

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Best iPad Browser

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The Best iPad Browser category featured both free and paid finalists that run on the popular Apple tablet, including its default Safari browser. For the second year in a row, the winner in this category ran away with it from day one.

Congratulations the the 2014 winner of Best iPad Browser, Maxthon Cloud Browser!

Final Voting Results

*Maxthon Cloud Browser - 86%
Chrome - 4%
Opera Mini - 4%
Safari - 3%

Dolphin Browser - 2%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Maxthon Cloud Browser

2012 Winner: Opera Mini

2011 Winner: Safari

2010 Winner: N/A

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Best iPhone/iPod touch Browser

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2014 About.com best iphone browser - About.com

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Unlike the Best iPad Browser category, the battle for iPhone/iPod touch supremacy was a tight one until the final day. When the dust finally settled it was Google Chrome at the top of the pile, with 2013 winner Dolphin Browser coming in a close second. Fans of Safari, Atomic Web Browser and even Perfect Web Browser cast their ballots as well, but in the end it wasn't enough to top the mighty Google.

Congratulations to Google Chrome, 2014's Best iPhone/iPod touch Browser.

Final Voting Results

*Chrome - 33%
Dolphin Browser - 26%
Safari - 16%
Atomic Web Browser - 15%
Perfect Web Browser - 7%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Dolphin Browser

2012 Winner: Opera Mini

2011 Winner: Opera Mini

2010 Winner: N/A

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Best Overall (Non-Security) Add-On

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2014 About.com best overall add-on - About.com

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Traditionally one of our more hotly contested categories, Best Overall Add-On has been dominated the past two years by an online shopping tool with a twist. Reigning champion Booly jumped out to an early lead and never looked back, finishing with almost two-thirds of the overall vote. Coming in a distant second was FlashGot Mass Downloader, but none of the other finalists really stood a chance once again.

Congratulations are in order for Booly, 2014's Best Overall Add-On.

Final Voting Results

*Booly - 62%
FlashGot Mass Downloader - 10%
Flagfox - 9%
Tab Mix Plus - 9%
Lightning Newtab - 7%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Booly

2012 Winner: PriceBlink

2011 Winner: Adblock Plus

2010 Winner: Adblock Plus

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Best Privacy/Security Add-On

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2014 About.com best security add-on - About.com

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The Best Privacy/Security Add-On category saw a lot of action this year, especially over the final week of voting. When the polls closed, however, our readers chose WOT as their add-on of choice when it comes to staying safe on the Web. A 2012 winner and third-place finisher last year, WOT defeated some tough competition including defending champion Adblock Plus.

Congratulations to Web of Trust, 2014's Best Privacy/Security Add-On!

Final Voting Results

*WOT (Web of Trust) - 49%
Adblock Plus - 25%
Click & Clean - 21%
NoScript Security Suite - 2%
Self-Destructing Cookies - 1%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Adblock Plus

2012 Winner: WOT (Web of Trust)

2011 Winner: NoScript

2010 Winner: NoScript

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Best Small Market Desktop Browser

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There isn't much that can be said here that the final voting statistics don't already state very clearly. For the fourth year in a row, Maxthon has won the Best Small Market Desktop Browser category. The difference this year, however, is that Maxthon Cloud Browser virtually annihilated the other finalists at the polls.

Pulling off the Readers' Choice Awards hat-trick by taking home the crown in three different categories in 2014, let's congratulate Maxthon Cloud Browser for once again being named Best Small Market Desktop Browser!

Final Voting Results

*Maxthon Cloud Browser - 97%
Avant Browser - 1%
Tor Browser - 1%
Torch Browser - 0%
SlimBoat - 0%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Maxthon Cloud Browser

2012 Winner: Maxthon

2011 Winner: Maxthon

2010 Winner: K-Meleon

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Best Browser Theme

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The race in this year's Best Browser Theme category was too tough to call, even up to the final hours of voting. When the smoke cleared and the votes were tallied, it was a Chrome theme that takes you away to a breathtaking nature scene that ended up the winner.

Congratulations to Beautiful Landscape, our readers' choice as the 2014 Best Browser Theme.

Final Voting Results

*Beautiful Landscape (Chrome) - 33%

Blue RP7 (Opera) - 27%
Sunset Over Water (Firefox) - 22%
Into The Mist (Chrome) - 16%
Love Smoke (Chrome) - 0%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Blue RP7 (Opera)

2012 Winner: Z-1 Glass (Opera)

2011 Winner: Z-1 Glass (Opera)

2010 Winner: NFL's Indianapolis Colts: Official Football Boom!

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Best User Script

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One of our more interesting categories, and one that's been with us since the beginning in 2010, contained such a wide array of finalists from a functionality standpoint that it's a shame we cannot crown more than one victor. Our winner this year is the defending champion Download YouTube Videos As MP4, who took home exactly half of the vote.

Congratulations to Download YouTube Videos As MP4, 2014's Best User Script.

Final Voting Results

*Download YouTube Videos As MP4 - 50%
Social Fixer for Facebook - 32%
YousableTubeFix - 10%
Rapidshare Links Checker - 3%
The Cavern Links Checker - 3%

*denotes winner

2013 Winner: Download YouTube Videos As MP4

2012 Winner: Social Fixer

2011 Winner: PS Wall Scrubber

2010 Winner: YouTube HD Ultimate

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Best Google Chrome App

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One of two new categories featured in this year's awards, Best Google Chrome App contained finalists from a wide assortment of genres. While the popular Angry Birds was the early favorite, our inaugural winner is challenging puzzle game Entanglement Web App.

Congratulations to the folks at Gopherwood Studios, as Entanglement Web App is 2014's Best Google Chrome App.

Final Voting Results

*Entanglement Web App - 52%

Webcam Toy - 27%
Evernote Web - 9%
Angry Birds - 6%
Pixlr-o-matic - 4%

*denotes winner

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Best Windows Phone Browser

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Last but not least, Best Windows Phone Browser is a new category that featured a diverse mix of browsers available on the Windows Phone platform. What was expected to be a tight race ended up in a landslide, with China's UC Browser taking top honors by garnering 79% of the final vote.