Browsers on iPhone could be significantly faster if Apple eased its grip on WebKit. Microsoft engineers have published benchmark results showing that a Chromium-based research prototype of Edge using its own rendering engine scores 28.6% higher than Safari on Apple's own Speedometer 3.1 test on iOS. The findings reignite the debate over browser competition on mobile devices.
Benchmark Results
Kyle Pflug, group product manager for the Microsoft Edge Web Platform, released preliminary results on Monday. The Blink-based prototype built with Apple's BrowserEngineKit framework scored 49.27 on Speedometer 3.1 versus Safari's 38.3. It also outperformed Safari on JetStream 3 JavaScript benchmark by 13.1% (306.35 vs. 270.9) and on MotionMark 1.3.1 graphics rendering by 2.1% (4,773.52 vs. 4,673.68). Pflug emphasized that this is a research prototype, not a finished product, and the numbers are from his personal device rather than lab conditions.
Sponsored Protocol
The WebKit Monopoly
Apple requires all browsers on iOS to use WebKit, the engine powering Safari, meaning browsers like Chrome and Firefox on iPhone are effectively reskinned Safari instances. The EU's Digital Markets Act theoretically changed that in March 2024, requiring Apple to allow alternative browser engines through BrowserEngineKit. Yet more than two years later, no browser maker has shipped an alternative engine on iOS. Companies cite technical barriers and the requirement to publish such browsers as entirely separate apps from their existing WebKit-based versions.
Consumer Cost
Open Web Advocacy told The Register the results illustrate a 17-year cost to consumers. The group called on the European Commission to open a specification proceeding instructing Apple precisely how to remove barriers to alternative engines. Restricting browser engines, they argue, allows Apple to limit what the mobile web can do and keeps businesses dependent on native apps and App Store rules.
Sponsored Protocol
This situation parallels other sectors, as discussed in our article on missed industrial opportunities in luxury robot lawn mowers. Meanwhile, innovations in multi-agent coordination, like Stanford's DeLM, show how decentralization can outperform centralized systems.
For more on browser engines, see the Wikipedia entry on WebKit.
Source: https://www.macrumors.com/2026/06/17/webkit-rule-costs-ios-users-browser-performance
