Why is Safari measuring download speeds more than twice as fast as Firefox
I recently signed-up for Gigabit speed internet with Comcast. On my desktop Mac, Firefox measures download speeds of 1.2 Gbps or greater. When my Macbook Pro 6.2 (Mid 2010) 15" laptop runs the same test, it only gets 380 to 490 Mbps. (Running the same test on the same network, same LAN, same switch using "fast.com".)
When I switch to Safari on the laptop, it matches Firefox on the desktop unit, and runs fast.com downloads at 1.2+ Gbps. (All testing was done on "fast.com.'
Both desktop and laptop are running High Sierra 10.13.6. Both Firefox versions are 61.0.2. I do have a lot more Ram in the desktop, but that does not explain how Safari can run fast.com downloads more than twice as fast as Firefox... MacBook Pro 8Gb ram, 2.8Mhz, 510GB of SSD
I HAVE tried running SafeMode on Firefox, without effect.
Todas las respuestas (5)
It is possible that, for whatever reason, Firefox on your laptop is using a different server to test from than the other browsers. I wouldn't worry too much about it, those tests are subjective anyway
Thanks, but I forced the use of the same server, i.e., Comcast in Seattle...
Tyler Downer said
It is possible that, for whatever reason, Firefox on your laptop is using a different server to test from than the other browsers. I wouldn't worry too much about it, those tests are subjective anyway
I'm not sure then. You can create a new profile to test there. Profile Manager - Create, remove or switch Firefox profiles
Tyler Downer said
I'm not sure then. You can create a new profile to test there. Profile Manager - Create, remove or switch Firefox profiles
OK... That made a difference. With a clean Firefox Profile (default for everything) it is no longer a full order of magnitude in speed difference. More like 650Mbps for Firefox and 1.0Gbps for Safari. I retested my MacPro Desktop (with a faster processor and a boatload of RAM) and it also shows a speed difference, just not quite as significant - 900Mbps for Firefox, and 1.3Gbps for Safari.
This subject is becoming OBE anyway as I just bought a 15" 2017 MacBook Pro to replace my Mid 2010 model.
Thanks for the suggestions.
Hi, most people that are into downloading move from stock browser to programs that will do that with large speed increases : https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/search/?platform=mac&q=download Most are now standalone as the add-on no longer works in Quantum.
Right Click copy URL location Paste, Start. iGetter for one, is old but works great. IDM which is in the add-ons URL but is also a Stand alone FDM is all so both Free Download Manager