Do you use Opera instead of many other web browsers out there? Even though it is not the best browser you can use, Opera has a bunch of features that make it unique. The in-built VPN, the ability to control the look and feel of the browser are some of them. However, running based on the Chromium engine, Opera may not perform well enough on every system. Just like Google Chrome which uses the same skeleton, it can slow down at times. So, in this article, we are going to look at some of the most effective methods you can use to speed up Opera Web Browser.
1. Disable Unnecessary Features
Like we already mentioned Opera comes with a lot of features and functionalities to make it easier for the users to use the browser. But sometimes this can be a problem especially if you are running on low resources. So if you are experiencing a very slow web browsing experience while using Opera, you should look at the features you have enabled. The features such as wallpapers, messaging service integrations, the web player, etc. Can significantly impact the performance. So be sure to disable them if you are not using those features. You can do that by just going to the browser settings from the sidebar or the menu.
2. Remove Bookmarks
Bookmarks are very useful to keep track of the pages that you want to revisit. But it is not a place to store hundreds of web pages. If it piles up over time and reaches a big number, you should consider clearing them. It can significantly improve the performance of the Opera browser especially if you have hundreds of bookmarks unused. Instead of depending on the browser to store all those URLs, you can note them down on an external text file and use the browser for only the important bookmarks.
3. Use an Ad Blocker
It’s not hidden that ads can slow down the performance. Even though ads are a vital part of today’s internet, if it slows down your browsing experience, you can use an ad blocker to block them. There are several ad blocker services available. AdLock is such an easy ad blocker for Opera. You can simply install it on any of your devices running on Windows, Android, or iOS. It will block any ads displayed on the screen making your web browsing super-fast without ads utilizing the bandwidth.
4. Clear Browser History
Browser history can help you easily revisit any websites you visited in the past. But if you never cleared your browser history after installing Opera, chances are that it is huge by now. So clearing your browser history can also help a bit. You can clear the browser history by navigating to Settings > Privacy & Security > Clear browsing data. You may also clear the cookies and other site data if you no longer need them. There are also options to selectively clear this in case you want to keep some of them.
5. Disable Extensions
Browser extensions extend the functionality of the browsers to make them easier to use or add additional features. While this can be extremely useful for several needs, if you are no longer using a browser extension that you installed in the past, be sure to disable them. Opera extensions can impact the load speed of every single page you visit. So the fewer the number of extensions, the faster your page load. Especially if the extensions are built to analyze each web pages you visit, you should seriously consider disabling them either temporarily or permanently. To disable extensions, you can simply click on the sidebar and choose the Extensions option.
6. Stop using Opera VPN
If you are using the free VPN service provided by Opera inbuilt in the browser, and experiencing slow speeds, it is quite obvious. If you prefer speed over security, you should disable the free VPN service provided by Opera and depend on a premium VPN. Free VPNs always slow down the connection because of the number of clients simultaneously utilizing the server. In addition to that, there were some serious privacy concerns regarding the VPN services provided by Opera. So we strongly recommend you disable the Opera VPN and go for an alternative service if you need one.
7. Close Unused Tabs
If you are not using a tab anymore, just close it. The browsers running on the chromium engine are known to use resources at a large scale, especially the RAM. So if you have a lot of browser tabs open, chances are that your system is struggling to provide the performance it deserves. So while working on multiple tabs, if you no longer require a lot of them open, be sure to keep it to the minimum. This can seriously improve the performance of the overall web browser.
8. Enable Hardware Acceleration
Hardware acceleration is a very useful feature available on chromium-based web browsers. It utilizes the GPU of your system in order to enhance the speed of graphics-related processing. While there is a to explain the feature, it basically improves the speed of your browser. You can enable it by navigating to the Settings > Advanced > Browser section. Then scrolling down to the bottom. Under the System section, you will see a feature called “Use hardware acceleration when available“. Simply enable it and you are good to go.
We hope you were able to speed up Opera following the methods mentioned above. Happy browsing.