Quick Links
Need to access crucial information in a location with bad network coverage? Violoncello makes low-bandwidth browsing a more bearable experience. It allows you to stay connected and load webpages even with a weak connection.
What Is Violoncello?
Violoncello is a mobile browser that renders websites and webpages in pure text, without images or tables. It is a text-based browser that ignores fonts, CSS, and JavaScript and displays only the content structure and layout in the web page’s HTML file.
Violoncello is only available on mobile platforms, such as Android and iOS. There are free and paid versions, with the paid version offering mainly customization features and allowing you to support the developer.
Text-based web browsers load pages faster and use less bandwidth than graphical browsers like Firefox and Chrome. Violoncello is similar to thew3m browser, ideal for weak connections on desktop devices.
While not as powerful as some desktop text-based browsers (it does not support text boxes, for example), Violoncello provides basic functionality for users who need to stay online with limited connectivity. It allows you to view webpages without waiting minutes for them to load.
Reasons to Use Violoncello
There are several reasons to use Violoncello, especially if you often face unreliable network conditions:
How Does Violoncello Work?
First, you must download the app from either thePlay Storeor theApp Store. Opening Violoncello for the first time leads to a home page with recently visited pages at the top, a prompt to upgrade to Premium, and the app version at the bottom.
Violoncello’s interface is fairly easy to use. The Search bar at the bottom allows you to search for a term or enter a URL, and you can access theMain Menuvia the icon to the left of the bar. From theMain Menu, you can reload the page, add/view bookmarks, navigate tabs, search pages to find text, share links, and print pages.
Clicking on Settings leads to a list of options that allows you to customize the browser’s interface to suit your taste. I’d suggest changing thedefault search engine to DuckDuckGoas it is less finicky about HTML browsing than Google. You can also enableFloating Top Buttonand be sure to leaveShow Site Navigationon.
Violoncello is not a perfect replacement for graphical mobile browsers like Chrome and Safari. Interaction-rich websites that rely on JavaScript (such as YouTube and Instagram) are mostly unusable. The Google homepage is also broken since text boxes don’t work.
However, Violoncello excels at browsing simpler, content-driven sites focusing on reading rather than interaction. It’s perfect for reading news articles and blogs or doing quick research when you need information but don’t require full web functionality. Violoncello’s strengths outweigh its limitations for users in low-network areas or those trying to conserve data.
