The Fat O Sings

According to my Google Analytics, only 1.49% of you will passionately care about this redesign. That is, of course, the minute percentage of people reading Brand New in the Opera web browser. I have long lost sense of which of the underdog browsers has the most street (geek) cred, if it is Opera, Camino or some other cleverly named browser, but its limited market share probably gives it enough cult status and it has been around since the mid 1990s, which is a feat in itself in such a competitive market. With the release of Opera 10, the browser is updating its logo.

A critique of the old Opera logo. Credit unknown.

The old logo, even for shiny web standards, was well below average with an unappealing plastic texture and an ill-conceived shadow as aptly noted in the graphic above. It is clear that the Opera logo had to maintain three-dimensionality and that it wasn’t looking to reinvent the wheel (nor the “O”) so the evolution is purely about execution within that realm. And under that context the redesign succeeds quite well. The shading is softer, the color is more vibrant and the shadow not only makes sense now but makes the “O” appear lighter. The new icon is credited to Norway based designer Oleg Melnychuk.

Thanks to JE Vasshaug for the tip.

john’s comment is:

There’s a web browser called Opera?

On Sep.01.2009 at 09:43 AM

Ethan Allen Smith’s comment is:

The hands-down, best part about the new icon:

It’s finally centered.

The old logo was off-center to the right to accommodate the horrendous shadow, so it never fit right in my dock. I don’t use it as my primary browser, but as a designer I keep most major browsers close at hand. My dock is a much happier place now.

On Sep.01.2009 at 09:47 AM

Skythe’s comment is:

Ive been using Opera for ever.
Can’t stand the Firefox hype it’s like Harry Potter.

The new O wins!

On Sep.01.2009 at 09:49 AM

Moeed’s comment is:

I don’t use the Opera web browser on a daily basis, but I have to say their ‘Unite’ feature is quite impressive.

As for the logo itself? No big deal. I guess Opera was just looking for an update rather than a full new branding, which is what they really need. In the end, its an O with a few gradients. Nothing special.

Why can’t they just put out, and develop a brand that works, on that won’t need to be redesigned every so often.

Opera’s 15th birthday should be coming around soon, or maybe the next big release of their browser, and I’m positive they will redesign yet again.

On Sep.01.2009 at 09:56 AM

Luke S’s comment is:

The new logo really improves on the old one. It was almost like the designer went crazy with all the effects Photoshop 6 had to offer. They reworked the logo just enough so the brand didn’t loose it’s identity.

On Sep.01.2009 at 09:58 AM

Dale Campbell’s comment is:

Huge improvement over the old. Well done Oleg!

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:01 AM

Ricky Salsberry’s comment is:

Centered! Will look so much nicer in my dock.

Opera is a decent browser.

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:02 AM

WMDunkin’s comment is:

I like Opera, its a great browser with a lot of nice extra features but sometimes it just bogs down for me. Given a few more years and come more popularity and it could be a major player. Nice logo redux!

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:06 AM

ocelot’s comment is:

kind of looks like an “on” button as well.. like it.

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:06 AM

Gabriele’s comment is:

New wins, but I don’t like it anyway.

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:09 AM

Stefan Minning’s comment is:

I think the “highlights” in the shadows are supposed to be caustics, a fancy thing in modern 3D renders where bright highlights get scattered back into the scene.

Not that it’s a very good idea to mimic that effect in a logo, mind you…

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:15 AM

Chad Kaufman’s comment is:

Some other resources, and screenshots, of Opera:

The Opera Experience

Mr. Jon Hicks

Don’t forget the Vid

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:22 AM

Jack Jennings’s comment is:

Thank god. A blight has been removed from earth.

Now they just need to do the same thing for the whole UI of the browser as well.

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:23 AM

Christopher’s comment is:

I believe Opera has a bigger overseas following — heck it autodownloads with both Japanese and English install instructions (of course, the Japanese are infamous for loving old web standards — Yahoo! is still enormous there.)

also Opera mobile browser is as good as you are going to get on a non-iPhone phone (and yes, there are some of… us… that still don’t have iPhones.

very nice update. and good to know it’s come out of beta and I can download the new version!

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:23 AM

Ian Storm Taylor’s comment is:

Definitely the new O.

And btw, I love the radio buttons on this site!

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:31 AM

josh’s comment is:

I dig the new O.

I use Opera when checking my stylesheets, but I could never actually add the icon to my dock. It drove me nuts every time I looked at it.

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:41 AM

Brendan’s comment is:

I like the redesigned logo. Even more after you pointed out the highlights on the shadow of the old one.

I’ve always tried to keep a copy of Opera on my computer, but it never takes over my system due to two critical factors (well, only one is critical I guess):

1) A lot of sites don’t support it, so you have to go to another browser anyways. This is a huge, unfortunate, and difficult to solve problem.
2) Don’t care for the native UI graphics. I really prefer integrated, particularly when I’m on my Mac. I had flipped between Firefox and Safari until FF finally had a Mac-looking UI, now I use it almost all the time.

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:44 AM

Mog’s comment is:

Is it just me, or is the new “O” from a different font (or drawn differently), too? It looks rounder.

All in all, a massive improvement, that will look much better on docks - and on sharper smartphone screens, which is sort of Opera’s niche right now anyway. (If any of you have Windows Mobile but are still using Pocket IE, you are _missing out._)

On Sep.01.2009 at 10:49 AM

Jon Hicks’s comment is:

Quite a snidey start to the article, especially when you obviously thought it was worthwhile covering!

To all those mentioning the UI - that’s been redesigned too!

On Sep.01.2009 at 11:03 AM

C Jones’s comment is:

Have you guys noticed that a lot of identities have been updated by “improving” their gradients and 3d ish effects. Audi’s rings comes to mind.

Is the software getting better? Or are better designers getting their hands on these poorly constructed gradient monsters?

Or are bad designers perfecting the ugly gradient technique to a point where it looks good?

On Sep.01.2009 at 11:17 AM

Covarr’s comment is:

I like almost everything about the new logo, except for one thing…

The new one seems wider and rounder. I really liked that the O was nice and slim in the old one.

On Sep.01.2009 at 11:37 AM

Rodrigo Müller’s comment is:

I totally dig the new O, it’s rounder and therefore more fit for an icon. nice redesign. not GREAT, but nice.

I used Opera a few years ago, but since I’m so dependant of Firefox’s add-ons and stuff it’s not a choice for me anymore. great browser though, really fast.

On Sep.01.2009 at 12:03 PM

Darrel’s comment is:

I agree 100% with Ethan Allen Smith. I don’t use Opera that much but without a doubt, the most annoying thing about it was that off-centered icon. Looked like the step-brother no one likes to admit they are related to sitting on the dock all off balance next to the IE and Firefox and Safari and Chrome balances spheres…

On Sep.01.2009 at 12:04 PM

Eric Guess’s comment is:

I quite like this updated “O”. My only gripe with it is when it sits in my Windows taskbar it looks like some sort of a warning symbol or error:

On Sep.01.2009 at 12:37 PM

G*’s comment is:

Much better, but I think they missed an opportunity to exaggerate that “O” and really make it sing.

On Sep.01.2009 at 12:38 PM

Richard Goodwin’s comment is:

Holy shit! The old one is way better. It is more character and is a better “O” than the new “O”.

On Sep.01.2009 at 12:54 PM

John McCollum’s comment is:

Overstock.com has a web browser?

On Sep.01.2009 at 12:59 PM

Matt’s comment is:

I don’t think it’s even a comparison for obvious reasons. If they have that small of a share in the market, how did they have the cash to do the redesign in the first place? But what do I know.

On Sep.01.2009 at 01:05 PM

Morgan19’s comment is:

>> Overstock.com has a web browser?

First thing I thought too, before reading the story.

On Sep.01.2009 at 01:11 PM

Armin’s comment is:

Nice article, more extensive logo critiques like this should be the norm. And the new version of the logo still is bad …

@john & co: Actually Opera is a quite capable browser. It’s especially popular on mobile platforms, for which they offer a commercial version as well.

On Sep.01.2009 at 01:22 PM

Pedro’s comment is:

I believe pretty much everyone will agree here, the new logo is so much better just because it’s centered. It looked awful in Mac OSX dock, it looked kind of strage in Windows quickstart too. Now it doesn’t ruin the kerning of my icons anymore, which is a great pleasure to my designer eyes.

I’m not sure if I like the bigger O itself. I certainly like the better executed emboss, highlights and etc, although I feel it still could be improved even more.

On Sep.01.2009 at 01:36 PM

Mario Ocon’s comment is:

I think the new logo is much better. I have the letter “O” as a logo as well. There is not much you can do with it. The “O” is tough to design to.

On Sep.01.2009 at 01:43 PM

Peter Hellberg’s comment is:

That is one beautiful icon! Opera has finally taken a place in my toolbox and the new icon is just icing on the cake, so to speak.

On Sep.01.2009 at 02:39 PM

Jeff Peppers’s comment is:

This new icon is passable but i always replace Opera’s icon with Jonas Rask’s SuMa 1 icon, though even it could be improved upon and is just too too busy.

Opera is a hideous browser until you heavily configure it, then it is really the best browser.

On Sep.01.2009 at 02:55 PM

Mark’s comment is:

It is a big improvement looks no longer web 2.0-ish.

Good job.

On Sep.01.2009 at 03:14 PM

Req’s comment is:

Mark (just above me), I’d say it’s more “web 2.0” than before. It’s got the light source at the top and the shadow at the bottom. I think the older version is more ’90s Photoshop’ with it’s bevel/emboss horridness.

I must say I’d never looked closely enough at it to notice the mistakes on the shadow. But I’ve gotta echo my appreciation for how it sits in my dock. Finally! Now I may bring it back to my dock and use it more prominently, (still as my second browser because I’m still not fond of the thumbnails of my favourite websites).

On Sep.01.2009 at 03:53 PM

Steven Hoober’s comment is:

> also Opera mobile browser is as good as you are going
> to get on a non-iPhone phone (and yes, there are some
> of… us… that still don’t have iPhones.

Leaving aside that Mobile Safari is not the end-all, be-all of mobile browsing, Opera Mini is not just popular. It’s insanely popular. It’s the most downloaded app ever. 25 million downloads, and it’s not even in the Apple app store.
http://www.intomobile.com/2009/08/27/opera-mini-becomes-most-downloaded-mobile-app-ever-and-its-not-on-the-appstore.html

Incidentally, Opera Mobile is something entirely different. Also from Opera, also for mobile phones, but not the same as Opera Mini.

On Sep.01.2009 at 04:00 PM

Gareth Coxon - Dot Design’s comment is:

Someone designed this? Surely someone who can use Photoshop just toned down the effects and came out with this? :-)

On Sep.01.2009 at 04:14 PM

Haro!’s comment is:

I think the icon is a big improvement. The browser itself is still a work in progress on OS X. Not to mention, at default it is quite ugly.

A bit off topic: Would anyone happen to know how to make it friendlier with Mac OS X keyboard shortcuts. Namely going to the top and bottom of the screen as I would in Safari, Firefox etc.

On Sep.01.2009 at 05:50 PM

Nico’s comment is:

I’m one of the 1.49%!

The new logo was a surprise today when I updated from the beta to the final release of Opera. Subtle changes that make it look much better.

And not that it bugged me a lot before, but yay, it’s centered now!

On Sep.01.2009 at 05:56 PM

abu’s comment is:

Well finally they fixed it.

Wonder why they didn’t tasked Jon Hicks for that.
Maybe he was too busy working on the app UI icons, and anyway it was a simple update job.

On Sep.01.2009 at 08:50 PM

JOlson’s comment is:

Opera is a very decent browser and the new logo is a HUGE improvement.

Opera also makes the browsers for Nintendo’s systems (Wii and DSi)

On Sep.01.2009 at 09:40 PM

olumi_day’s comment is:

Hooray for Opera! Finally my dock can return back to being perfectly kerned… hehe

On Sep.01.2009 at 11:55 PM

Bertje’s comment is:

New logo? When I go to Opera.com I see this: http://www.opera.com/bitmaps/mainmenu/all.png. Weird.

On Sep.02.2009 at 03:02 AM

Michael’s comment is:

Hell thanks the shadow’s gone. Totally agree with Ethan #2

On Sep.02.2009 at 03:30 AM

Bernd’s comment is:

hm, that big reddish thing still reminds me (forgive my language) of a big red swollen pussi.

On Sep.02.2009 at 04:41 AM

Adam Haase’s comment is:

O man.

Sorry about the joke but someone had to do it.

On Sep.02.2009 at 06:56 AM

Andrew Sabatier’s comment is:

I’m surprised that more people haven’t got the Opera vibe.

I haven’t looked back since I became accustomed to the cascading bookmark folder system. Over the years other browsers seem to have sneaked in the same feature while no one was looking.

The wand is pure login magic. And perhaps not as easily copied. The Firefox login system is passable but not nearly as elegant. All the updates on startup, dotted boxes on link hovers and the image load-up icons and borders remind me why I don’t use FireFox unless I really have to.

As for Safari (the only other real contender), it refuses to load tabs in the same window without holding down the command key. This is plain silly given that it was developed by an otherwise inspired Apple.

The old Opera icon is indeed clumsy and sits awkwardly in the Mac dock. The new slickly rendered O is most welcome, it’s a far better reflection of the Opera browser experience. The centred O icon now sits proud and without too much imagination looks like it could be singing, as Armin suggests.

Since Operalink went live, despite the odd geeky glitch, any doubts about Opera have been blown away. This is a great identity for a great browser that deserves mainstream appreciation.

Brav… O

A.

Permalink

On Sep.02.2009 at 07:38 AM

ker’s comment is:

@Moeed

Why can’t they just put out, and develop a brand that works, on that won’t need to be redesigned every so often.

Opera redesigns often? News to me. They’ve had the old icon for, what, nearly 10 years?

Opera’s 15th birthday should be coming around soon, or maybe the next big release of their browser, and I’m positive they will redesign yet again.

The 15th birthday has already passed, and they already redesigned the icon for Opera 10.

Maybe you should pay attention before spouting nonsense…

On Sep.02.2009 at 09:03 AM

ker’s comment is:

@Matt

If they have that small of a share in the market, how did they have the cash to do the redesign in the first place?

They are not a small player. They dominate the mobile browser market, and the desktop version makes up 1/3 of their total revenue. The company is profitable and has a huge pile of cash.

Opera has a 3% global market share in the desktop browser market, slightly ahead of both Safari and Chrome. In Europe it has 7-10% market share, and is bigger than Safari and Chrome put together.

On Sep.02.2009 at 09:16 AM

obse.’s comment is:

Opera rules.

On Sep.02.2009 at 10:35 AM

J. Aron’s comment is:

I guess from hideous to passable is nothing to sneeze at. It offers a much bigger benefit than the recent Firefox icon tweak.

On Sep.02.2009 at 01:04 PM

Pol’s comment is:

better, much better!

On Sep.02.2009 at 02:47 PM

smartlad’s comment is:

The primary duty of any trademark is to differentiate and identify. With regards to differentiation it too easily confused with a litany of other marks. The fact that so many on this discussion are consumed with the subjective details of this mark (ie: the drop shadows and highlights) is a pitiful commentary on the state of identity design.

It is not distinctive and communicates no idea of any kind…much like this thread.

On Sep.02.2009 at 03:16 PM

Darrel’s comment is:

@smartlad this is much more about user interface iconography. Yes, it’s also the brandmark, but the primary interaction for most users is going to be in the form of an small icon on a screen. And, as such, this update is quite successful. And the ‘O’, while simple, is definitely iconographic and has long represented Opera and as Pol’s screen shot shows, clearly differentiates itself from the other competition in context.

On Sep.02.2009 at 03:29 PM

Santa’s comment is:

I’ve always loved this browser. In fact Opera & Camino are my 2 browsers of choice. Opera had features that were way ahead of it’s time in earlier versions. I think it was even the first to implement tabbed browsing. And even with this new release the “mouse gestures” and “turbo compression mode” are features I haven’t seen yet in any browser. The new logo is a step forward. Glad to see them get rid of that ugly shadow version.

On Sep.02.2009 at 10:46 PM

Michael Kozakewich’s comment is:

I don’t like the way the solid red meets the dark red near the bottom, but the rest is good.

I never paid much attention to the Opera logo, but there was apparently some common discourse: The shadow was described as ‘the toilet seat’ by some.

Meanwhile, I’ve just downloaded Opera Mini for my phone, and it’s been truly amazing.
The desktop Opera browser is great, but there are really only a bare handful of people who try out different browsers. Most users stick to whatever they happened to hear about, or whatever was installed on their system (this includes Firefox, Internet Explorer, and Safari).

On Sep.03.2009 at 11:20 AM

Mongoose’s comment is:

It looks great small!

And that I think is one of the keys to the revision. The new opera logo looks very good in the tiniest of sizes, ditching the off-center/shadowiness for something that works for icons and other smallwork. Opera having such strength in the mobile market, that’s more important.

It’s better at the large size as well, where the teeny little problems Armin points out are indeed fixed. And it’s three-dimensional, more rounded, and looks sort of.. soft and rubbery and…

Oh god. It’s a Fleshlight. Now I’ll never unsee it.

Still, the O gets an A. Now simpler _and_ better.

—Mongoose

On Sep.03.2009 at 11:43 AM

BB’s comment is:

I got made fun of recently for using Opera (but really a person criticizing browser preference is the real joke). Now I feel more proud than ever.

On Sep.03.2009 at 01:08 PM

Bill Dawson (XK9)’s comment is:

Can somebody show me on a Google Map where the Land of Logos is located? Seems it’s a vast brightly lit place where the single light source is always directly overhead. The land is a barren white desert that features two surface conditions; one totally matte, the other surface is a white mirror that only reflects a small percentage of the object above it. A curious place.

On Sep.03.2009 at 08:10 PM

the macho man’s comment is:

I didn’t know Oprah had a web browser!

On Sep.04.2009 at 01:00 PM

Mike’s comment is:

I remember using Opera for like, a month after I ditched Netscape but before I realized using Internet Explorer would make my life easier (then came glorious Firefox…). The new logo is much improved; it reminds me of Mac OS’s icons, and I’ve always thought those were pretty.

On Sep.04.2009 at 08:45 PM

Manoj’s comment is:

So the best browser on earth just got better! Way to go!

On Sep.06.2009 at 04:43 AM

Opera User’s comment is:

I’m reading this website on Opera. The link to this blog was one of my first clicks after upgrading, and I thought to myself, maybe they will mention the changed Opera logo — that would be something. And you did! Thanks!

On Sep.08.2009 at 05:00 PM

rmc’s comment is:

The off-centered old “o” was particularly troublesome to look at in the dock. Not to mention that as a vowel, some odd things were starting to happen with Skype “s” and the Word 2004 “w” (sow? ows?) plus the alphabet soup of CS3.

Overall, much cleaner. Improvement.

On Sep.08.2009 at 09:45 PM

R. Bassett Jr.’s comment is:

I’ve been using Opera every day since Jan 2006. The new icon is a fat, bland red O that is as ugly as sin in both Windows XP and Windows 7 at 1600x900 resolution. I actively replace it with the Opera 9 icon, which has elegant tones and a more pleasing shape.

I can’t believe people actually like the new fat red blob. It looks like it was made in MS Paint circa 1992. Centered or not, it’s still an eye sore. Bleh…

On Oct.04.2009 at 02:13 PM

Kowalkowski’s comment is:

You’re so right with the “comedy of errors” in this Opera-logo. I must think about it everytime I see this logo in the dock on my desktop. Esp. the nooby-made shadow looks so bad.

On Jan.05.2010 at 08:18 AM

Dance Beats’s comment is:

You are right I think most people tend to share that same outlook.

On May.06.2010 at 08:09 PM