If BB, safari and chrome are all based off webkit how can there be performance differences if they are all using the same engine? Assuming these 3 browsers were run on the same hardware shouldnt they all perform very similarly?
Webkit is a layout engine. The actual rendering process is up to the browser developer. Faster rendering results in a faster browser. Javascript is also included in browser speed and is completely separate again.
3 different browsers using Webkit should all look similar when displaying the same page (though not identical) but speed can vary greatly.
Mike has it right. I greatly prefer the stock Android browser on both my Nexus 7 and Galaxy Nexus over CChrome. It is faster and smoother loading pages, scrolls both more quickly and more smoothly, and renders everything more quickly. It has much more to it than just webkit.
