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Ask HN: When will we have mobile browser extensions and ad-blocking?

• icen 6y ago
  I have uMatrix and uBlock Origin on Firefox for Android. This has been available for a long time.
• pwg 6y ago
  Install Firefox. With Firefox you can install extensions, including uBlockOrigin, which will allow you to block the advertising popups.
• Normille 6y ago
  For several years, I've been running Yandex Browser on Android with uMatrix, uBlock Origin, HTTPS Everywhere, BItwarden [password manager] and Privacy Bedger. What are these "pop-ups" and "ads" you speak of? Yandex Browser is also Chromium based, so loads faster than Firefox and has an absolute killer text-reflow feature [something Firefox used to have but, in a fit of insanity, got rid of several years ago]. It also supports pretty much any extension from the Chrome Webstore you want to install [and the ones that don't one-click install you can usually sideload in 'Developer Mode']. Give it a go. Sometimes you've got to look further than the end of your nose for solutions to your problems!
  • gabrielsroka 6y ago
    Any concerns about it being Russian? I used to run Dolphin Browser, but I stopped -- there were some privacy concerns.
    • Normille 6y ago
      None whatsoever. I really don't see what difference it makes whether my browsing habits end up in a data silo in Russia [or even China], rather than the USA. In fact, given the choice, and even if I was up to no good, I'd PREFER the Russians or Chinese to be slurping my data, rather than any of the 'five eyes' nations. I think most three letter agency types are more interested in what their own citizens are up to, rather than worrying about what some nobody in a foreign country is doing.
• surround 6y ago
  This is a limitation of iOS. Android browsers can support extensions just fine. In fact, every browser on iOS is just a skin of Safari since the App Store doesn’t allow 3rd party browsers. Safari does have a “content blocking API,” but it’s far more limited than desktop extensions. People like to glorify Apple for being “privacy friendly,” but with Android you have the power and the tools to improve your privacy significantly over iOS. If you really need adblocking, I recommend AdGuard for iOS (which uses the content blocking API) and Pi-hole (for whole network DNS filtering). Good luck.
  • aerovistae 6y ago
    I use Android, I wasn't aware of this stuff.
    • surround 6y ago
      Then download Firefox or Firefox Preview and install the uBlock Origin extension. To block ads in other apps, use AdAway (for a rooted device) or Pi-hole.
• thescribbblr 6y ago
  Try edge in android, inbuilt adblocker and uses less battery
• Raed667 6y ago
  On Android you can get FireFox, with add-ons. I only need 2: - uBlock Origin: For the ads - Video Background Play Fix: Allows me to listen to Youtube without having the screen on.
• sigwinch28 6y ago
  If you are using a device which doesn't let you choose your extension or browser (e.g. iOS) I would recommend setting up a PiHole and WireGuard VPN server if you have the expertise. These can be spun up for a few dollars a month on a cloud provider, or perhaps even at home if you have a static IP allocation. Depending on your device (e.g. a recent iOS device) you can then set up your device to only tunnel DNS requests back to the Pi hole at either your home or server provider. Admittedly this is rather involved, but works for all apps and webpages which rely on good ol' DNS to phone home and fetch ads.
• dredmorbius 6y ago
  When mobile devices and browsers are provided by organisations with a moral opposition to advertising and marketing.
• xodice 6y ago
  Wipr works wonderful on macOS and iOS. NextDNS is also an option. I use both together on my Mac's and iOS devices. Wipr is one of the many content blockers available for Safari, be it iOS or macOS.
• colinbartlett 6y ago
  I’ve been using Purify on iOS since the content blocking APIs were released. It seems to do a great job, no complaints. Am I missing something?
  • gshdg 6y ago
    Nope. It’s just non-obvious to experiences desktop browser users because desktop browser ad blockers are extensions, not standalone apps. And Apple didn’t do the best job of publicizing the feature. I use Refine, fwiw.
• gabrielsroka 6y ago
  Brave for Android has an ad blocker. It's based on Chromium. Brave was founded by Brendan Eich, creator of JavaScript and formerly of Mozilla. https://brave.com https://brave.com
• The_rationalist 6y ago
  There exist one android chromium browser that supports any extensions https://github.com/kiwibrowser https://github.com/kiwibrowser
• jmstfv 6y ago
  My iOS setup: 1. Install Firefox Focus, which has a built-in content blocking capability. FF Focus only allows one tab at a time, which is mostly suitable for quick, throwaway tasks. It's not a browser if you want to have multiple tabs open or save bookmarks. To block Bad Things in Safari, go to Settings > Safari > Content Blockers (under General) > Allow Firefox Focus. In FF Focus, go to Settings > Enable Safari Integration. 2. Pi-hole (or NextDNS) to block spyware/malware on the DNS level. It's not a 100% replacement for uBlockOrigin (especially if you like maxing it out), but it is good enough.
• aed 6y ago
  Haven't seen 1Blocker mentioned yet, which is what I use on iOS: https://1blocker.com https://1blocker.com No complaints and for the reasons you mention, I can't imagine browsing on mobile without it.
  • dnh44 6y ago
    Yeah I use 1Blocker on safari for both iOS and macOS and I think it works pretty great.
• wholesale_error 6y ago
  Anybody tried Bromite.. It has inbuilt ad bocker and privacy invasive features. https://www.bromite.org/ https://www.bromite.org/
  • surround 6y ago
    I prefer Firefox, but Bromite is probably the most privacy friendly Chromium browser for Android.
• rotterdamdev 6y ago
  We do. It's called Firefox.
• deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
• uvw 6y ago
  On Android, I have rooted my phone and installed adaway. It adds /etc/hosts entries to block ads. I haven't seen ads in a long time. I also use Firefox with unlock sometimes. On iOS, you could use a different DNS server to block ad domains. https://adguard.com/en/adguard-dns/overview.html https://adguard.com/en/adguard-dns/overview.html
• kleer001 6y ago
  I'm on Android and use Blockada. It's not a browser plug in, but a local pi-hole like service for filtering all content. https://blokada.org/index.html https://blokada.org/index.html