So, my next smartphone will be iPhone, even if I prefer open source. AdBlockers are just too important. Not only they protect your privacy, but they also stop some malware programs that use ads for spreading. And don't Google & Amazon already make 30% from app sales?
That’s not about adblocking but about using vpns for a purpose that is not a virtual private network. The general adblock system works in Safari as well as other apps that use web views though.
If we're talking about non-VPN solutions, then Android continues to allow several ad-blocking solutions such as browsers with it built in, or browsers like Firefox which run extension systems which support popular blockers like Ublock Origin.
Does iOS support custom browsers like Firefox running their own engine and extension systems? They never did when I was a user.
I was under the impression that Firefox Focus blocked ads in some other apps as well but that doesn’t appear to be the case indeed, at least not in Chrome.
Firefox Focus ships with a content blocker extension, I think, so it can block ads in Safari and third-party apps using SFSafariViewController. Chrome uses a webview, so the content blocker won't work there.
Everyone basically wants to exert just enough elbow grease to get something for free rather than contribute to the world they say they believe in.
"If you need ads to make money then your business should fail" is a common thing you'll hear among people who continue using sites/apps that depend on ads instead of investing in ones that don't.
If HNers can't even be bothered, then how is anyone else? We're going to be stuck in this status quo for a long time and the only survivors will be the large businesses that can afford it until the main websites people use are about as varied as our ISPs, maybe even the same.
Which of these do you prefer? I used fdroid but haven't installed a system ad blocker. I just use firefox focus which does a good job of preventing trackers and most ads but it's not perfect.
I have run AdAway for years. It works great and has great features such as auto-update of sites. It also lets you whitelist or blacklist additional domains locally.
Plus Samsung doesn't support is products. Last year I got a critical security update labeled july.. In December. And they have a bunch of garbage custom apps. Great hardware, poor service
Check out https://blokada.org/index.html . Creates a VPN tunnel for your traffic and routes through a host file. Even let's you set name servers. Can't do that on iPhone necessarily. Root not required!
The problem is that on an iPhone you are locked into those
applications in the Apple App store (unless you jailbreak).
On an Android device, you can install 3rd party applications
directly. AdGuard, for example, has a stand alone method
for direct downloads.
I'm guessing you're downvoted because your implied solution is no better (and arguably worse) than parent's "unless you jailbreak". Regardless, it's not a solution for "normals":
1. Download and install Xcode.
2. Find the source code for the application you want. You know GitHub works, right, Grandma?
3. Compile, sign, and deploy to your device. Assuming it built without error, that is.
4. Aww, shit, Apple's signing process is still a hot mess. Best get to Googlin' on those validation errors!
Generally, those that go down this path use a much more streamlined solution like downloading an IPA file and using something like Cydia Impactor (http://www.cydiaimpactor.com) to sign and install the app. It least, I think that that's easier than finding a kernel bug in iOS…
…so it uses the VPN API, just like the apps that have been banned from the App Store/Play Store/Appstore. Adaway requires root because it modifies /etc/hosts.
Apple bans system-wide adblock as well. Mobile Safari ships with adblock IIRC but that doesn't help with all the other random apps that want to show you ads. Meanwhile, despite Google & Amazon's changes, you can still install any adblock you want on an Android device without using a computer or paying for a signing key as you'd need to on an Apple device by just downloading the APK using Chrome and installing it directly. Alternatively, you could install an alternative app store like F-droid and then install & upgrade adblock apps through there.
I'm confused. Doesn't the article say that Apple similarly prohibits ad blockers from their app store? And besides, installing a "third party" apk on an Android phone is trivial, and there are third party "stores" like F-Droid which offer a myriad of open source apps. I seem to recall that Apple makes the installation of third party apps relatively more difficult. I have not used an iPhone in quite some time, so I feel that I must be missing something.
Apple also blocks VPN-based adblockers from their appstore, and unlike Android you cannot easily sideload apps on iOS.
There's technically a way to do it, but you need to plug your phone into your computer and re-push them every 7 days, unless you pay $99/year for a developer license. Or jailbreak, of course, which has its own problems.
It is, but system-wide ad blocking is disabled by default. You need to manually add filters subscriptions or hosts files in order to get it back. Not that it's much of a problem, though.
