Microsoft debuts ad-blocker in Edge for Android
The most recent version of Microsoft Edge for Android includes built-in ad-blocking functionality that users of the web browser may enable.
Microsoft released Microsoft Edge, a new web browser for Windows 10 when it released the first version of Windows 10 to the public.
Edge did not support extensions by default but launched support for extensions in 2016. While Microsoft Edge does support extensions, the overall count of extensions available for the browser is quite low.
Microsoft revealed that it planned to release mobile versions of Edge for Android or iOS in 2015 but it took the company more than two years to release the first preview version for mobiles. The mobile version did not support extensions when it was released and it does not support extensions up to this day.
Edge for Android with Content Blockers
Android users who run Microsoft Edge on their devices as a browser or the browser may have noticed a new content blocking feature in the browser recently.
The new feature is not showcased in any way by Microsoft after the update and users need to visit the Settings to find it. There users find the new Content blockers section to enable and manage the ad-blocking functionality of the browser.
Microsoft did integrate Adblock Plus into Edge natively as the content blocker in the most recent version of the mobile browser.
You can enable the content blocker in the following way:
- Tap on the three dots in the Microsoft Edge interface to display the menu.
- Select Settings from the menu.
- Scroll down to content blockers and tap on the option.
- Edge displays only Adblock Plus as an option right now. You can toggle it on right there to enable it.
Once you have enabled Adblock Plus in Edge, advanced options are listed to configure the content blocker. The available options are limited to managing a whitelist and disabling acceptable ads.
The full Adblock Plus extension offers more functionality than that such as options to load additional lists to block other types of content automatically.
The implementation of Adblock Plus in Microsoft Edge mobile blocks advertisement automatically. The feature gives it an edge over Chrome which does not block ads (other than those ads that get blocked because they are flagged for abusive ad experiences) or support extension. Firefox and other mobile browsers do support extensions or come with content blocking options included.
Microsoft's implementation leaves room for improvement and speculation. Since the option in the menu is called content blockers, it is quite possible that Microsoft plans to add other content blocking solutions to Microsoft Edge that users could enable.
The Adblock Plus solution is quite basic at this point in time as it gives you only two options (whitelist and disable acceptable ads) and it would be useful if Microsoft would improve the implementation in future versions of the browser.
Now You: What is your take on Microsoft integrating content blocking natively in Edge?
Thanks for the tip Martin.
It is for these kinds of posts that I follow GHacks.
What’s up with the generic comment, are you a bot?
2G?
Where on the planet is that still in use? I was forced to give up using my RAZRV3 years ago because 2G was phased out by AT&T.
Everywhere 3G has been turned off and you don’t have LTE coverage, and believe me there are many developed countries where this is the case and if it weren’t for 2G you wouldn’t even be able to make a phone call.
Maybe I missed it, but I don’t believe tha term “2G” is in the article. Perhaps you are referring to “AGM G2”??
@Martin
Your website has gone insane.
When I the post button I then saw my comment posted on a different article page. When I opened this article again, it is here.
@Tachy @Martin Brinkmann
” Your website has gone insane. ”
Same here. Has happened several times.
@Tachy,
@Martin P.,
For over two weeks now,
I’ve been seeing “Comments” posted by subscribers appearing in different, unrelated articles.
https://www.ghacks.net/windows-11-update-stuck-fixed-for-good/#comment-4572991
https://www.ghacks.net/windows-11-update-stuck-fixed-for-good/#comment-4572951
For the time being,
it would be better to specify the “article name and URL” at the beginning of the post.
@tachy a lot of non-phone devices with a sim in them rely on 2G, at least here in europe.
Usually things reporting usage or errors/alarms on something remote that does not get day to day inspection in person. They are out there in vast numbers doing important work. Reliable, good range. The low datarate is no problem at all in those cases.
3G is gone or on its last legs everywhere, but this stuff still has too much use to cancel.
Anyhow, interesting that they would put that in. I can see the point if you suspect a hostile 2G environment (amateur eavesdroppers with laptop, ranging up to professional grade MITM fake towers while “strangely” not getting the stronger crypto voip 4G because it is being jammed, and back down to something as old ‘stingray’ devices fallen into the wrong hands).
But does this also mean that they have handled and rolled out a fix for that nasty 4G ‘pwn by broadcast’ problem you reported earlier this year? I had 4G disabled due to that, on the off chance that some of the local criminals would buy some cheap chinese gear, download a working exploit and probe every phone in range all over town in the hope of getting into phones of the police.
>”While most may never be attacked in stingrays, it is still recommended to disable 2G cellular connections, especially since it does not have any downsides.”
The downside would be losing connectivity. I spend a lot of time way out in the countryside where there’s often no service or almost none. My network allows 2G, and I need it sometimes. I have an option on the phone to disable 2G, I may do that when I’m in the city and I have good 5G connectivity, but not out in the country.
I would imagine that the stingray exploits, like most of the bad things in this world, are probably things you will run into in the crowded big cities.
I stopped using it in a mobile (Wi-Fi line) environment, so I’m almost ignorant of the actual situation,
But the recent reality in Japan makes me realize that “the infrastructure of the web is nothing more than a papier-mâché fiction”.
https://www.ghacks.net/2023/08/17/google-chrome-to-enable-https-first-by-default-for-all-users/#comment-4572402
It is already beyond the scope of what an individual can do.
What we should be aware of is the reality that “governments and those in power want to control the world through the Web”, and efforts to counter (resist and prevent) such ambitions are necessary.
Why do you want people to disable the privacy features? Hmmmmm?
Now You: do you plan to keep the Ads privacy features enabled?
I’d like to tell you, but apparently if you make a post critical of Google, you get censored. * [Editor: removed, just try to bring your opinion across without attacking anyone]
@Martin
You website is still psychotic. Comments attach to random stories.
@Martin please do fix the comments, it’s completely insane commenting here! :[
@Martin
The comments are seriously messed up on gHacks now. These comments are mixed with the article at the below URL.
https://www.ghacks.net/2023/08/18/android-how-to-disable-2g-cellular-connections-to-improve-security/
And comments on other articles are from as far back as 2010.
What does this article has anything to do with all the comments on this article? LOL I think this Websuite is ran by ChatGPT. every article is messed up. Some older comments from 2015 shown up in recant articles, LOL
The picture captioned “Clearing the Android Auto’s cache might resolve the issue” is from Apple Carplay ;)
How about other things that matter:
Drop survival?
Screen toughness?
Degree of water and dust protection?