Adblockers for Pixel 3 Root and Non-root recommendations. - Google Pixel 3 Themes, Apps, and Mods

Any favorites recommended that work well with the pixel 3? Looking for a non-rooted option (for now).

Blokada is the best option I can find. It's available on f-droid as well as directly from their website. Totally free and very configurable. No root required as it's using the built-in VPN functionality.

WITH ROOT, the king is Adaway for sure. Simple, lightweight and works great.
WITHOUT ROOT I'd personally recommend DNS66. Blocks host names via DNS through Android's VPN interface. Without ROOT that's as good as it gets, or another app very similar like sirebral123 mentioned above. Both are available on F-droid site.

How about just using the Brave browser? Built on chromium, faster than chrome, doesn't track you around, and it has ad blocking built in. Available in the play store and I use it on my desktop as well.

Droid1019 said:
How about just using the Brave browser? Built on chromium, faster than chrome, doesn't track you around, and it has ad blocking built in. Available in the play store and I use it on my desktop as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That doesn't remove ads that appear in apps.

Blokada is working pretty well. Thanks. Any preferences on hosts or dns servers to select or add? I was able to download it here on xda labs app. Same version available in fdroid.

To people recommending VPN apps to block ads.... you realize you are then funneling all of your phone's network traffic through their servers, right? That would make me wildly uncomfortable.

GldRush98 said:
To people recommending VPN apps to block ads.... you realize you are then funneling all of your phone's network traffic through their servers, right? That would make me wildly uncomfortable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They run a local VPN on the phone, there is no 3rd party server
Sent from my Pixel 2 using XDA Labs

Cares said:
That doesn't remove ads that appear in apps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I find an app i like and use on a regular basis, I just pay for it and that takes care of the ads for me and supports the developer.

Well I feel like a horses ass. That's actually pretty clever.

I use a combination of PiHole at my house/work and brave browser.

Droid1019 said:
If I find an app i like and use on a regular basis, I just pay for it and that takes care of the ads for me and supports the developer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everyone should sign up for Google Opinion Rewards. It's a great way to get money for the Play Store and is perfect for this exact scenario.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.google.android.apps.paidtasks&hl=en_US

Droid1019 said:
If I find an app i like and use on a regular basis, I just pay for it and that takes care of the ads for me and supports the developer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are public apps that don't offer a pay to remove ads thing like sports score apps.

You may wanna give "adguard for android" a shot, i have a paid version, works like a charm..

Droid1019 said:
If I find an app i like and use on a regular basis, I just pay for it and that takes care of the ads for me and supports the developer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah but not every app has a "pay to make the ads go away" feature.

I'm rooted but prefer using Adguard. Being to disable ads for individual apps or website is a plus. Also, the app has a feature to allow the use of custom DNS which I have changed to use Cloudflare DNS. The VPN it creates is a local VPN, data DOES not get funneled to their site. i've been using adguard for over 2 years and paid lifetime. They do have a free trial

I can speak to both options. My phone and my wife's (Pixel 3 XL and Pixel 3) are both rooted and use AdAway. My sons' two phones (Huawei Mate SEs) and their tablet (Samsung Galaxy Tab S2 8") are not rooted and each have a lifetime licence of AdGuard. I notice pretty much no difference in terms of what they block. I can't do an A/B spead comparison, but none of their devices seem adversely impacted by AdGuard. I very seriously considered going to the OP6T for my wife and I and going with AdGuard and no root since I am on T-Mobile and would have used the OG Pixel XL and Pixel both as trade-ins. My decision to stay with Google phones and root had nothing to do with ad blocking. In fact, the three devices with AdGuard are easy enough to root. The Mates are BL unlocked, and the S2 is pretty easy already. Any difference between AdGuard and AdAway is simply not worth giving them root access that they don't need.

How do the VPN ad-blockers (like AdGuard) affect battery life? I assume they use more than Adaway or other root methods.

dsmero said:
I use a combination of PiHole at my house/work and brave browser.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Me too. Pi Hole is really good. Easy to install on a Raspberry Pi and it blocks ads and spyware on all devices connected to your network. Should you encounter a web site which doesn't work it is easy to suspend Pi Hole for a predertermined time, or until you re-enable it. A nice little project on very cheap hardware. You don't need the most expensive Raspberry Pi either - but I would recomment connecting it via ethernet so if anyone is interested make sure you buy a Pi with an ethernet socket.

[emoji1360] i already buy it before two years with life license. Its amazing
sneilkanth said:
You may wanna give "adguard for android" a shot, i have a paid version, works like a charm..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk

Related

[Q] Browser security apps?

So I'm a bit of a paranoid guy, and I like to use security extensions in my browser to keep companies from spying on me, such as Ghostly and Adblock Plus. I'm also concerned about AT&T tracking my browsing history and so on.
What are some good security apps for Android? I found Adblock Plus but I can't seem to find anything like Disconnect + and so on, the kind of stuff they have listed here http://donttrack.us/
idumych said:
So I'm a bit of a paranoid guy, and I like to use security extensions in my browser to keep companies from spying on me, such as Ghostly and Adblock Plus. I'm also concerned about AT&T tracking my browsing history and so on.
What are some good security apps for Android? I found Adblock Plus but I can't seem to find anything like Disconnect + and so on, the kind of stuff they have listed here http://donttrack.us/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Read my article here about orbot.i think it will keep you safe enough
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2088703
♥gt-n7000 galaxy note 4.0.4 using xda premium♥
you would probably be better served w/ adaway since it blocks via hosts. you'll need to be rooted, of course.
and if you're serious about privacy, read up about tor.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda premium
sepehrthegreat-iran said:
Read my article here about orbot.i think it will keep you safe enough
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2088703
♥gt-n7000 galaxy note 4.0.4 using xda premium♥
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've tinkered with Orbot before, but how well does it keep the connection to the other nodes when you switch between GSM and WiFi?
Naked Browser seems secure enough browser as it demands.

Instagram ad's

Is there any apps we can install or something else we can do ? I am seeing a add every 3 posts from something.. rather freaking annoying.. oh ya Unrooted phone..
Bump
umx said:
Is there any apps we can install or something else we can do ? I am seeing a add every 3 posts from something.. rather freaking annoying.. oh ya Unrooted phone..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think so you can as they are providing you free service so defiantly they are going place some ads to generate revenue... so Just ignore those ads
umx said:
Is there any apps we can install or something else we can do ? I am seeing a add every 3 posts from something.. rather freaking annoying.. oh ya Unrooted phone..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There's an App that does just what you're asking for. Search Google Play for it.
iPollesion said:
There's an App that does just what you're asking for. Search Google Play for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
been nice if you left the name of it lol
umx said:
Is there any apps we can install or something else we can do ? I am seeing a add every 3 posts from something.. rather freaking annoying.. oh ya Unrooted phone..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use something like adhell3 or adguard to block ads.. Adhell3 uses knox to block the advertisements and adguard would use a dummy (in other words internal) VPN connection. Adguard is not a free product and has to be running in the background. Adhell3 does not have to be running in the background, it's just a front end configuration app for knox. Also it is free, but you do have to compile the APK with android studio (which is easy to do).
Still any form of adblocking would only work if the advertisements come from a domain other then what instagram primarily uses.. For example:
Code:
The example assumes that www.somedomain.com is what the app would use for
it's main features.
dns level adblocking would not work for something like this because
blocking somedomain.com would prevent you from using the app:
[INDENT]www.somedomain.com
www.somedomain.com/sponsoredad/adlinkhere[/INDENT]
but dns level blocking would work for something like this because the
advertisement comes from another domain other then what the app uses uses:
[INDENT]www.somedomain.com
www.someotherdomain.com/sponsoredad/adlinkhere[/INDENT]
Another possibility is someone makes a modified APK to remove the sponsored advertisement references (assuming that is possible). I know someone made a modified facebook app that removed some of the inapp advertisements, I am not sure if a modified version of instagram was ever released... If there is you might find it on the forum here, there is a topic on XDA specifically for android apps.
That's really about the only real options we have (outside of not using instagram at all).
Thanks Scott. I'm actually on a LG v40 thinq now but I'll check out the asgaurd app. Thanks

Should I root just for an Adblocker?

Hi
At them moment I'm rooting my device only to use adaway. Do you think the afford to root a device is worth the benefits of adaway especially as there are some other good vpn based Adblockers? I did some researches and found out that the impact on the performance and battery is minimal.
The only reason I hesitate is that I'm using a VPN for public wifis. But on the other hand every connection my Smartphone opens should be encrypted anyway (hopefully) so I maybe can live without that.
So can you give me an advice? What would you do?
I would say: YES!
Reason: I f you use a VPN, in the data summary everything is collected into that VPN. And you are flexible. In my view Adaway is a cleaner solution. I also need a firewall like AF+ Wall. And tasker for improving my battery life. You see, I like the opportunities.
No, you can use Netguard (not from Play Store) and with it you can download/import the host file you want. That's what Adaway does, and Netguard doesn't need root. And take a look to all the feature u have with Netguard itself. It's awesome
One of the best (and IMO the best) android adblocker is AdClear, it works efficiently and it doesn't need root. Using it for years. It works very well when it comes to blocking ads. And, it's free.

Question Ad blockers

first time posting on the P6 forum (last had a P3).
previously, I used dns.adguard.com for the Private DNS setting. however, that was not blocking all of the ads from within some apps. it worked pretty well until then. Now, I downloaded blokada 5, and that successfully blocks almost all ads. the lone problem is that when connecting to a website, it often slows it down.
curious to see if anyone has a similar experience or recommend an alternative to dns.adguard.com.
thanks!
jco23 said:
first time posting on the P6 forum (last had a P3).
previously, I used dns.adguard.com for the Private DNS setting. however, that was not blocking all of the ads from within some apps. it worked pretty well until then. Now, I downloaded blokada 5, and that successfully blocks almost all ads. the lone problem is that when connecting to a website, it often slows it down.
curious to see if anyone has a similar experience or recommend an alternative to dns.adguard.com.
thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I personally use both NordVPN as well as AdAway with root; AdAway has a VPN function of its own, and you can use your own host lists, but the VPN solution is more resource intensive than the root solution.
V0latyle said:
I personally use both NordVPN as well as AdAway with root; AdAway has a VPN function of its own, and you can use your own host lists, but the VPN solution is more resource intensive than the root solution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
interesting - thanks for the quick reply.
i do have windscribe, but rarely use it. i have not rooted this device yet, as my understanding rooting will disable Google Wallet/GPay - and I use those more often than I would need to hide ads.
+1 to AdAway, plus if your preferred browser supports it, install an adblocker in it as well - I use uBlock for Firefox.
There's also MinMinGuard which has recently gotten an update to make it work on current systems, but that requires Lsposed if you don't already use it, as well as individually enabling it for every new app you install. Honestly, though, with AdAway plus a browser adblocker, I almost never see any ads in any app, so I don't find MinMinGuard necessary anymore.
Ad blocking apps like Blokada and DNS-based ad blockers like AdGuard can be effective at blocking ads, but they can also slow down your browsing experience. This is because ad blockers need to process and filter out ads, which can take up resources and cause delays.
One alternative to dns.adguard.com that you could try is Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1. This is a free, fast, and secure DNS resolver that also includes ad-blocking capabilities. Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1 uses their own ad-blocking technology which is based on the same technology used by their enterprise-grade Web Application Firewall (WAF). This can block ads at the DNS level, which can be less resource-intensive than using an app like Blokada.
jco23 said:
interesting - thanks for the quick reply.
i do have windscribe, but rarely use it. i have not rooted this device yet, as my understanding rooting will disable Google Wallet/GPay - and I use those more often than I would need to hide ads.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No root will not disable Google Wallet/GPay, you just have to install Safety net fix module and all works great, for banking apps just hide root into settings. I use all my banking apps, card tokens and gpay/wallet everyday. Rooking root + adaway.
anawilliam850 said:
Ad blocking apps like Blokada and DNS-based ad blockers like AdGuard can be effective at blocking ads, but they can also slow down your browsing experience. This is because ad blockers need to process and filter out ads, which can take up resources and cause delays.
One alternative to dns.adguard.com that you could try is Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1. This is a free, fast, and secure DNS resolver that also includes ad-blocking capabilities. Cloudflare's 1.1.1.1 uses their own ad-blocking technology which is based on the same technology used by their enterprise-grade Web Application Firewall (WAF). This can block ads at the DNS level, which can be less resource-intensive than using an app like Blokada.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i tried installing the 1.1.1.1 app from cloudflare, and it did NOT block the ads on my scrabble app. thx for the suggestion though.
Have you tried using a browser like Brave which would help with your browsing experience. I use a combination of Blockada for system wide blocking, pihole for in-home network based blocking and browsers like Brave/DDG for blocking and so on. I have a tasker based activity for turning on/off blockada when in home/out of home. It's my non-root solution.
Additionally you can also lookup -
ahadns.com - you get a customised secure dns url, you can setup filter lists and the URL is configured based on the seelctions.
nextdns.io - something similar to the above. 300,000 free ad-blocking queries per month and past that, the non-blocking DNS service will work till the next month.
cbarai said:
Have you tried using a browser like Brave which would help with your browsing experience. I use a combination of Blockada for system wide blocking, pihole for in-home network based blocking and browsers like Brave/DDG for blocking and so on. I have a tasker based activity for turning on/off blockada when in home/out of home. It's my non-root solution.
Additionally you can also lookup -
ahadns.com - you get a customised secure dns url, you can setup filter lists and the URL is configured based on the seelctions.
nextdns.io - something similar to the above. 300,000 free ad-blocking queries per month and past that, the non-blocking DNS service will work till the next month.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey, just stumbled across your post and thought that if you use piehole at home, you should be able to just use a VPN to you piehole when on the road so you don't have to rely on third party apps. Don't know about performance though, but you might give it a try.
Cheers
Been taking NextDNS for a test ride. Easy set up with a lot of features, up to 300,000 queries per month for free. What's not to like?
Fast and running pretty smooth so far, day 7.

Question Multiple User Accounts

Hi! Finally got my S23U and have begun setting it up.
All is good but was shocked to see the lack of multiple user feature on it. On my other android phone I create a "work" user which then has all settings/apps related to work. I can then switch amongst my profiles as needed. Note that my workplace pretty much controls the phone upon installing their security app (they could wipe out everything if need be) so these separate profiles is crucial.
I know Samsung has "secure folder" but unless I can have multiple of them it is not useful in this case. I cannot mix my personal stuff that I want to securely store with my work stuff on the same secure folder.
There are some apps on play store but are either non-standard (eg. Parallel Space) or not maintained (eg. Island).
Appreciate any suggestions.
Get a second work phone. I definitely wouldn't put their junkware on my personal phone!
[email protected] said:
Hi! Finally got my S23U and have begun setting it up.
All is good but was shocked to see the lack of multiple user feature on it. On my other android phone I create a "work" user which then has all settings/apps related to work. I can then switch amongst my profiles as needed. Note that my workplace pretty much controls the phone upon installing their security app (they could wipe out everything if need be) so these separate profiles is crucial.
I know Samsung has "secure folder" but unless I can have multiple of them it is not useful in this case. I cannot mix my personal stuff that I want to securely store with my work stuff on the same secure folder.
There are some apps on play store but are either non-standard (eg. Parallel Space) or not maintained (eg. Island).
Appreciate any suggestions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can install shelter from fdroid or island from google play and make a work profile without root.
spart0n said:
You can install shelter from fdroid or island from google play and make a work profile without root.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for the suggestions. I'll check it out.
blackhawk said:
Get a second work phone. I definitely wouldn't put their junkware on my personal phone!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My last option. Carrying two phone around is annoying when I could do it with just one before.
[email protected] said:
Hi! Finally got my S23U and have begun setting it up.
All is good but was shocked to see the lack of multiple user feature on it. On my other android phone I create a "work" user which then has all settings/apps related to work. I can then switch amongst my profiles as needed. Note that my workplace pretty much controls the phone upon installing their security app (they could wipe out everything if need be) so these separate profiles is crucial.
I know Samsung has "secure folder" but unless I can have multiple of them it is not useful in this case. I cannot mix my personal stuff that I want to securely store with my work stuff on the same secure folder.
There are some apps on play store but are either non-standard (eg. Parallel Space) or not maintained (eg. Island).
Appreciate any suggestions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Shelter is your friend.
Multiple Users was supposed to be included in OneUI 5.0 and was available in their beta. But for some unknown reasons, they removed this stock Android feature from the stable build.
[email protected] said:
My last option. Carrying two phone around is annoying when I could do it with just one before.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Best to keep work and personal phones separate for a variety of reasons. Or simply only use/carry the work phone when at work. If your employer requires a work phone they should supply it... otherwise they shouldn't set requirements for a employee purchased phone.
blackhawk said:
If your employer requires a work phone they should supply it... otherwise they shouldn't set requirements for a employee purchased phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Agree.
blackhawk said:
Best to keep work and personal phones separate for a variety of reasons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you elaborate on some scenarios when this will indeed be worth it, considering the inconvenience of carrying 2 phones.
TheMystic said:
Can you elaborate on some scenarios when this will indeed be worth it, considering the inconvenience of carrying 2 phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just common sense. Keep your personal and business lives separate as much as possible.
Businesses are malware targets as well. You have no choice but to download business related e-docs. On my personal devices I closely monitor any downloads. Only installed 3rd party apps carry a higher risk of infection.
blackhawk said:
Just common sense. Keep your personal and business lives separate as much as possible.
Businesses are malware targets as well. You have no choice but to download business related e-docs. On my personal devices I closely monitor any downloads. Only installed 3rd party apps carry a higher risk of infection.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's exactly what Profiles do. They isolate and keep apps and their data separate, and do not allow apps in one profile to access data on another profile.
TheMystic said:
That's exactly what Profiles do. They isolate and keep apps and their data separate, and do not allow apps in one profile to access data on another profile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It also slows the phone's performance down. You're still using the same sim, ip address, hardware; not near enough isolation. I don't like the plan, sorry.
[email protected] said:
Hi! Finally got my S23U and have begun setting it up.
All is good but was shocked to see the lack of multiple user feature on it. On my other android phone I create a "work" user which then has all settings/apps related to work. I can then switch amongst my profiles as needed. Note that my workplace pretty much controls the phone upon installing their security app (they could wipe out everything if need be) so these separate profiles is crucial.
I know Samsung has "secure folder" but unless I can have multiple of them it is not useful in this case. I cannot mix my personal stuff that I want to securely store with my work stuff on the same secure folder.
There are some apps on play store but are either non-standard (eg. Parallel Space) or not maintained (eg. Island).
Appreciate any suggestions.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My S23U does have a Work profile (see attached screenshot) and, separately, a Secure Folder. They are not the same thing. It's basically like having three profiles on one device. My employer can only see the data in my Work profile.
blackhawk said:
It also slows the phone's performance down. You're still using the same sim, ip address, hardware; not near enough isolation. I don't like the plan, sorry.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I haven't seen any performance drop. You can turn OFF work profile when required, and that will disable access completely.
pyrolad said:
My S23U does have a Work profile (see attached screenshot) and, separately, a Secure Folder. They are not the same thing. It's basically like having three profiles on one device. My employer can only see the data in my Work profile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How? Is it the US version?
pyrolad said:
My S23U does have a Work profile (see attached screenshot) and, separately, a Secure Folder. They are not the same thing. It's basically like having three profiles on one device. My employer can only see the data in my Work profile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm having issues enabling the work profile. How did you do it?
I was able to get it to work by using Island instead of Shelter
[email protected] said:
How? Is it the US version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was able to get it to work by using the "Island" app. I've used "Shelter" for years but I don't think it's being developed anymore so I tried Island and it works.
Google Play Link
King-ish said:
I was able to get it to work by using the "Island" app. I've used "Shelter" for years but I don't think it's being developed anymore so I tried Island and it works.
Google Play Link
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Island repo hasn't had any activity since Sept 2021.
[email protected] said:
Island repo hasn't had any activity since Sept 2021.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Their app was updated February of last year. My understanding is since these apps (Shelter/Island) are only making the work profile more accessible, there isn't a lot of development unless there is a major underlying change to the OS or Work Profile framework like with Android 13. The Android 13 beta was released February 10, 2022 and the last Island update was February 22, 2022.
My
[email protected] said:
Island repo hasn't had any activity since Sept 2021.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My preferred app for this is Shelter and I thought they abandoned it, but it looks like they update their app on F-Droid.
Shelter | F-Droid - Free and Open Source Android App Repository
Isolate and run multiple instances of apps using Work Profiles
f-droid.org
@King-ish Thanks! Went with the FOSS implementation of Island at Insular.
Have the work profile setup.

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