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Everybody is talking about Chrome, but I tell ya what I have that disabled on my Android in favor of Firefox. Firefox on mobile with full-fat uBlock Origin is

Everybody is talking about Chrome, but I tell ya what I have that disabled on my Android in favor of Firefox. Firefox on mobile with full-fat uBlock Origin is the closest thing to parity with desktop web access you can get. I don't just block ads, I block elements on sites I don't care about with :has-text RegEx rules. You can't do that on Chrome even on desktop anymore. I'm this close to swapping to the Android as my primary device-- it's iMessage that has me chained. It's just too dang nice to respond to chats from my Mac during work so I don't need to pick up my phone. Everything else is better on the Android. Don't get me started about the iOS keyboard or Siri.

two-sandwich 1y ago
FF with uBO was the killer app that kept me on android. If Apple let me run that, I'd have bought into it years ago. Have you considered messages.google.com? I think you need to use Google's messages app (not the Samsung messager or equivalent) but it does as you describe and supports RCS.
- bkmq 1y ago
  Kagi made a safari based w är my browser that can use both FF and chrome addons on iOS. I use full uBO and I still don’t care about cookies.
  - TheDong 1y ago
    Can i share my history and bonus with my desktop, ie linux? Oh, it's closed source ios/macos only? Yeah, no thanks. I also kinda doubt it's compatible with most firefox addons, addons can and do rely on details of firefox that ios does not provide the ability to emulate.
- frevib 1y ago
  uBlock Origin for iOS was released yesterday: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44795825 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44795825 If you are on another locale, search “ublock origin lite” with double quotes.
  - xedrac 1y ago
    Still not as good as full fat ublock origin.
- cozzyd 1y ago
  or kdeconnect/gsconnect?
Rusky 1y ago
I've been using https://messages.google.com https://messages.google.com to get something like the desktop iMessage experience with Android- does that work for your use case? (I don't use iMessage so I could just be missing some killer feature it has, or something.)
- calebh 1y ago
  I've been doing this too! You can install it as a PWA and get a nice desktop experience.
827a 1y ago
If its the difference-maker for you: Google Messages has a web experience, and in my not-recent experience it works great. The iOS 26 keyboard (public beta) is the biggest regression I've ever seen Apple make, and they're a company infamous for regressions. It for me has been the tipping point. [1] https://messages.google.com/web/ https://messages.google.com/web/
- zuhsetaqi 1y ago
  What did they change on iOS 26 in the keyboard?
  - crinkly 1y ago
    They moved the emoji thing to where the globe is and gave you a bigger space bar. Also changed the font slightly.
  - 827a 1y ago
    Something significant changed about the spellchecking and swipe to type algorithms. Significant performance degradation, especially in those "i just need to get a quick message out while walking" situations. Hopefully we see some improvement by GA.
crinkly 1y ago
Wake me up when someone makes a better Reminders, Calendar and Photos app on Android... I'm using AdGuard for blocking ads in Safari. Works fine. I do have a GrapheneOS pixel 7a as well but I'd rather not let Google near my shit.
- zevon 1y ago
  I can relate to not wanting any of the tech giants near my shit but may I ask what your Google concerns are on GrapheneOS? I also have an iPhone as well as a GrapheneOS phone. They are different but I'm quite happy with those alternatives to the apps you mentioned: Etar as a calendar frontend app. DAVx5 for syncing CalDAV and CardDAV (so calendar data, contacts and optionally also tasks). I manage tasks within my notes, so I do not really use a todo/reminder app at all but there are different options. tasks.org plugs into DAVx5, for example. Depending on your server-side setup and your willingness to compromise on open source, are also other options. For example, if you work with an Exchange server, there is the "Nine - Email & Calendar" app which is a very powerful all-in-one-client similar to traditional Outlook on the desktop. For photos, there are quite a few solid options, depending on what you want. I use the Fossify Gallery with only my Camera folder visible for day-to-day stuff and also have Aves Libre installed for a more advanced interface to my pictures and videos.
  - crinkly 1y ago
    I've tried most of that. It's really nowhere near any of the basic Apple stuff. I have no issues with GrapheneOS just stock android.
    - zevon 1y ago
      Interesting. Can I ask if you use Apple's cloud services? If so, I understand. I don't use those, even on Apple devices, so to me, the whole setup is similarly annoying on both platforms with maybe a very slight edge towards the iPhone because it has most things I need out of the box. Other than that, I really don't think I miss anything on the "basic stuff" front on my Pixel compared to my iPhone (I use them both daily, with the former being my personal phone and the latter the job-issued one). I've been doing the dual-driving iPhones and Android devices for a long time and times were definitely worse, in my opinion. The last thing I remember really annoying me on the regular was the lack of AirDrop but with alternatives like LocalSend and KDE connect, that's fixed as well.
leptons 1y ago
I will second Google Messages, your SMS messages go to your phone and your desktop at the same time. Easily respond from either. I don't know if SMS messaging gets to iMessage, because I don't use Apple products.
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 1y ago
  I think it bounces thru your phone since if your phone is off you can't use it on the web.
zevon 1y ago
If you can live with SMS instead of iMessage: KDE Connect on Android works very nicely for messaging from the desktop (the Desktop application is available for Linux, Windows and MacOS. Functionality varies per platform but SMS works on all of them). https://kdeconnect.kde.org/ https://kdeconnect.kde.org/
exoji2e 1y ago
I use brave on ios, the built in adblocker works fine as a substitute to ff + uBlock imo.
extraduder_ire 1y ago
The consent-o-matic extension is also incredibly worth it on mobile firefox. Automates clicking through almost every cookie banner I've come across, which is much more annoying to do manually on a phone than on desktop.
- createaccount99 1y ago
  uBo has a filter list for blocking out cookie popups, why not use that instead?
  - extraduder_ire 1y ago
    I have the Easylist one enabled, is there a more reliable one? It doesn't catch them all, especially more niche sites that do more custom stuff to prevent you using the site until you interact with the notice. e.g. screen overlay, prevent scrolling using css rules.
    - createaccount99 1y ago
      I have the 3 default "annoyances" listed enabled, ublock, easylist, adguard. I rarely see cookie popups. Notably, youtube's cookie popup still appears, but probably there's a reason for it. So, you're right, however for me it's good enough.
crossroadsguy 1y ago
> it's iMessage that has me chained No Apple hardware or software/service (when it comes to Apple software/services they deserve a LOL) has me chained. It's just how disgusting Google has kept Android for anyone who wants privacy, safety (both usage and data safety in case of loss etc), and reliable updates that people stay in Apple ecosystem even though software/services wise technically they are miles ahead. If someone ever even proceeds to tell me that "something in apple's stable is technically comparable/better than Google's.." I might rudely ask them to get their head examined. I just can't reconcile with the fact that Google would track me every milisecond and then use my data for ads and I can't do anything about it. The good news is very soon Apple will start doing the same, if they have not, because they are already an ad company now. As far as ditching iMessage is concerned - the last time I ditched WhatsApp in my country, I ditched it and after I didn't feel a thing. And WhatsApp in my country is not only instant messaging - it's literal-bllody-ly everything. Everything! PS. Signal should launch a "Import from iMessage and WhatsApp" :D (Oh, but then how would they prioritise crypto ;-))
nuker 1y ago
> Firefox on mobile with full-fat uBlock Origin I think uBO is not disabling PPA, does it? - June 2024. Mozilla acquires Anonym, an ad metrics firm. - July 2024. Mozilla adds Privacy-Preserving Attribution (PPA), feature is enabled by default. Developed in cooperation with Meta (Facebook). - Feb 2025. Mozilla updates its Privacy FAQ and TOS. "does not sell data about you." becomes "... in the way that most people think about it".
ThePowerOfFuet 1y ago
>It's just too dang nice to respond to chats from my Mac during work so I don't need to pick up my phone. I've been doing this on Signal for years.
scantron4 1y ago
if you also switch your phone, messages.google.com has you covered.
not_your_mentat 1y ago
I spent years laughing at other people’s autocorrect fails until I switched from Android. The iOS keyboard experience is unspeakably bad. There’s a point every day where I think, “maybe I’ll just sell the iPhone and get another Pixel, despite Google’s creep factor.”

two-sandwich 1y ago

FF with uBO was the killer app that kept me on android. If Apple let me run that, I'd have bought into it years ago. Have you considered messages.google.com? I think you need to use Google's messages app (not the Samsung messager or equivalent) but it does as you describe and supports RCS.

bkmq 1y ago
Kagi made a safari based w är my browser that can use both FF and chrome addons on iOS. I use full uBO and I still don’t care about cookies.
- TheDong 1y ago
  Can i share my history and bonus with my desktop, ie linux? Oh, it's closed source ios/macos only? Yeah, no thanks. I also kinda doubt it's compatible with most firefox addons, addons can and do rely on details of firefox that ios does not provide the ability to emulate.
frevib 1y ago
uBlock Origin for iOS was released yesterday: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44795825 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44795825 If you are on another locale, search “ublock origin lite” with double quotes.
- xedrac 1y ago
  Still not as good as full fat ublock origin.
cozzyd 1y ago
or kdeconnect/gsconnect?

Rusky 1y ago

I've been using https://messages.google.com https://messages.google.com to get something like the desktop iMessage experience with Android- does that work for your use case? (I don't use iMessage so I could just be missing some killer feature it has, or something.)

calebh 1y ago
I've been doing this too! You can install it as a PWA and get a nice desktop experience.

827a 1y ago

If its the difference-maker for you: Google Messages has a web experience, and in my not-recent experience it works great. The iOS 26 keyboard (public beta) is the biggest regression I've ever seen Apple make, and they're a company infamous for regressions. It for me has been the tipping point. [1] https://messages.google.com/web/ https://messages.google.com/web/

zuhsetaqi 1y ago
What did they change on iOS 26 in the keyboard?
- crinkly 1y ago
  They moved the emoji thing to where the globe is and gave you a bigger space bar. Also changed the font slightly.
- 827a 1y ago
  Something significant changed about the spellchecking and swipe to type algorithms. Significant performance degradation, especially in those "i just need to get a quick message out while walking" situations. Hopefully we see some improvement by GA.

crinkly 1y ago

Wake me up when someone makes a better Reminders, Calendar and Photos app on Android... I'm using AdGuard for blocking ads in Safari. Works fine. I do have a GrapheneOS pixel 7a as well but I'd rather not let Google near my shit.

zevon 1y ago
I can relate to not wanting any of the tech giants near my shit but may I ask what your Google concerns are on GrapheneOS? I also have an iPhone as well as a GrapheneOS phone. They are different but I'm quite happy with those alternatives to the apps you mentioned: Etar as a calendar frontend app. DAVx5 for syncing CalDAV and CardDAV (so calendar data, contacts and optionally also tasks). I manage tasks within my notes, so I do not really use a todo/reminder app at all but there are different options. tasks.org plugs into DAVx5, for example. Depending on your server-side setup and your willingness to compromise on open source, are also other options. For example, if you work with an Exchange server, there is the "Nine - Email & Calendar" app which is a very powerful all-in-one-client similar to traditional Outlook on the desktop. For photos, there are quite a few solid options, depending on what you want. I use the Fossify Gallery with only my Camera folder visible for day-to-day stuff and also have Aves Libre installed for a more advanced interface to my pictures and videos.
- crinkly 1y ago
  I've tried most of that. It's really nowhere near any of the basic Apple stuff. I have no issues with GrapheneOS just stock android.
  - zevon 1y ago
    Interesting. Can I ask if you use Apple's cloud services? If so, I understand. I don't use those, even on Apple devices, so to me, the whole setup is similarly annoying on both platforms with maybe a very slight edge towards the iPhone because it has most things I need out of the box. Other than that, I really don't think I miss anything on the "basic stuff" front on my Pixel compared to my iPhone (I use them both daily, with the former being my personal phone and the latter the job-issued one). I've been doing the dual-driving iPhones and Android devices for a long time and times were definitely worse, in my opinion. The last thing I remember really annoying me on the regular was the lack of AirDrop but with alternatives like LocalSend and KDE connect, that's fixed as well.

leptons 1y ago

I will second Google Messages, your SMS messages go to your phone and your desktop at the same time. Easily respond from either. I don't know if SMS messaging gets to iMessage, because I don't use Apple products.

2OEH8eoCRo0 1y ago
I think it bounces thru your phone since if your phone is off you can't use it on the web.

zevon 1y ago

If you can live with SMS instead of iMessage: KDE Connect on Android works very nicely for messaging from the desktop (the Desktop application is available for Linux, Windows and MacOS. Functionality varies per platform but SMS works on all of them). https://kdeconnect.kde.org/ https://kdeconnect.kde.org/

exoji2e 1y ago

I use brave on ios, the built in adblocker works fine as a substitute to ff + uBlock imo.

extraduder_ire 1y ago

The consent-o-matic extension is also incredibly worth it on mobile firefox. Automates clicking through almost every cookie banner I've come across, which is much more annoying to do manually on a phone than on desktop.

createaccount99 1y ago
uBo has a filter list for blocking out cookie popups, why not use that instead?
- extraduder_ire 1y ago
  I have the Easylist one enabled, is there a more reliable one? It doesn't catch them all, especially more niche sites that do more custom stuff to prevent you using the site until you interact with the notice. e.g. screen overlay, prevent scrolling using css rules.
  - createaccount99 1y ago
    I have the 3 default "annoyances" listed enabled, ublock, easylist, adguard. I rarely see cookie popups. Notably, youtube's cookie popup still appears, but probably there's a reason for it. So, you're right, however for me it's good enough.

crossroadsguy 1y ago

> it's iMessage that has me chained No Apple hardware or software/service (when it comes to Apple software/services they deserve a LOL) has me chained. It's just how disgusting Google has kept Android for anyone who wants privacy, safety (both usage and data safety in case of loss etc), and reliable updates that people stay in Apple ecosystem even though software/services wise technically they are miles ahead. If someone ever even proceeds to tell me that "something in apple's stable is technically comparable/better than Google's.." I might rudely ask them to get their head examined. I just can't reconcile with the fact that Google would track me every milisecond and then use my data for ads and I can't do anything about it. The good news is very soon Apple will start doing the same, if they have not, because they are already an ad company now. As far as ditching iMessage is concerned - the last time I ditched WhatsApp in my country, I ditched it and after I didn't feel a thing. And WhatsApp in my country is not only instant messaging - it's literal-bllody-ly everything. Everything! PS. Signal should launch a "Import from iMessage and WhatsApp" :D (Oh, but then how would they prioritise crypto ;-))

nuker 1y ago

> Firefox on mobile with full-fat uBlock Origin I think uBO is not disabling PPA, does it? - June 2024. Mozilla acquires Anonym, an ad metrics firm. - July 2024. Mozilla adds Privacy-Preserving Attribution (PPA), feature is enabled by default. Developed in cooperation with Meta (Facebook). - Feb 2025. Mozilla updates its Privacy FAQ and TOS. "does not sell data about you." becomes "... in the way that most people think about it".

ThePowerOfFuet 1y ago

>It's just too dang nice to respond to chats from my Mac during work so I don't need to pick up my phone. I've been doing this on Signal for years.

scantron4 1y ago

if you also switch your phone, messages.google.com has you covered.

not_your_mentat 1y ago

I spent years laughing at other people’s autocorrect fails until I switched from Android. The iOS keyboard experience is unspeakably bad. There’s a point every day where I think, “maybe I’ll just sell the iPhone and get another Pixel, despite Google’s creep factor.”