Need help finding my ideal browser. - Samsung Galaxy Note 9 Themes, Apps, and Mods

So here is the deal. I stopped using Chrome quite some time ago in favor of FF Beta. I like it quite a bit, but would like something a little more considerate of my privacy. I found FOSS Browser on F-Droid and loved it, until I found out it doesn't preserve your open tabs. I looked at Brave browser and really liked the look of that, but it doesn't seem to support sync on mobile and I can find no info on if you can back up it's data and if so what. Kiwi would also be an ideal solution I think if it supported sync or backups.
Sync is not an absolute requirement for me if I can back up my tabs and bookmarks.
I don't care about password storage as I use a separate password database.
I want the ability to have multiple tabs and have them preserved.
Privacy is important, but I don't need one of those always incognito types as that would not preserve my tabs and such.
Again FOSS would be perfect if it just preserved my open tabs. It seems the dev is not worried about that feature, so I am not going to hold my breath for it either. If someone has experience with Brave and can confirm I can do backups with it, even if it isn't built in and ADB backups of it work well, that would probably be good. Especially since they will eventually add sync.
TIA for your thoughts!

have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
---------- Post added at 05:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
p33l05 said:
have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just re-read your post... apologies.. it does have a beta sync feature although I haven't tested that yet

p33l05 said:
have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
---------- Post added at 05:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
I just re-read your post... apologies.. it does have a beta sync feature although I haven't tested that yet
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem! I'm happy to get any input even on the ones I mentioned. I may test the beta sync out. I am very interested in Brave anyways.

dragunbayne said:
So here is the deal. I stopped using Chrome quite some time ago in favor of FF Beta. I like it quite a bit, but would like something a little more considerate of my privacy. I found FOSS Browser on F-Droid and loved it, until I found out it doesn't preserve your open tabs. I looked at Brave browser and really liked the look of that, but it doesn't seem to support sync on mobile and I can find no info on if you can back up it's data and if so what. Kiwi would also be an ideal solution I think if it supported sync or backups.
Sync is not an absolute requirement for me if I can back up my tabs and bookmarks.
I don't care about password storage as I use a separate password database.
I want the ability to have multiple tabs and have them preserved.
Privacy is important, but I don't need one of those always incognito types as that would not preserve my tabs and such.
Again FOSS would be perfect if it just preserved my open tabs. It seems the dev is not worried about that feature, so I am not going to hold my breath for it either. If someone has experience with Brave and can confirm I can do backups with it, even if it isn't built in and ADB backups of it work well, that would probably be good. Especially since they will eventually add sync.
TIA for your thoughts!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung Internet
Samsung Internet Beta
3 times in 3 months I had to use chrome, ****ty sites not the browser's fault!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A

My main Android browser is Opera I have almost 70 tabs open all the time and most of them in Desktop user agent. I tried many browsers but always return to Opera. Give it a try.

sullytrny said:
Samsung Internet
Samsung Internet Beta
3 times in 3 months I had to use chrome, ****ty sites not the browser's fault!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Samsung internet is not really good for my privacy. It reports back everything to Samsung and who knows what they do with it. Also I don't trust their backup for the browser I tried it once and when I redid my phone there was no backup.
liamR said:
My main Android browser is Opera I have almost 70 tabs open all the time and most of them in Desktop user agent. I tried many browsers but always return to Opera. Give it a try.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will look into it. I used to be an Opera user way back. They had the best (maybe only ) browser for my Walkman flip phone!

sullytrny said:
Samsung Internet
Samsung Internet Beta
3 times in 3 months I had to use chrome, ****ty sites not the browser's fault!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I upvote both Samsung Internet and Beta. I especially like the beta as it allows S-Pen functionality like single click to navigate backwards and double click to navigate forwards. I use Kiwi for any crappy site that has issues loading; but I think I've used it once in the last year for that. Samsungs dark mode in their browsers and ad blockers are top notch; you cannot go wrong with them.

mtweisenbarger777 said:
I upvote both Samsung Internet and Beta. I especially like the beta as it allows S-Pen functionality like single click to navigate backwards and double click to navigate forwards. I use Kiwi for any crappy site that has issues loading; but I think I've used it once in the last year for that. Samsungs dark mode in their browsers and ad blockers are top notch; you cannot go wrong with them.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I may look into how to block the browser from communicating with Samsung too much. I do see it recommended a lot and from what little I have used it, it seems good. I especially like the S-Pen functionality, that sounds cool.

I'm closer to being sold on Samsung Internet after seeing you can use disconnect with it now. Still looking into how and what it reports back to Samsung.

all this time I was sitting on a little gem! Thanks to all who recommended Samsung browser, it's really good!

rusty.gh said:
all this time I was sitting on a little gem! Thanks to all who recommended Samsung browser, it's really good!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just make sure you get the adguard and disconnect add-ons. They will speed things up and keep you safer. I am switching to it for now and am surprised at how fast and smooth it is.
Oh! Also go into settings>privacy and security and turn off customization service to turn off the Samsung tracking and turn on do not track.

Which ad blocker addon for Samsung Internet browser do you guys find the best?
---------- Post added at 05:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 AM ----------
I've been enjoying the old version of Samsung Internet beta that still has the built in video assistant:
https://www.sammobile.com/apk/samsung-internet-beta/samsung-internet-browser-beta-8-2-01-2/

Ps. Get a VPN imo IMO exspressvpn
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A
---------- Post added at 12:31 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:29 AM ----------
p33l05 said:
Which ad blocker addon for Samsung Internet browser do you guys find the best?
---------- Post added at 05:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:23 AM ----------
I've been enjoying the old version of Samsung Internet beta that still has the built in video assistant:
https://www.sammobile.com/apk/samsung-internet-beta/samsung-internet-browser-beta-8-2-01-2/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually use 3 of them, try them all!
Photo's[emoji2398] by Sully using SM-N960U or SM-870A

With Samsung Internet is there any way to do the double tap and pull zoom method? I use that all the time to zoom with one hand and it doesn't seem to work on Samsung but it does in Chrome

Just an opinion if privacy/data collection/trackers/cookies/scripts are an annoyance try reading this. It's called Orfox browser and is built with privacy in mind & is a modified version of Firefox. If you are wanting even more privacy run it with orbot. I could go into depth with all the possibilities but maybe reading for yourself would help you understand how it all works better than me trying to describe how it works. Orfox browser is the Firefox based privacy browser and orbot is basically a VPN that hides your IP by bouncing your connection through many other people, countries & such making it very hard for anyone to track it back to you. Your internet habits, location, cookies, trackers and so on are just pieces of the bigger data collection picture. I suggest that you don't visit the darknet or websites that end in .onion but regular websites ending in .com or .ca or .org or .net for example. You may run into some pretty explicit, violent, depraved, sick, drugs, weapons, & anything illegal you can imagine, and then some. If privacy is a HUGE concern maybe search videos on Orfox & Orbot Privacy on YouTube. If you just want the browser for privacy here is the link & info. Be warned, never use sensitive data such as email addresses, passwords, bank/credit card info, or anything personal on the darknet or sites ending in .onion because any of the many middle servers re-routing your traffic can see your info if they have the knowledge. I'd stick to just Orfox, & when sending sensitive data, just check and hope the site begins with https:// not just http:// and avoid Orbot with Orfox combo. Everything we do is being watched by "big brother" & it makes me sick. Maybe one day we will not have to take extra measures to keep our business our business & not a commodity to be traded & sold. One last note, turning anything dealing with your location to off in the settings does nothing. Google can still see where you are, buildings you enter, they know if you are walking, driving, cycling, your speed, elevation & much more. Only way to not have your location tracked is to power your phone completely off if you wish to not share all of that info. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a phone if we have to resort to keeping it off. How do we receive calls then? Big thanks to Google.com, Samsung, Android, & all those that buy trade and sell our very personal info. Lmfao. Like they care. $$$
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=info.guardianproject.orfox

Try Kiwi browser. Chromium based but privacy centric and has bottom toolbar option and inbuilt adblock ?

TWiiTCH said:
Just an opinion if privacy/data collection/trackers/cookies/scripts are an annoyance try reading this. It's called Orfox browser and is built with privacy in mind & is a modified version of Firefox. If you are wanting even more privacy run it with orbot. I could go into depth with all the possibilities but maybe reading for yourself would help you understand how it all works better than me trying to describe how it works. Orfox browser is the Firefox based privacy browser and orbot is basically a VPN that hides your IP by bouncing your connection through many other people, countries & such making it very hard for anyone to track it back to you. Your internet habits, location, cookies, trackers and so on are just pieces of the bigger data collection picture. I suggest that you don't visit the darknet or websites that end in .onion but regular websites ending in .com or .ca or .org or .net for example. You may run into some pretty explicit, violent, depraved, sick, drugs, weapons, & anything illegal you can imagine, and then some. If privacy is a HUGE concern maybe search videos on Orfox & Orbot Privacy on YouTube. If you just want the browser for privacy here is the link & info. Be warned, never use sensitive data such as email addresses, passwords, bank/credit card info, or anything personal on the darknet or sites ending in .onion because any of the many middle servers re-routing your traffic can see your info if they have the knowledge. I'd stick to just Orfox, & when sending sensitive data, just check and hope the site begins with https:// not just http:// and avoid Orbot with Orfox combo. Everything we do is being watched by "big brother" & it makes me sick. Maybe one day we will not have to take extra measures to keep our business our business & not a commodity to be traded & sold. One last note, turning anything dealing with your location to off in the settings does nothing. Google can still see where you are, buildings you enter, they know if you are walking, driving, cycling, your speed, elevation & much more. Only way to not have your location tracked is to power your phone completely off if you wish to not share all of that info. Kind of defeats the purpose of having a phone if we have to resort to keeping it off. How do we receive calls then? Big thanks to Google.com, Samsung, Android, & all those that buy trade and sell our very personal info. Lmfao. Like they care. $$$
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=info.guardianproject.orfox
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why avoid orbot and how do you use orfox without it?

p33l05 said:
Why avoid orbot and how do you use orfox without it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use orfox just like you would use Firefox. It is more geared towards safety and you can read about it on the developer's website and come up with your own conclusion. It has options such as turning off Scripts and different security settings from low to high depending on how secure you wish your connection to be in terms of trackers and such. When you first launch orfox it will ask you to install Orbot but you can click cancel and use it just as a browser but it is much safer than most of the standard browsers. And the only reason I recommend avoiding Orbot is because it usually ends up leading curious people to the dark web and can very easily lead to your credit card numbers or bank accounts or passwords to email accounts or many other things being stolen because the way it works is it bounces your connection through a whole bunch of other people's PCS and phones and whatever they will be running Orbot on and that's why it is so hard to track somebody when they are using it. I didn't mean for people not to use it just that it is easy to get taken advantage of and even easier to run into things that are mostly illegal and could get someone in serious trouble even if they unintentionally happened upon these sites. I felt the need to give the warning so someone doesn't come back and say you told me this was 100% safe. If you read my post I recommended them to read on the topic and check out YouTube videos before they decide to use Orbot and Tor Fox together.

I'm not sure why you're not using Firefox? I keep going back to it because mostly for the amp link remover. I use Google news and they're all amp links with lots of ads. I need my brother to convert amp pages to regular. Brave didn't have that capability.

p33l05 said:
have you tried BRAVE browser? its based on chromium - I use that mostly
---------- Post added at 05:50 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:49 PM ----------
I just re-read your post... apologies.. it does have a beta sync feature although I haven't tested that yet
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
From wikipedia:
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brave_(web_browser)#Business_model)
Brave Software has announced that it is developing a feature allowing users to opt in to receiving ads sold by the company in place of ads blocked by the browser.[8][9][10] Brave intends to pay content publishers 55% of the replaced ad revenue. Brave Software, ad partners, and browser users would each be allocated 15% of the revenue. Users would be able to donate their revenue share to content publishers through micropayments.[11]
In a testing version of the browser, Brave targets web ads by analyzing users' anonymized browsing history.[12]

Related

Google Chrome

So, I've just installed the new Chrome browser from Google and first impressions are that it's a good match for the Shift. Seems pretty fast and the tools bar etc doesn't occupy a lot of screen real estate.
I'm starting this thread as I'm interested to hear other peoples experiences with this browser on the Shift.
Regards,
Dave
It seems pretty snappy, but I'd forgotten how many ads there are are the sites I regularly visit, and it makes me realise how well the AdBlock Firefox extension works.
I just did the first tests too...
I like to flick with the stylus over the screen for scrolling up and down...doesn't work on chrome
also i used the plugins firebug and smart bookmarks bar on FF, which aren't yet supported on chrome.
Should you/we be sending these requests back to google so they can include functionality? Cheers
Hi,
my impression is that it is much faster than IE and FF, but missing add-ons so far. For example, Google's own toolbar. I use it for synchronizing bookmarks.
S.
As far as I know ....
As far as I know it's jet too early to install Google Chrome in a pc......
http://www.webnews.it/news/leggi/9046/chrome-ed-e-subito-vulnerabilita/
http://www.securityfocus.com/bid/30983
...vulnerabilities in Chrome...
We all take risks every time we visit a new site, or click on a link in an email. The simple fact of the matter is that the only truly safe way to browse the internet is on someone elses machine, and not to use any kind of internet banking or any other site where personal details can be obtained and compromised!
There are vulnerabilities in *every* mainstream browser, most of which are yet to be found, but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't or can't be used.
Each to their own of course!
Regards,
Dave
Yess...
We take risks everyday but, why to use well known bugged browsers?
Regards
Simply because if someone doesn't, future bugs will never get found and fixed. This particular bug has already been fixed in the current version of WebKit and therefore I'd expect to see a new release from Google based on the latest (or later) version of WebKit within a fairly short order.
Yes, this version of Chrome has a number of vulnerabilities, but then again so will IE, Firefox, Opera, Safari - so take your pick!
Thus far though, surfing the web using Chrome on the Shift is proving to be a far more pleasant experience (for me at least) than IE or Firefox.
Regards,
Dave
I absolutely agree....
...but in the meanwhile I prefer to use broswers whose bugs are often fixed allthough it's clear that there are unknown or not jet discovered vulnerabilities.
But it's still just my opinion.
Best solution would be to keep an eye on what happens on some sites like securityfocus.org.
Best regards

[Q] Multiple users on Acer tablet?

I am looking at getting the Acer Iconia tablet. It would be something my wife and I would share around the house (i.e. in the living room so both of us could use it when we wish). So how does Android Honeycomb handle multiple users? I assume we wouldn't each have a 'logon' ID? But I am just wondering how my wife could keep her bookmarks, email, etc on it along with mine. For instance, I might come in, use it a bit to get email, browse the internet, run some apps, etc. Then later my wife might pick it up and want to do the same thing, but use her email and browser settings, etc.
How is that handled in Android?
/Tom (Chimp)
hi,
in the windows world we would call that profiles, as far a i know this doesn't exist (yet?) at the operating system level. I would love to have it.
Firefox mobile has a 'mobile profiles' addon but it didn't work correctly for me.
I could switch account but not switch back.
cheers
monki-magic said:
hi,
in the windows world we would call that profiles, as far a i know this doesn't exist (yet?) at the operating system level. I would love to have it.
Firefox mobile has a 'mobile profiles' addon but it didn't work correctly for me.
I could switch account but not switch back.
cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Crap... so we are saying any Android tablet is basically a one-user tablet? It's weird that Google would build it that way...
SimpTheChimp said:
Crap... so we are saying any Android tablet is basically a one-user tablet? It's weird that Google would build it that way...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Especially considering Linux has no issue supporting multiple users.
Well, shucks, I guess I won't be getting a tablet. I don't feel like buying two of them...
I found out that even the iPad is the same way! Bad design for tablets, Google and Apple. (Although I love my Android phone - that was why I was looking at the Acer tablet!)
Provided you're not having an affair, and email would be the main thing you'd want compartmentalized, you could just use two different email apps or no?
The current state of tablet OS's is really smartphones writ large. They're (again, currently) very personal electronics. There are a handful of Windows-based tablets which should support multiple user profiles etc, but they tend to suffer from GUIs intended for larger monitors & smaller pointers (single pixel precision mice and/or stylus.)
While linux certainly has no problem with simultaneous users, much less multiple profiles, keep in mind we're dealing with systems which have problems dealing with expandable memory (again, only at this time.) At least Android has SD card support without an external add-on.
Given enough feedback from users, eventually tablet OS makers will design in multiple user profiles, probably starting with apps & profiles loaded off memory cards or from "the cloud". But I wouldn't honestly expect it to happen until tablets became very thin internet clients.
For now the tablet market is still very much in an early adoption phase, no one's really sure of the "final" shape of tablets and their usage at this time, but coming at them from a "more portable laptop" design goal could lead to what you're looking for.
TLDR: Not yet aside from Windows tablets but eventually, maybe
This could be an interesting dev project for someone. Isn't it just a case of having an app that would remount /data depending on the selected user? Granted root would be required for it to work but it certainly sounds feasible.
I certainly don't have the time or skill to do this myself, but I will throw this around in the dev forum to see what people with actual skill and knowledge of Android/Linux think.
I saw something about multiple user handling.... It is in a "how to" document posted by L.t.r. consulting. (I'm to new on XDA to be allowed to post outside links, so you have to Google it)
It is made for the Nook Color device but could be at god starting point.
Email should be no problem. The stock Email client will allow you to link to multiple Email accounts, so as long as both have individual Email accounts, they can read them seperately. They would not be able to keep each other out of thier Email since it is in the same client. Also, if they use WEB mail, they can then read thier mail without allowing the other on thier account. As for browsing, I believe that some of the browsers allow grouping of links, so each could setup thier own group with thier own links.
This might be the answer until multi accounts are added natively to the tablets.
http://www.enterproid.com/index.html
I use my Iconia together with my wife and I just set up an extra gmail account so she can read her mail alongside mine. It's important not to want to hide anything from eachother in such a setup though. I also found a twitterclient that allows to setup multiple accounts (tweetcaster). So, in the end it's doable but not practical.
There is an issue on the Android bug tracker which you can star to help raise awareness of the lack of multi-user support
(I can't post links which is irritating, but...)
code.google.com/p/android/issues/detail?id=15030
The Viewsonic Tablet has multi-user functionality.
I would have thought it would be stock in all. Maybe it's in a custom ROM. I'll gop look.
dan
SimpTheChimp said:
Well, shucks, I guess I won't be getting a tablet. I don't feel like buying two of them...
I found out that even the iPad is the same way! Bad design for tablets, Google and Apple. (Although I love my Android phone - that was why I was looking at the Acer tablet!)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, there is an aplication called Switch Me, here in xda in the themes forum, is in beta fase but it makes what youre looking for, an they need testers so I think you need to give a try on this.

Big Browser Test Plan

I want to make a (more recent) comparison of web browsers available to us on the ASUS TF101 and TF201 tablets, something that is useful. In my experience we don't have all that many threads that are Really Good on this subject, that don't get bogged down with noise and opinion drowning out the signal after a while.
The browsers, web sites, and procedures I will use for testing are being collected HERE as they are written.
I am open to suggestions of things to test as long as they don't cost me $$$, are legit, and hopefully widely used by communities of people in general. If it has issues with the stock browser in HC/ICS/GB/Froyo in fast/simple usage, like crashy crashy! Then I am more likely to test a suggestion.
Note for mods: this is cross posted in the forum for both tablets.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
One test i would like to see is which browsers you can put into desktop mode and fool HULU with.
Neither. Hulu knows it's an android because you're running an android version of flash.
Joey563 said:
One test i would like to see is which browsers you can put into desktop mode and fool HULU with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep, its the Flash version that matters.
In the Apps forum there's a hacked Flash plugin that works with Hulu.
@topic
Great idea. Looking forward for the results.
The things that i'd like to see reviewed are the rendering speed and image quality while browsing.
Speed will be noted somehow but I really don't know how to scientifically do image quality, past "Looks ...." to me, lol.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
Lifehacker is a good website to test. See if any browser can reproduce the two different scrollable objects properly, like it would be on a browser in Windows or Mac. A lot of browsers will simply choose to lock the two scrollable columns into the page, such that if you try to scroll one, the other follows.
I'd suggest testing a website like Verizonwireless.com, specifically the Explore, Shop, My Verizon, and Support buttons. On a computer, a mouse-over shows a drop-down menu, and a click takes you to the next page. The iPad does this very smart where tapping once on "Shop" for instance will bring down the dropdown menu, tapping it once more will take you to the webpage it links to. So far, the Android browsers I've tried have an awkward execution for this mouse-over effect where you have to hold the button like "Shop" for around half a second and then swipe away your finger to avoid going to the link it points to. See if you can find a browser that works mouse-over in a similar fashion to Safari.
+1 for lifehacker/deadspin/gizmodo sometimes (usually) first load is a blank screen and I have to hit reload. After reload its marginally functional, but not 100%
Also try facebook in desktop or iPad mode... Some stuff works well... Other stuff is total fail, like inviting people to events.
I'll post more as I remember them. I've actually been thinking of making a list like this, but you beat me to it.
Edit: thought of one more: google docs... Word processor, spreadsheets, the whole lot of them...
Spidey,
One thing I find very helpful in web browsing on my Transformer is the ability of a browser to scroll using the scroll wheel on a bluetooth mouse. I've noticed some browsers will scroll with the mouse, and some will not.
If possible, during your testing, you might want to add that as a yes/no feature, it would only take moments to test and include in your results.
Thanks for taking this on, I'm looking forward to your results/conclusions, and the inevitable "discussions" that will follow, either agreeing or disagreeing with your results.
Hi!
Can you test logmein.com as well? In stock and Dolphin it is not working.
I know there is .apk for Android, but it's costly.
@ERamseth gdocs is on my list and whenever possible I'll be testing desktop versions of sites. Can't say that I use Facebook very deeply though so a grain of salt may be needed..
@dm36415 Sorry, don't have any bluetooth mice to test with but great suggestion!] If the Windows box doesn't get pissy maybe I can try yanking my wired one off the desktop, but I can only test that on the TF101 as my Prime won't be getting a dock for a while :-(.
@stenc55 my word that site pissed off the stock browser, just trying to scroll the front page. Not sure how much I can test it but I'll try. Out side of Opera/Firefox, everything will probably barf at it though, and those two might as well lol.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
Are you just planning on testing rendering quality/performance, or are you going to sum up some of the other UI features that get mentioned (how tabs work, gesture support, how fluid/laggy scrolling down the page is, is there an incognito mode, etc)
How easy/difficult to import bookmarks from a PC browser, with or without folders.
Most browsers use the same back end as the stock browser, i.e. they do about as much work as Maxthon used to do. So the most use on quality/performance I can give versus the stock, I'm sure will usually be load times and usability. Opera & Firefox are the only two that I know of who bring their own magic for the back end. Unless I get something like native libs in the app data to suggest they included their own rendering engine, I'm marking it as "Stock".
I've been testing the Prime's stock browser, Angel, and Boat for part of the day in between taking care of my mother. Current data that I've recorded:
App name (in launcher, usually), market page, version tested, demographic (mobile, tablet, ...), rendering engine, approximate start time and page load times, exit method (menu, closing last tab, etc), available user agent settings, bookmark storage, sync, and folder support, gesture support, quick control support, plugin support, password remembered, speed dial support, max # of tabs, and "Editorial Remarks" like what I've written for Angel Browser:
My remarks on Angel Browser said:
Has a handy sidebar on the left, similar to what you can do in Opera Desktop; quick controls interfere with sidebar.
You can configure what toolbars are visible.
You can configure by pattern, what app handles what URL.
You can configure by pattern, what UA is given for what URL
You can configure the heck out of what clicking stuff does.
You can configure where most data is stored.
You can configure quick controls, UI, and most everything.
Bookmarks UI can have ads unless you purchase the Angel Browser License app.
Handy scroll down button (by default).
Has "Notes" and "Read Later" features.
Good alternative to the stock browsers UX.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For websites tested, App/Site/Load Time/Rendering/Date and Editorial remarks are also being made for websites, like this one for the stock ICS browser on the Prime:
Prone to crashing and input lag
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For rendering, it's mostly focused on does it look/work like the desktop site and is it usable? For example, mail.google.com is gitchy in Boat browser and may give you a seizure.
Try editing a document in Google Docs (right now in every browser I tested it's almost impossible and does really strange things).
Note well: I no longer have a TF101 available so tests off TF201 by me are scrapped. People seem to have settled down post Chrome on ICS enough that I may just scrap it totally. If someone would like to pick up on TF101, PM me with your Google Docs address.
Sent from my Transformer Prime TF201 using Tapatalk
Zooming, text reflowing and hardware acceleration.
The most important aspects of a browser, and the only browser that does these properly on mobile, is Opera.

is this all there is?

I have loved Android for years, and have a Cube T9 that has been my primary tablet. I purchased the Remix Ultra with the expectation of improving my business productivity.
So far underwhelmed would be the operative word, even though it is a beautiful tablet keyboard combo, very well made. and the price was right.
I think the most disappointing thing is there are so few apps that have the ability to become smaller and actually float on the screen and give you a true multi-tasking enviroment. And some of my favorites I have used for years ...like Quickpic, lose their settings entirely once installed to the Ultra. They work, but only one way ...no setting to adjust anything within the app itself.
I may go back to version 1.5, although I am thinking it will be the same, other than the fact I would have the more traditional Droid settings options, and a widget to tell me that the app I am using does not use phone mode.
I welcome all comments. I really want to love this OS.
Thanks,
BamaPanda
In searching the features of 2.0, I have found that swiping down from the top of the application when in full screen gives the option of the phone sized window ...on some apps.
The Quickpic app. I mentioned above is one that does shrink down to the phone window, and oddly ...when in the phone sized option, the settings return. Others I have tried ...such as the Chrome I am typing in ...do not shrink down.
So it looks like I just could be on a quest for a while to get as many apps as can be found that will do the phone windows trick.
Thanks for following. Hopefully my discovery will help others using 2.0.
So since I was able to discover a feature in ver. 2.0, I wonder if anyone knows how to get into developer mode.
I did find a way to access it through Malwarebytes, but would rather be able to access it directly.
This has links to being able install a micro SD card, and then properly removing the card. There is ability to do an unmount of the card in the current setup for settings, but it is virtually hidden.
@BamaPanda - First of all, thanks so much for your interest and support!
Now, onto your issues. I actually still use my Ultratablet, but less so now because of also testing our Remix OS for PC software. For my basic productivity needs, it's been fine. Can you tell me specifically what apps and issues you're having? Maybe just give me 3 more besides the one you mentioned and I'll see if there may be troubleshooting tips I can give you.
Thanks!
---------- Post added at 10:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:43 AM ----------
BamaPanda said:
So since I was able to discover a feature in ver. 2.0, I wonder if anyone knows how to get into developer mode.
I did find a way to access it through Malwarebytes, but would rather be able to access it directly.
This has links to being able install a micro SD card, and then properly removing the card. There is ability to do an unmount of the card in the current setup for settings, but it is virtually hidden.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This should help you get into developer mode:
http://support.jide.com/hc/en-us/articles/214776168-How-to-enable-USB-debugging-on-Remix-Mini-
Thanks.
That worked. Now that I know that and the pull down trick to get an app (possibly) into phone window mode, I am sure I can continue to work with the OS.
I apologise for getting a bit anxious regarding the tab and its settings/ shortcuts. I had watched videos about all Remix could do, and I think I just expected there to more info out there.
RemixOS_Jason said:
@BamaPanda - First of all, thanks so much for your interest and support!
Now, onto your issues. I actually still use my Ultratablet, but less so now because of also testing our Remix OS for PC software. For my basic productivity needs, it's been fine. Can you tell me specifically what apps and issues you're having? Maybe just give me 3 more besides the one you mentioned and I'll see if there may be troubleshooting tips I can give you.
Thanks!
---------- Post added at 10:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:43 AM ----------
This should help you get into developer mode:
http://support.jide.com/hc/en-us/articles/214776168-How-to-enable-USB-debugging-on-Remix-Mini-
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
As far as apps, do you know a particular mail app that will do the phone window? The one loaded with version 2.0 is full screen only. The mail app loaded is the same I have used, but if there is one that does the smaller window, it might be good.
Also right now I am using Polaris to take care of word and excel. The actual `Word` and `Excel` apps from Microsoft ...do they do the phone mode?
Thanks. I do hope attention and updates will continue for the Ultra Tablet, as I can see the big interest for the PC application of the OS maybe overshadowing the tablet support a bit.
Hopefully tablet support will continue, especially since there is a Pro tablet in the works.
BamaPanda said:
Thanks.
As far as apps, do you know a particular mail app that will do the phone window? The one loaded with version 2.0 is full screen only. The mail app loaded is the same I have used, but if there is one that does the smaller window, it might be good.
Also right now I am using Polaris to take care of word and excel. The actual `Word` and `Excel` apps from Microsoft ...do they do the phone mode?
Thanks. I do hope attention and updates will continue for the Ultra Tablet, as I can see the big interest for the PC application of the OS maybe overshadowing the tablet support a bit.
Hopefully tablet support will continue, especially since there is a Pro tablet in the works.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@BamaPanda -
1) Email apps/windowed mode - Have you checked whether or not you've enabled windowed mode? Go to 'Settings > Applications > find your app' and then click it for 'App info' and deselect Open in fullscreen mode. See if this helps.
2) Yes, they do. Here's a tip to optimize your experience. After you download Word for example, resize it after you open up a document to it's smallest size possible. Then, restart the app. You can now set it in whatever size you'd like moving forward. You may do this with Excel and PPT as well.
3) Ultratablet will continue to receive updates and support from us. I use mine constantly still.
The tablet/keyboard is starting to grow on me. it is a good bit heavier than my Cube T9, but it should be for it's size.
Looks like it will be my back porch/table top wireless tablet of choice. The keyboard is great, response is perfect. I will use my Cube more for handheld use.
Not as fast as the Cube in many ways, but still a great tablet. Build is top notch!
Still learning, and I will post more things I learn in the hints post I made as I move forward.
Thanks for the help and understanding.
RemixOS_Jason said:
@BamaPanda - First of all, thanks so much for your interest and support!
Now, onto your issues. I actually still use my Ultratablet, but less so now because of also testing our Remix OS for PC software. For my basic productivity needs, it's been fine. Can you tell me specifically what apps and issues you're having? Maybe just give me 3 more besides the one you mentioned and I'll see if there may be troubleshooting tips I can give you.
Thanks!
---------- Post added at 10:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:43 AM ----------
This should help you get into developer mode:
http://support.jide.com/hc/en-us/articles/214776168-How-to-enable-USB-debugging-on-Remix-Mini-
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First..thanks for your time, Jason.
Question. Any plans for widgets?
Many seem to be asking, and I figured you might have an idea.
Thank you.
BamaPanda said:
First..thanks for your time, Jason.
Question. Any plans for widgets?
Many seem to be asking, and I figured you might have an idea.
Thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@BamaPanda - We did have Widget support for a couple of versions when Remix OS 2.0 just got launched for Ultratablet. However, we noticed that folks just weren't using Widgets much. So, although Widget supporters were very vocal, there wasn't much actual usage. It also takes resources to maintain Widget support. Thus, the PMs made a decision to take this feature out in later releases. Thanks!
RemixOS_Jason said:
@BamaPanda - We did have Widget support for a couple of versions when Remix OS 2.0 just got launched for Ultratablet. However, we noticed that folks just weren't using Widgets much. So, although Widget supporters were very vocal, there wasn't much actual usage. It also takes resources to maintain Widget support. Thus, the PMs made a decision to take this feature out in later releases. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I for one would use them, as they do give quick visual access to info.
Thanks for your reply.
BamaPanda said:
I for one would use them, as they do give quick visual access to info.
Thanks for your reply.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
RemixOS_Jason said:
@BamaPanda - We did have Widget support for a couple of versions when Remix OS 2.0 just got launched for Ultratablet. However, we noticed that folks just weren't using Widgets much. So, although Widget supporters were very vocal, there wasn't much actual usage. It also takes resources to maintain Widget support. Thus, the PMs made a decision to take this feature out in later releases. Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Jason..
I watched an older video on keyboard shortcuts done by you.
Is there a keyboard shortcut to awaken the screen from the keyboard once asleep? I had thought the key directly above the 6 was it, but apparently not.
Thank you.
BamaPanda, not sure if you've already noticed this, but the keyboard button with three horizontal lines, located above the '8' key, opens the menu in some apps. unfortunately it doesn't work with quickpics, which is annoying. (i also use it -- i just have to switch to phone mode to access the menu.)
i forget which apps this button works for -- but if you're ever in that situation give it a try. you could also submit feedback to the app developer because this is something they can fix to make their app usable for tablets. sometimes that actually works!
you should probably wait nougat becoming mainstream and chrome os playstore being widely available on chromebooks.then things will become interesting.

Stock Rom: Unreadable status bar with Firefox

When running Firefox on the stock rom, the status bar turns white while the text remains white so that the time, date, signal, and other status bar items are unreadable. I tried changing the system themes and the Firefox themes without any change. Is there any other possible solution to force the status bar to any color other than white with Firefox? I guess I could use an unofficial build, but I wanted to try out the play store version for a while.
dweekie said:
When running Firefox on the stock rom, the status bar turns white while the text remains white so that the time, date, signal, and other status bar items are unreadable. I tried changing the system themes and the Firefox themes without any change. Is there any other possible solution to force the status bar to any color other than white with Firefox? I guess I could use an unofficial build, but I wanted to try out the play store version for a while.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is a known Firefox bug, and they are working on it. If you must use Firefox, install the beta version, which will give the fix a little quicker.
Firefox is my favorite browser on desktops. But, It's still a little too buggy for me on Android.
tsongming said:
This is a known Firefox bug, and they are working on it. If you must use Firefox, install the beta version, which will give the fix a little quicker.
Firefox is my favorite browser on desktops. But, It's still a little too buggy for me on Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks, I guess I'll have to be patient since the beta and nightlies exhibit the same result.
I thought Firefox Focus was great and wanted to try Firefox Quantum across the platforms after years of using mainly Chrome. Chrome for Android still freezes and crashes on pages with heavy ads (including ESPN), and it has been that case for years. I'm still not sure why....
dweekie said:
Thanks, I guess I'll have to be patient since the beta and nightlies exhibit the same result.
I thought Firefox Focus was great and wanted to try Firefox Quantum across the platforms after years of using mainly Chrome. Chrome for Android still freezes and crashes on pages with heavy ads (including ESPN), and it has been that case for years. I'm still not sure why....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you update to 5.8.21s ?
If so force close the browser and clear the cache in the browser app settings
Also try the stock browser, it's pretty decent.
dweekie said:
Thanks, I guess I'll have to be patient since the beta and nightlies exhibit the same result.
I thought Firefox Focus was great and wanted to try Firefox Quantum across the platforms after years of using mainly Chrome. Chrome for Android still freezes and crashes on pages with heavy ads (including ESPN), and it has been that case for years. I'm still not sure why....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried ESPN and it works just fine. I've got a Pro3 Elite (x722) with a SD820 on 20s (a cleaned vendor ROM from Banggood). Then again, I've uninstalled all LeEco apps, save for Phone and Contacts, and I'm running Adguard for adblocking. You really need VPN adblocking, my friend. It will revolutionize the way you browse on mobile. And I'm not talking about uBlock Origin on Firefox for Android, which isn't always reliable (sometimes it simply doesn't load).
Either that, or try a browser that supports adblockers natively, like Samsung Internet. Firefox Quantum on desktop is great--I'm using it right now, but FF for Android sucks. You can try Waterfox, a popular fork of Firefox. It has an Android app too.
tsongming said:
Did you update to 5.8.21s ?
If so force close the browser and clear the cache in the browser app settings
Also try the stock browser, it's pretty decent.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
sk8223 said:
I tried ESPN and it works just fine. I've got a Pro3 Elite (x722) with a SD820 on 20s (a cleaned vendor ROM from Banggood). Then again, I've uninstalled all LeEco apps, save for Phone and Contacts, and I'm running Adguard for adblocking. You really need VPN adblocking, my friend. It will revolutionize the way you browse on mobile. And I'm not talking about uBlock Origin on Firefox for Android, which isn't always reliable (sometimes it simply doesn't load).
Either that, or try a browser that supports adblockers natively, like Samsung Internet. Firefox Quantum on desktop is great--I'm using it right now, but FF for Android sucks. You can try Waterfox, a popular fork of Firefox. It has an Android app too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on 21s. The Chrome freezing bug has been recurring for years as far as I can remember, through my Nexus 4, 5, 6, and 6P. I think adblocking helped, but it still freezes regularly on some sites.
I installed AdGuard Premium and am still testing it (page loading delays and errors, battery, whitelisting, etc). I may just break down and root this phone to compare to Adaway for fun. I've been hesitant to try custom roms as I prefer maximum battery life over other benefits.
LeEco was a slight deviation and a breath of fresh air for battery life. It's just annoying to have merely a few months of software support from the company.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
dweekie said:
I'm on 21s. The Chrome freezing bug has been recurring for years as far as I can remember, through my Nexus 4, 5, 6, and 6P. I think adblocking helped, but it still freezes regularly on some sites.
I installed AdGuard Premium and am still testing it (page loading delays and errors, battery, whitelisting, etc). I may just break down and root this phone to compare to Adaway for fun. I've been hesitant to try custom roms as I prefer maximum battery life over other benefits.
LeEco was a slight deviation and a breath of fresh air for battery life. It's just annoying to have merely a few months of software support from the company.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Adaway is pretty fantastic. In fact, I haven't seen ads since installing it. You do a have a few options for ad blocking without rooting: Brokada is excellent, and blocks Ads in apps as well. But, you will see the occasional ad.
Another non root option is Ad Clear, which places a firewall on IPV6. I haven't used AdGuard premium, is there no where in the settings for filter addons/updates or firewall blocking?
If you decide root the phone, be very careful if you haven't gone through extended steps of unlocking the bootloader. As you know, you could brick your device.
If you decide to go for it. I recommend AICP, or Omnirom both will give you continued long battery life, and allows you to use the Pixel Modded camera with zero issues.
If you need help with unlocking your bootloader, rom installation and rooting, let me know and I can send you detailed instructions. Just so you know once you unlock the bootloader and install Twrp, the rest is easy and you can always return to stock if wanted.
dweekie said:
I'm on 21s. The Chrome freezing bug has been recurring for years as far as I can remember, through my Nexus 4, 5, 6, and 6P. I think adblocking helped, but it still freezes regularly on some sites.
I installed AdGuard Premium and am still testing it (page loading delays and errors, battery, whitelisting, etc). I may just break down and root this phone to compare to Adaway for fun. I've been hesitant to try custom roms as I prefer maximum battery life over other benefits.
LeEco was a slight deviation and a breath of fresh air for battery life. It's just annoying to have merely a few months of software support from the company.
Thanks for all the suggestions!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Chrome freezing in general, or just on ESPN? If it still happens with adblocking, then the issue lies with ESPN. They're not doing a proper job of optimizing their mobile page for Android. As for Chrome freezing in general, I've never seen that happen... well, except when trying to type a reply on reddit in desktop mode. Then again, I don't visit any heavy websites. Just a lot of text-based ones.
I used to use Adaway a lot, but the lack of good lists for it makes it kind of... useless. Like it doesn't block ads in the mobile version of Google.com. Or mobile version Twitter ads or sponsored tweets. It's nowhere near as useful as, say uBlock for your PC or Firefox Android (whenever it works). It's up to you to create a list of your own with all those blocked elements. Neither do AdGuard, DNS66, or Blockada, for that matter. Mobile adblocking is still in its infancy, unfortunately.
sk8223 said:
Chrome freezing in general, or just on ESPN? If it still happens with adblocking, then the issue lies with ESPN. They're not doing a proper job of optimizing their mobile page for Android. As for Chrome freezing in general, I've never seen that happen... well, except when trying to type a reply on reddit in desktop mode. Then again, I don't visit any heavy websites. Just a lot of text-based ones.
I used to use Adaway a lot, but the lack of good lists for it makes it kind of... useless. Like it doesn't block ads in the mobile version of Google.com. Or mobile version Twitter ads or sponsored tweets. It's nowhere near as useful as, say uBlock for your PC or Firefox Android (whenever it works). It's up to you to create a list of your own with all those blocked elements. Neither do AdGuard, DNS66, or Blockada, for that matter. Mobile adblocking is still in its infancy, unfortunately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AdClear is the strongest ad blocker app that I have used. But, it seems to sometimes cause applications to hang.
The newest version of Adaway is very good. But, for it to work extremely well, I update the host files daily and use my own filter links.
I tried DNS666 and didn't see any blocking at all. There is a Adblock module that can be installed through Magisk called: Unified Hosts. Install that in conjunction with Adaway and you will not see ads.
Yeah, the issue is that Adaway, DNS66 and Blockada depend on hosts files and I haven't found any thorough ones yet. The repositories uBlock Origin uses aren't hosts files AFAIK and you'd have to convert them to hosts files for use with those apps. Adguard will accept uBlock filters though.
sk8223 said:
Yeah, the issue is that Adaway, DNS66 and Blockada depend on hosts files and I haven't found any thorough ones yet. The repositories uBlock Origin uses aren't hosts files AFAIK and you'd have to convert them to hosts files for use with those apps. Adguard will accept uBlock filters though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AdAway now has the ability to use links.
Here is an excellent source for links updated daily: https://github.com/StevenBlack/hosts
Go down the page to : Sources of hosts data unified in this variant
Use can either use the link and add Adaways user links, or you can generate you own host files by using tool here: https://hostsaway.appspot.com/
Note:
This page is in Japanese, it will convert to English if you set Chrome to always translate Japanese to English.
Instructions here: https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/173424?co=GENIE.Platform=Desktop&hl=en
sk8223 said:
Chrome freezing in general, or just on ESPN? If it still happens with adblocking, then the issue lies with ESPN. They're not doing a proper job of optimizing their mobile page for Android. As for Chrome freezing in general, I've never seen that happen... well, except when trying to type a reply on reddit in desktop mode. Then again, I don't visit any heavy websites. Just a lot of text-based ones.
I used to use Adaway a lot, but the lack of good lists for it makes it kind of... useless. Like it doesn't block ads in the mobile version of Google.com. Or mobile version Twitter ads or sponsored tweets. It's nowhere near as useful as, say uBlock for your PC or Firefox Android (whenever it works). It's up to you to create a list of your own with all those blocked elements. Neither do AdGuard, DNS66, or Blockada, for that matter. Mobile adblocking is still in its infancy, unfortunately.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's a lot of random sites as well as ESPN; Business Insider is another one that will hang on me randomly. Adguard defaults don't prevent it. I've kind of just accepted Chrome freezing as normal expected behavior over the years.
Thanks for all the input everyone. I haven't really explored VPN adblocking prior to this thread, but I'll definitely play around with it further. I am rather curious what to expect from Chrome's built-in minimal adblocker in the future. I'm actually okay with some ads to support websites, but the bad ones truly ruin it for everyone.
dweekie said:
It's a lot of random sites as well as ESPN; Business Insider is another one that will hang on me randomly. Adguard defaults don't prevent it. I've kind of just accepted Chrome freezing as normal expected behavior over the years.
Thanks for all the input everyone. I haven't really explored VPN adblocking prior to this thread, but I'll definitely play around with it further. I am rather curious what to expect from Chrome's built-in minimal adblocker in the future. I'm actually okay with some ads to support websites, but the bad ones truly ruin it for everyone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It could be a number of things. Again, uninstall LeEco bloatware via adb. Try other browsers like Samsung Internet, which is purportedly much faster than Chrome. And use it with an adblocking add-on like Adhell. I doubt Chrome's adblocker will be very effective, considering that Google makes the bulk of its money from ad revenue and those Analytics scripts aren't exactly lightweight.
Record your screen and visit those sites in Chrome. I'm curious about how bad it gets.
I'm with you about supporting websites through ads, but too many websites run ridiculous ads that drive up your CPU use. And what about all those stupid websites that use cryptomining ads? No thanks. As long as the ad industry stays shady, and websites aren't transparent about the ads they run, I'm going to keep using an adblocker.

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