uBlock Origin will Block Ads, Pop Ups and Trackers. Plus Improve your Browsing Speed. Build for Chrome, Safari, Firefox. This free, open-source ad-blocker had its humble beginnings in 2014 when Raymond Hill, founder and lead developer, created the original uBlock Origin browser extension. When it was released in June of that year, it was only available as an exclusive Chrome and Opera extension, but over the years it has expanded to other browsers and picked up serious momentum. Despite being short on features and hollow on support, uBlock Origin does its job well, and remains an esteemed service.
Like all providers on the market, uBlock Origin’s mission statement is to optimize the web browsing experience by blocking ads, which in turn improves page-load times and bolsters user privacy. uBlock Origin is completely free, however, and this fact is worth bearing in mind. With that said, the extension’s ability to filter content and eliminate privacy invading elements is impressive. uBlock Origin’s battles can also be monitored from a clean, responsive control panel that displays how many ads and cookies, etc, have been thwarted.
Detect which websites are safe and can be trusted. Block malware websites and downloads.
Adware is malicous software that automatically displays or downloads advertising material such as banners or pop-ups.
uBlock Origin has an ethereal quality, and therefore carries a small memory footprint and low CPU overhead. In fact, according to the extension’s website, it could save consumers $1.8 billion per year globally. (And energy conservation tech is always cool). While uBlock Origin isn’t feature-heavy by any means, it does have a handy one-click element zapper for eliminating ads (manually) in real time. As for an Acceptable Ads tool, there isn’t one. If you’re a merciless, non-discriminating ad-killer, this of course won’t be an issue. But if you prefer to support your favourite (trusted) websites, it’s perhaps worth taking note of.
As we’ve already covered in the ‘Value for Money’ section above, uBlock Origin is a free service (it doesn’t even accept donations), and for that reason it’s unsurprisingly free of any customer service. So don’t expect anything near the industry standard platforms. If you’re after even the basics like phone and email support (features which help create a bit more peace of mind), then you really need to head in other directions to scout out a more-rounded service.
