Often, when I load up Safari on my iPad, it’ll take a while to allow me to type in anything. I removed a number of “optimizations” that were clearly hitting some timeouts and holding up my device from becoming responsive. It’s only in Safari, Firefox loads fine. It’s been difficult to reproduce, yet quite annoying. Still, I keep using Safari on my iOS devices. Why? I use Firefox on my Mac, so why would I use Safari on iOS and iPadOS? Because, if I want the best blend of privacy, ad blocking, and ease of use on mobile, I have to. It’s not because Safari is any better at that, it’s because of artificial limitations Apple places on other browsers.
Third party browsers on iOS use the same rendering engine as Safari. This is an improvement over what Apple used to do, surprisingly. In the past, Apple only allowed its fastest rendering engine on Safari. The others had to use a much slower rendering engine. Still, every browser must use the same engine on iOS, even if they’d typically use something much different on a desktop, like Firefox. This already means Firefox’s own privacy and performance improvements are left behind. On top of that, Apple doesn’t allow third party browsers to have access to content blockers or other extensions. That means I can block tracking cookies, cross-site scripts, and ads on Safari, but not on Firefox. I can skip navigating to Google’s “AMP” pages to get a Google-free experience on my desktop version of Firefox. On Firefox for iOS, I can’t.
So what do I want for iOS 17? I want Firefox for the iPhone, the real Firefox.
Apple Blocking Blockers
If you’re not using content blockers on iOS, you should really get on that. The original ad blockers just hid the ads. They still had to download, they just wouldn’t be rendered on the screen. That was okay, back in the day. However, since then, ads have gotten invasive. They spy on everything you do to report back to Google or Facebook or Amazon, and then they send you more relevant suggestions or ads. It’s a privacy nightmare. Content blockers, however, can stop those ads from ever loading. They’re one of many tools you can use to reclaim a little bit of privacy online. I personally use 1Blocker on iOS alongside NordVPN, which also blocks many ads. You can find extensions in the App Store, and enable content blocking (or find new extensions) in Settings -> Safari -> Extensions -> More Extensions.
These are wonderful tools to protect yourself online (just be sure to read their privacy policies too!). But you can’t use them on other browsers. Even browsers that typically focus on privacy and would like to build content blocking and other features into their browsers cannot. Some companies have released VPN clients that can block ads, but these often aren’t as customizable and come with their own problems with ads that block access to content. Apple’s the only reason these companies can’t use content blockers and other extensions. In fact, they’re also the only reason Mozilla can’t use their actual Firefox rendering engine. However, there may be hope on the horizon.
Gecko and Blink and More!
Different rendering engines could offer more performance or privacy over Apple’s own Safari. Firefox, for example, has tab containers that can isolate your browsing history between tabs. This can help prevent tabs related to Facebook or Google tracking you elsewhere. They also have their own add-ons and extensions, with a far more robust library than Apple’s. In other words, they’re the competition. It’s possible that Apple knows they can’t fairly compete with the competition, so they won’t.
“We abide by Apple’s iOS app store policies, and are simply doing some exploratory work to understand the technical challenges for Gecko-based browsers on iOS if those policies were to change. We hope the day will come when people can freely decide to use the browser of their choice, including the opportunity to select the engine that underpins it.”
– A Mozilla spokesperson speaking to The Register
Mozilla and Google are reportedly already working on iOS browsers that feature their own rendering engines instead of Apple’s. Both companies have reportedly been working on their own native rendering engines for iOS for months now, in preparation for the day Apple lifts their mandate. If Apple does allow this more direct competition on their platform, either through an antitrust law or by choice, then we could see new versions of Firefox and Google’s Chrome browser quickly.
This is all I really want in iOS 17. Sure, I have pie-in-the-sky hopes too, like truly customizable home screens, a customizable lock screen on the iPad, or actual bug fixes, but I know that’s not likely (or is it?). But they could potentially extend extension support to third party browsers. That alone would be an improvement. Or, to avoid potential issues with regulators in the EU, they may abandon their iOS rendering engine monopoly and open the platform to the competition. Something tells me Apple’s going to have to be dragged kicking and screaming for that though, just as they have been through the transition to USB-C.
I look forward to a more diverse and open iOS experience. And I certainly look forward to using the true version of the best browser around: Firefox.
Sources:
- Hartley Charlton, MacRumors
- Thomas Claburn, The Register
- Andrew Cunningham, Ars Technica