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What browser(s) should I use? (beehaw.org)
submitted 11 months ago by to c/technology@beehaw.org
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I came across a Tumblr post detailing how to disable AI "features" in Firefox as of 11/20/25 and I'm expecting an arms race of new/changed fields vs new strategies to disable them. So I wanted to ask, what would you recommend a lifelong Firefox user use, for PC and Android?

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[–] 22 points 11 months ago (8 children)

Librewolf (PC) or Fennec (Android) if you want to stay in the Firefox ecosystem. Vivaldi if you don't mind A Chrome based browser.

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  • [–] 7 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) (3 children)

    A proprietary chrome based browser that is. But nevertheless one that seems to superior I'm considering seeking refuge there until Servo is ready.

    After a few months in LibreWolf I still don't feel at home.

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  • [–] 4 points 11 months ago

    I moved from Chrome to Firefox / Fennec to Vivaldi for Windows and Android, and after disabling a lot of the UI bloat I've honestly not had an issue with it. Synced tabs across devices, fast performance, and built in ad-blocking with option to add extensions.

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  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago

    IIRC the only portion of Vivaldi that isn't open source is their UI code, for what that's worth. Guess they want to keep an edge there? I'm Currently migrating my Android from Vivaldi to Brave; using xBrowserSync (bookmarks), Proton Pass (passwords), and KDE Connect to keep it synchronized to desktop (debian 13 using KDE Plasma) instead of Vivaldi's sync. Kind of a pain after using a single service for some time but I don't trust anyone anymore.

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  • [+] 7 points 11 months ago (3 children)
    [deleted]
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  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    Can you explain why it's better?

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    • [–] [S] 21 points 11 months ago (4 children)

    The Tumblr post:

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  • [–] [S] 18 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    The fields:

    browser.ml.enable browser.ml.chat.enabled browser.ml.chat.menu browser.ml.chat.page browser.ml.chat.page.footerBadge browser.ml.chat.page.menuBadge browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled browser.ml.pageAssist.enabled browser.tabs.groups.smart.enabled browser.tabs.groups.smart.userEnabled extensions.ml.enabled browser.search.visualSearch.featureGate

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  • [–] 13 points 11 months ago*

    If you add three back ticks (```) to the beginning and end of the list, it will format as a code block instead of a bunch of links

    browser.ml.enable
browser.ml.chat.enabled
browser.ml.chat.menu
browser.ml.chat.page
browser.ml.chat.page.footerBadge
browser.ml.chat.page.menuBadge
browser.ml.linkPreview.enabled
browser.ml.pageAssist.enabled
browser.tabs.groups.smart.enabled
browser.tabs.groups.smart.userEnabled
extensions.ml.enabled
browser.search.visualSearch.featureGate
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  • [–] 10 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Interesting that I had a lot of these already set to False and I definitely haven't gone through this process before. Maybe there was a prompt somewhere that I said no to?

    Appreciate the list though just to be extra sure!

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    • [–] 16 points 11 months ago (3 children)

    Any of the options already discussed here except Brave.

    https://www.spacebar.news/stop-using-brave-browser/

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  • [–] -1 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    Oh there's no doubt he's a really bad dude, but his browser is the most secure and best overall. I choose the browser.

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    • [–] 13 points 11 months ago

    LibraWolf and IronFox

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    [–] 8 points 11 months ago* (1 child)

    Zen browser! It’s a Firefox fork without all that crap and it’s soooo pretty! Like arc browser but ff based. It’s also not like florp which I feel like if I look it wrong it will break.

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    • [–] 15 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Stick with Firefox for now.

    Some FF forks like LibreWolf break sites because they are too strict. That isn't a critique, that's just how LibreWolf works and if your threat model requires it, go for it.

    You can toggle the flags or use a userjs like arkenfox or betterfox. Eventually they might also enable these flags.

    On Android I like Privacy Browser, but it takes getting used to (I like being logged out when I close the browser in case someone uses my phone).

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    • [–] 7 points 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago)

    I use LibreWolf on the computer and IronWolf on the phone. Both modified versions of Firefox, both Free Software. Not sure what they do with AI, but as they're both aimed at privacy, I'd expect them to disable AI features which send data to external services.

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    [+] 6 points 11 months ago (2 children)
    [deleted]
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    • [–] 22 points 11 months ago (2 children)

    I would recommend continuing to use Firefox until you actually don't like it, rather than switch because of yet another social media post raging about AI. 90% of the time I've seen people complaining about AI being "shoved in their faces" it's something that I had no idea existed and had to actively seek out and enable to see it in action.

    Just don't use features that you don't want to use.

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  • [–] [S] 5 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    Most people have no idea their data is being scraped from the services they use either, that doesn't mean they like it or that they should.

    Unlike some folks in this thread, I never got an opt in pop up for the "features" on desktop or mobile.

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  • [–] 2 points 11 months ago

    Dude above's advice is just bad. Firefox defaults to some crappy shit, such as data collection, all the features such as pocket or what have you. By default its just not a secure browser, its really not.

    I would advise against using it. Librewolf exists, you need to tweak the settings for it to be a normal browser, with data permanence, but after just a few tweaks you have a relatively secure browser.

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    • [–] 14 points 11 months ago

    Firefox. If you want them to all be disableable with a single toggle then make a pull request. FF is open source.

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    [–] 2 points 11 months ago (1 child)

    I like Mullvad browser

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    • [–] 2 points 11 months ago

    Vivaldi if you want Chromium browser Continue to use Firefox is probably the best choice for now

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    [–] 2 points 11 months ago

    I still use Firefox; their bullshit is less egregious than Chrome's and they are Chrome's only challenger. The ai features don't even come in to play unless you actually choose to use them.

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    [–] 2 points 11 months ago (10 children)

    wtf is month 20?

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  • [–] 7 points 11 months ago (7 children)

    Different countries write dates differently. In the USA, 11/20/25 is Nov. 20, 2025. In other nations, it's written 20/11/25.

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  • [–] 4 points 11 months ago* (6 children)

    Only in the US. This is an international platform.

    7.7 billion people: Day Month Year, Decade, Century, Millennium etc.

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    • [–] 1 point 11 months ago

    I like using Brave. They also have some AI features but they’re super easy to turn off.

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    [–] 0 points 11 months ago

    I use Brave on desktop and android.

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    [–] -2 points 11 months ago

    Brave and/or Zen

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