Browser & WebView suggestion

[shuvashish76]

Browsers:

• Cromite
  ref: Bring a new browser to life uazo/bromite-buildtools#182
  Make F-Droid repo uazo/cromite#64
• Vanadium
• Mulch
• eOS Browser
• Brave
  ref: https://www.kuketz-blog.de/brave-datensendeverhalten-android-app-browser-check-teil23/
  https://stackdiary.com/brave-selling-copyrighted-data-for-ai-training/
  https://www.spacebar.news/p/stop-using-brave-browser
• Kiwi
  ref: Kiwi Browser intercepts search queries through their own servers Tobi823/ffupdater#35
• Vivaldi
  ref: Incomplete Source Code
• ungoogled-chromium Inactive

---

WebViews:

• Bromite Abandoned
• Cromite Not planned
  ref: Webview* uazo/bromite-buildtools#62 (comment)
  Build and maintain the webview uazo/bromite-buildtools#110
  Collaboration for Bromite development uazo/cromite#442
• Vanadium
  ref: Vanadium System WebView tries to access clientservices.googleapis.com in the background GrapheneOS/Vanadium#89
• Mulch

Vanadium: Depends on hardening and compatibility fixes in GrapheneOS rather than reinventing the wheel inside Vanadium. For example, GrapheneOS already provides a hardened malloc implementation so there's no need for Vanadium to replace it. Similarly, it can deploy security features causing breakage on other operating systems due to the ability to fix compatibility problems in the OS.

vs

Mulch: Nearly all of the patches are from GrapheneOS's Vanadium browser

Additional info:
Magisk module open_webview : Magisk-Modules-Alt-Repo/open_webview#11
I vote for Cromite browser & Mulch webview.

[shuvashish76]

There are some good Firefox based browsers (e.g - Mull, Iceraven, TOR browser), but not considered here because:

Interface or functions (UI/UX) should be very or nearly similar to the original app or even better.

Original app = Google Chrome

[MuntashirAkon]

• Mulch cannot be included because the app description itself suggests using Vanadium or Bromite.
• /e/ OS browser enabled DNT by default which is a privacy issue (contrary to what some people think)
• Bromite has to be replaced, naturally
• Iceraven description says:

  No warranties or guarantees of security or updates or even stability!

• Mull can be included with a reason since a few users prefer a firefox browser.

[shuvashish76]

Mulch cannot be included because the app description itself suggests using Vanadium or Bromite.

AFAIK currently Mulch is our only active WebView alternative.

The source repo also includes prebuilts and makefiles to allow other operating systems to include Mulch as their system WebView. (source)

ref: https://divestos.org/pages/network_connections#mulch

• DuckDuckGo, FOSS browser, ElinkBro, Fulguris, Privacy browser, SmartCookieWebetc... All these browsers use WebView to render webpages.
• Tor Browser Not recommended for general use.
• Fennec

...still connects to various Mozilla and Google services that can track users.

• Mull
  ref: https://divestos.org/pages/broken#mull
  https://divestos.org/pages/network_connections#mull
  https://www.reddit.com/r/fossdroid/comments/16lfxk6/comment/k13408j/

Additional info: (for future reference)
https://divestos.org/pages/browsers
https://privacytests.org/android.html

[MuntashirAkon]

AFAIK currently Mulch is our only active WebView alternative.

Then the reason should be updated. Mulch lacks many privacy features from Bromite.

In most ROMs, Mulch WebView can only be used by creating and installing an overlay app with its signatures.

[MuntashirAkon]

Conclusion:

1. Replace Bromite with Cromite
2. Add Mull with reason
3. Replace Bromite WebView with Mulch WebView with reason

[MuntashirAkon]

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