Vivaldi hints at built-in adblocker improvements in next update

Vivaldi has offered a little more reassurance to users worried about losing uBlock Origin once Manifest V2 extensions stop working.

The discussion started after a user on X questioned why Vivaldi was showing a warning about uBlock Origin. The browser has begun notifying people that Manifest V2 extensions are nearing the end of the road, which led some to believe Vivaldi had decided to drop support on its own. We explained the situation in more detail in our earlier report on the confusion around Vivaldi and Manifest V2 support.

Vivaldi stepped into the conversation to clear things up. After the user claimed that uBlock Origin would be removed, the company replied that it wasn’t abandoning ad blocking at all. Instead, it said it’s actively improving the browser’s built-in blocker and that users should expect more changes in an upcoming update.

That response isn’t exactly surprising. Vivaldi has shipped with its own Tracker and Ad Blocker for years, but many people still prefer uBlock Origin because of its flexibility and effectiveness. With Google’s move away from Manifest V2, making the future of the classic version of uBlock Origin uncertain, Vivaldi seems to be putting more effort into making its own solution a stronger alternative.

The company didn’t share any details about what’s changing or when those improvements will arrive. All it said is that more enhancements are on the way.

That said, the company has been making progress on other fronts too. Vivaldi 8.1, released earlier this month, focused almost entirely on stability with nearly 100 bug fixes and very few headline features. If the next release brings meaningful improvements to ad and tracker blocking, it could be a win for Vivaldi, especially at a time when people are actively looking for Chrome alternatives with the whole MV2 drama that’s unfolding.

So we’ll just have to wait and see how much of an improvement Vivaldi can make with its own ad blocker.

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