The full version of the uBlock Origin extension appears to be returning to Microsoft Edge on Android after a previous removal.
While initially spotted in the Dev channel, a language-change trick (setting Chinese as primary, then reverting) can reportedly force its appearance in the Stable version for some users.
The availability of the full uBlock Origin may be temporary due to Google’s upcoming Manifest V2 phaseout in Chromium, which will eventually require extensions to adopt Manifest V3.
Attention Microsoft Edge users on Android: You might have just regained the full uBlock Origin extension.
For those unaware, Microsoft added an Extension store to Edge Android in March last year. uBlock Origin was available as a supported extension at the time, but was subsequently removed. It looks like the extension is now making a comeback, and it is already showing up for some users.
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Reports by credible browser analyst @Leopeva64 on X (Twitter) and Reddit suggest that the extension is starting to show up in Edge’s Dev build, but some users also suggest having access to it in stable. For what it’s worth, Android Police News Editor Dallas Thomas and I didn’t have access to the extension in Edge stable, Dev, or Canary builds, but a simple language-change trick forced it to appear.
The screenshots above highlight stable Edge Android’s default extension screen before performing the language-change trick. Although the page lists all the usual extensions, alongside uBlock Origin Lite, the full uBlock Origin extension is seemingly not available.
Follow the steps below to force the full extension to show up:
Head to Settings.
Tap Languages.
Tap App languages.
Tap on ‘Add a language’ and search for Chinese using the magnifying glass icon on the top right.
Drag and drop Chinese to the first spot on the preferred language list.
Note that this will change your system language to Chinese, but you can follow the same steps to revert to your preferred language. Follow the screenshots above for visual cues.
Head to extensions, and you should now see uBlock Origin listed. Enable it, and the extension will stick around after you switch back to your preferred language — well, at least until Google’s Chromium project fully implements the Manifest V2 phaseout.
