The best search engine for desktop and mobile devices? It's complicated

3 years ago 488

What hunt motor bash you use? Is it truly the champion enactment for you? Jack Wallen takes connected this contented and draws a decision you mightiness not expect.

You usage a hunt motor each day. In fact, hunt engines person go truthful prevalent successful our society, that radical nary longer accidental "search for it online," they say, "Google it." Of course, by "Google it," radical mean to hunt for it utilizing the Google hunt engine.

But is Google the champion enactment for your hunt needs?

That each depends connected what you see the astir important for your searching needs. Are we talking privacy, speed, accuracy, shopping? What you spot astatine the apical of your demands mightiness dictate which hunt motor you use.

Or, possibly you don't truly attraction and simply privation the easiest way to success?

The information is, determination is nary all-around champion hunt motor for either desktop oregon mobile. No substance which hunt motor you choose, you compromise something. The question is, is said thing worthy compromising?

SEE: Electronic connection policy (TechRepublic Premium)

At 1 constituent successful time, that compromise was considerable. I remember, backmost erstwhile DuckDuckGo archetypal arrived connected the scene, it couldn't clasp a candle to Google. Now? Both of those hunt engines are precise adjacent successful speed, accuracy and features.

And, of course, there's Bing and adjacent the caller Brave Search (which is present successful beta).

What's absorbing is that Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo and Brave Search are each eerily similar. When you usage immoderate 1 of those 3 you not lone get akin results for your hunt efforts, you'll besides bask the quality to filter your results down to All, Images, News, and Videos. And with Google, Bing and DuckDuckGo, they adhd Shopping into the mix. And some Brave and Google adhd the People Also Ask section, to assistance you further refine your hunt results.

SEE: How DuckDuckGo makes wealth selling search, not privacy (TechRepublic)

At this point, the prime betwixt hunt engines could travel down to answering these questions:

Do you privation a Shopping filter? If you reply yes to this, past you've narrowed your prime down to Google, Bing and DuckDuckGo.
Do you privation a People Also Ask conception to your search? If so, your hunt is narrowed down to Brave Search and Google. Of course, neither Google oregon Bing ever contiguous the People Also Ask section. It each depends connected the hunt criteria and however you inquire your question.

So, you see, the prime is inactive complicated. To that end, I'm going to absorption connected what galore judge is the astir important contented with a hunt engine: Privacy.

When we attack this enactment with a motion to privacy. It's past that things tin veer distant from the modular options. But earlier we get to an enactment you've astir apt ne'er heard of, let's see the 1 you have.

DuckDuckGo is simply a hunt motor that was built connected the thought of privacy. DuckDuckGo features:

Never saves your hunt histories.
Doesn't way you.
Settings tin beryllium saved successful the cloud.
Information tin beryllium recovered with less clicks.
Allows for region-specific searching.
Offers a detailed, transparent privateness policy.

One happening you should cognize astir DuckDuckGo is that it gathers hunt results from implicit 400 sources, truthful you tin number connected your results being accurate. More important (especially for immoderate users) is that the results are unbiased. Companies spell retired of their mode to get their results to the apical of Google searches. Thing is, Google builds a information illustration connected users, which is utilized to tailor your results, based connected what they deliberation you'll click on. This is called the Filter Bubble, which tin beryllium problematic. Why? Consider this: At immoderate point, Google volition person gathered capable accusation astir you to "know" which mode you thin politically. It volition past usage that decision and service you results that you already hold with. That means you volition beryllium little apt to ever spot results from an opposing constituent of view.

SEE: The imaginable reasons Google is moving distant from APKs connected Android (TechRepublic)

A hunt motor should beryllium unbiased. Google hunt is not.

Our determination is present leaning toward DuckDuckGo arsenic the champion option. But wait, there's more. DuckDuckgo isn't the lone privacy-minded hunt option. In fact, determination are different privacy-centric hunt engines. Take, for instance, the Searx meta-engine. This open-source hunt motor isn't conscionable disposable arsenic a stand-alone service. You tin really download the source and physique your precise ain instance. Imagine having your precise ain in-house hunt engine. That's superior privacy. If you don't privation to physique your ain instance, you tin ever instrumentality vantage of 1 of the galore public instances of Searx.

The occupation with a hunt motor similar Searx, is that it's good for desktop and laptop users, but what astir mobile users? You'll person a heck of a clip getting the likes of Searx acceptable up arsenic the default hunt motor connected Android.

DuckDuckGo, connected the different hand, makes it rather casual to power connected Android. For this you would instal the DuckDuckGo Privacy Browser from the Google Play Store and past bash the following:

Set DuckDuckGo arsenic the default hunt motor for Chrome connected Android.
Remove the default Google hunt barroom connected the location surface and regenerate it with the DuckDuckGo widget.

Once you've done that, your Android net searches volition spell done DuckDuckGo, alternatively of Google.

In the end, the determination is beauteous simple:

If you privation privacy, spell with DuckDuckGo.
If you privation your hunt results to beryllium utilized for people selling (among different things), spell with Google.

For me, the prime is obvious. I'd overmuch similar to support my searches backstage portion retaining arsenic overmuch of what Google has to connection successful a search. For that, DuckDuckGo is the lone answer. If you privation a solid, reliable, easy-to-use hunt (on desktop and mobile), portion enjoying a level of information Google hunt cannot match, you beryllium it to yourself to power to DuckDuckGo.

5G and Mobile Enterprise Newsletter

5G networks and devices, mobile security, distant support, and the latest astir phones, tablets, and apps are immoderate of the topics we'll cover. Delivered Tuesdays and Fridays