The Impact of Built-in Ad-Blockers in Web Browsers on Computer Power Consumption

Khan Awais Khan, Mohammad Tariq Iqbal and Mohsin Jamil
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Khan Awais Khan: Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada
Mohammad Tariq Iqbal: Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada
Mohsin Jamil: Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada

European Journal of Information Technologies and Computer Science, 2024, vol. 4, issue 5, 1-10

Abstract: This study investigates the power consumption of various web browsers, specifically focusing on those with built-in ad-blockers compared to standard browsing without ad-blocking features. Using detailed measurements of CPU and GPU power consumption across multiple browsers i.e. Chrome without Ad blocker, Brave, Opera, Firefox, Vivaldi, Librewolf, and Tor—this research highlights the significant impact of ad-blocking on power consumption during web browsing. Experiments were conducted on different types of websites, including video-heavy, news, and entertainment sites, to evaluate how browser optimizations affect overall power usage. Results indicate that browsers with integrated ad-blockers, such as Brave and Librewolf, use significantly reduce power consumption up to 44% compared to traditional browsing setups. The findings also reveal that video content significantly increases CPU and GPU load, with ad-blocking browsers demonstrating superior performance in minimizing energy use. This study emphasizes the importance of browser selection in reducing power consumption, particularly for mobile and battery-dependent devices, and suggests that adopting ad-blocking technologies can lead to substantial energy savings.

Keywords: Built-in Ad-Blockers; Computer Power Consumption; CPU and GPU Usage; Sustainable Web Browsing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:epw:comput:v:4:y:2024:i:5:id:10137

DOI: 10.24018/compute.2024.4.5.137

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