DuckDuckGo is one of the most privacy-oriented search engines known for being a commendable alternative to the rather invasive Google search.
The internet search engine company known for not profiling its users also offers a faster and no-frills version known as the DuckDuckGo Lite. This tiny resource-friendly version is both fast and private.
While DuckDuckGo is generally known for its staunch privacy measures and non-invasiveness, other features such as a robust functionality across both mobile and smartphone environments are equally popular. What’s more, DuckDuckGo’s results-interface is fairly straightforward and doesn’t feature a long-list of sponsored ads instead of the results users search for.
In cases where there’s a slow net connection or the need for a quick online search, DuckDuckGo Lite is handier. A typical DuckDuckGo Lite page generally displays a simple search field and similar unsophisticated search results. It is also worth noting that the lite version of the search engine only features results without displaying any ads.
The homepage size of DuckDuckGo Lite is around 5 Kilobytes, whereas the normal version of the landing page is around 1 Megabyte in size. The search results page is also a measly 33 Kilobytes unlike the almost 2 Megabytes version of the regular version. Furthermore, the lite version sends significantly fewer requests when compared to what the standard version sends (50 requests).
Comparing the above stats with the ones of the Google search engine which has a landing page-size of 1.9 Megabytes and the result page having a size anywhere between 2 to 3 Megabytes depending on the number of ads that are displayed. Google also tends to make 100 requests on the search results pages, making it a slightly heavier search engine when compared to both DuckDuckGo and lite version alike.
Though the simple and rustic DuckDuckGo Lite version may not be your go-to search engine for all times, it is of great help during times of weak or fluctuating internet connections. Considering the small-sized landing page and a two-to-three requests per search results page, it is both fast and efficient.
Users also seem to embrace the DuckDuckGo Lite version better, stating that they prefer the “no ‘media rich’ sluggish bloat or the disorienting load bounce with anything directly from Google.”
