e/OS/
Security is not so good there:
You can say that for anything…
I’m glad that GrapheneOS exist, and it’s sad that they are the exception and not the rule.
I think projects like CalyxOS and LineageOS should adopt some feature from GrapheneOS like contact/storage scopes, sandboxed Google Play Services, Network and Sensor toggles.
At the same time, I think GrapheneOS needs to reevaluate their presence in social media.
It’s why I made sure to get my newest phone used, but that comes with the risk of getting a Verizon model (in the US) which can’t be bootloader unlocked. Had to return the first one I got off eBay for that reason, and the second one I made sure to ask the seller where they initially got it from.
It’s wild to me that that’s legal here. Devices should have to be carrier agnostic.
capitalism babyyyyy
From google? I got mine from second hand market
I don’t trust Google hardware
What other hardware do you trust, if any?
Murena Fairphone
Only Chinese. OnePlus and Motorola. . I’m waiting on Motorola to release a device specifically for graphene
What makes Chinese hardware more trustworthy?
It’s not made by a US company. Meaning there is no insensives to add us gov backdoors or something for military or for companies like palantir.
Google is an ad company. They have insensitives to collect all the data on us.Oh yeah cause China is known for freedom and privacy.
I hate big tech too but i promise you China is no better.
I’m. I’m going to disagree. All the antihuman inventions like AI and palanter recently seems to be coming from domestic geniuses
How is that not indirectly funding Google?
That still drives sales and demand for future manufactured Pixels… Google thanks you for your patronage.
They are low priced because they expect data harvesting to happen
Agreed! The shocking part for me is how few folks are forgetting the most basic tenets of high school econ, supply and demand.
They’re aren’t 8 billion used pixels to go around, and if there were… GOOGLE WOULD BUILD MORE. It’s an ineffective boycott.
This joining gets me a lot of downvotes on Reddit, but I’m telling you, GOS acolytes are the cross-fitters of the degoogling world.
Its the best we have until Linux phones become more viable
Does it? I mean yeah there are several people that upgraded and sold their old model but they could as well go for another phone
And the only price, you’ll need to see the Google logo flash brightly every time you reboot.
Gives me a jumpscare when I apply updates, not gonna lie
Google? Motorola https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=47214645
Yeah I’m on a 2025 moto, done the best I can with shizuku but it’s trash. I’d leave it at home.
Soon, but not yet! I needed to upgrade, can’t wait until 2027 or whenever. But hoping it’ll be one of their flagships, the new Razr is pretty dope specs wise.
But hoping it’ll be one of their flagships, the new Razr is pretty dope specs wise.
i hope it’s gonna be a not flagship one, because otherwise i’ll not be able to afford it :(
Lmao this is perfect
GrapheneOS seems to feel the same way about Google: https://grapheneos.social/@GrapheneOS/116159602850585685
GrapheneOS currently relies on Google for both hardware and security updates. The Motorola thing is encouraging, but they never should have built on Google phones to begin with.
The only reason I don’t use GrapheneOS is because of thte tight coupling they have with Google’s hardware.
Motorola announces partnership with GrapheneOS.
https://motorolanews.com/motorola-three-new-b2b-solutions-at-mwc-2026/
They’ve got SD cards and headphone jacks too.
That’s pretty bloody awesome!
It’s not that they have a deal with Google, it’s that Google’s hardware security is best bar none except maybe iPhone. And Graphene is the best way to degoogle, as counter intuitive as it may seem. They are working with other manufacturers to get these security requirements for new phones so Graphene can be put on them.
Hardware security is largely irrelevant. It makes sense for some use cases, mine everyday use is not one of them. There are much more important threat vectors, such as all the acounts of the cloud services I use.
Why, because you can’t afford it (reasonable), because you think it helps Google (unreasonable), because you think it’s a privacy risk (unreasonable), or because it feels icky (unreasonable)?
The profits from Pixel hardware sales are a drop in the bucket for Google. I’m pretty sure the only reason it exists is so they can have insight and control over the hardware ecosystem, as without it they’d be driven by whatever Samsung wants to do.
The walled Android ecosystem is where they make the bulk of their money, and Graphene actively pulls people away from that and to something objectively better. Graphene is fully de-Googled and safe from their spyware, and exists outside of their business model. Using and promoting Graphene actively hurts Google, even if you have them $1k for a phone.
Also, there are plenty of cheap second hand pixels on ebay, and Google doesn’t see a penny from those sales. Recycling is good for the planet anyways.
because you think it helps Google (unreasonable)
I personally think this can be reasonable if you’re the type to talk all about your hardware with people. You might not like promoting Google, so you choose a different device with a different privacy OS because you would rather talk about that to people.
For me, I don’t talk about my phone much to people - so I just bought a second hand Pixel 8, put Graphene on it, and popped a sticker over the Google logo. Using a case that’s not clear does just as good of a job. I will probably replace it with a Motorola eventually when they start releasing phones with GrapheneOS on it.
Also, there are plenty of cheap second hand pixels on ebay, and Google doesn’t see a penny from those sales. Recycling is good for the planet anyways.
This is where I disagree. Buying second hand google phones supports the second hand value of these phones, which in turn indirectly benefits Google because people are more likely to buy them.
They are currently in talks to use Verizon phones.
Edit: whoops that was Motorola, my bad.
I couldn’t do it myself. Ended up going Fairphone and Calyx instead. Just patiently waiting for Calyx to start releasing again.
I hope they’re not ending the project. They were pretty comfortably the best Graphene alternative but you’ll need security updates.
True. The OG GrapheneOS alternative was DivestOS, which actually pulled a lot of features from Graphene. Still so sad that project ended
They’re still working on it. Getting closer and closer to releasing again. No timeline unfortunately though.
I’m on the same boat; FP4 + CalyxOS. Do you know have they (Calyx) confirmed anything about the projects future? Last I heard was in around december, and things were quite uncertain back then.
They’re getting closer. Last update was end of Feb. Most of their updates seem to about security stuff I don’t understand, but it’s nice to see they’re working on it.
Not much longer im sure. I have no reason to believe that they will continue making it possible to un/relock the bootloader considering their push for google certified only android.
This is what I’m afraid of too. I could see apps like fdroid and the ability to install custom roms being taken away within the next year or two. I hope I’m wrong but I don’t have a good feeling. I need Linux phones to be a thing now more than ever.
I need Linux phones to be a thing now more than ever.
This doesn’t happen in a vacuum. If you’re not already, find a project and contribute towards it some way.
I wish Ubuntu Touch wasn’t the main player because I dont want to give Canonical money 😭 Better than Google or Microsoft though.
I assume you either mean financially or in terms of general support and word of mouth. Trust me, I wish I could be a dev so, so badly, but as interesting as code and computers are, I’m light years away from getting in there and being able to fuck with shit. I love learning about programming, but I’m not the best at actually learning it. lmao
I say, as I sit in a first level computer science class, typing this because I’m totally lost in the actual lecture.
Yes, I said “in some way” because not everyone can contribute code directly. There are other things besides money you can offer to contribute (graphic design, community/brand management, communication, general organizational tasks, forum moderation, etc) but funding is usually the simplest and most necessary.
Wdym by “you could see” as if its not whats already announced to be happening. Fdroid will not cooperate with googles app verification process which means Fdroid will stop working on all google certified devices, meaning everything other than devices with custom ROMs. NewPipe also announced they wont get google verified meaning it will stop working too.
Is the “Nothing” phone product a custom ROM? Sorry if dumb question I’m a bit out of my element.
ROM basically is just another word for operating system so its about the software not the hardware. So only devices (phones) that allow you to install your own custom operating system (like a modified version of the original android that comes with it or even a proper linux OS) will allow you to install apps not certified by google.
Most of the time people talk about custom roms they mean open source software that replaces the pre installed closed source software. Nothing phones are closed source so they are probably not on the “good” side here.
If I recall correctly grapheneOS is going to switch to Motorola for their new releases
I never know what to expect from Google. They respect open source efforts to an extent, but play Calvinball with where they draw the line. In any case, Motorola will be an option soon, maybe more. And there are other custom ROMs, albeit not as thorough as Graphene. And for me? They can’t take it away now that I already did it, so I’m good for up to 7 years unless my phone breaks.
Lineage
This is the way
Has Hunter S Thompson always been in Trailer Park Boys?
Lahey and Hunter S Thompson don’t seem all that different.
The alternate reality where he ended up being a cop instead of a journalist.
I’m about to do the same … question is without the google services is it worth a pro over even an a ?
Not really, but I got one anyway because I need the storage. I wish I would have gone all the way and got a TB but I couldn’t buy that one in cash in store so I didn’t.
The a series have been great to me so far. The specs are usually more than enough for most use cases you’re gonna have for your phone, and the 9a and 10a both have better battery life than the rest of the 9 and 10 series’ respectively.
The a series is substantially cheaper for what is, in my opinion, a totally justifiable Android experience that isn’t gonna be much different than the other models for most people.
HOWEVER, I will say that if you plan on running a lot of apps that need to operate in the background or be constantly on, especially if you play games at the same time on your phone sometimes, the RAM could be too low for your liking and might occasionally lead to an app’s background process freezing for a bit. (e.g. a timer might freeze if the app isn’t actively open)
I’m running grapheme on a Pixel 9 Pro Fold I got used ~ quite happy with it so far :)
I’ve always wanted a fold, but couldn’t justify the price. I definitely don’t need one, but I want one. Even used on swappa they’re still a bit spendy.
Certainly not a Pixel 10 Pro.
If I could write my own code for the NPU that might be interesting, but they’ve got it locked up like a straight boy’s toilet paper.
I got an ‘a’ model and its been totally sufficient at a much lower price. But I guess it depends on how you plan to use it.
To me it wasn’t. I don’t think The non-a Pixels can really justify their price based on the hardware itself.
I tend to just buy a used model, I’ve got the 8 with graphene and no complaints, that said I do very little with my phone these days
I’ve got an 8a which I got on sale when the 9a came out. I tend to keep my phones for 4-5 years, so this should be good for a long while, though I hope the Motorola collab produces something good. I also do little on my phone these days by design. If I could get by without owning one, I’d be thrilled.
Yeah I used to be the guy who did everything on his phone and now I just mostly use it for photos, maps and messaging and I try to be on a laptop when I can
Considering waiting to see if Motorola releases a GrapheneOs built in Razr I’d consider that. But can’t help but wonder how much they would mess up the core important pieces of Graphene for their overlords who wants AI down our throat
They announced the big RAZR Fold and that future devices would have it at MWC, so mayhaps
But can’t help but wonder how much they would mess up the core important pieces of Graphene for their overlords who wants AI down our throat
also this. Wasn’t moto the one helping with then-illegal wiretaps in like the 90s? I can hardly keep track anymore
The only advantage of the non-a models is they use a potentially more durable battery that is less prone to pillowing.
If you want a Pro, go with the 8, 9 if you have to. 8 still has the 2k screen, 10 is a bastardized 1080p screen
8 still has the 2k screen, 10 is a bastardized 1080p screen
Is there really any need for a screen that small having that high of a resolution anyway?
Personally, I like to have a small font with a high density so as much info is on the screen as possible.
Also, if you like to watch Youtube or movies on your device, you’ll notice the difference in resolution.
I got a pro because it was heavily discounted at the time. The one thing I sort of appreciated is the display LTPO thing, which enables it to gear all the way down to 1hz to save power.
thing is kinda moot since the 9a and 10a achieve significantly better battery life than the 10 pro (10a uses the prior gen SoC which seems to have better idle power characteristics).
