GOS by all its strenghts, is following the paths treat by Google and Apple on defining what a smartphone has to be and how its security model has to look like, where only the OS distributor has full privileges, and you are just allowed to use it.
If you have the same requirements for your system as the people who designed these phones assumes you have, then GOS is great for you.
But if you want to tinker and customize, like we can with Linux systems, then Android and especially locked down systems like GOS aren’t for you.
I am using GOS myself, because it is good, but I also have a separate device of tinkering.
I’m a Linux user on my other devices and I’d love to have a fully libre and open phone, but the most important thing for getting my life tasks done is that apps work, so I’m somewhat hostage to where the apps are available and will run.
Graphene is me trying to achieve that in the least-bad way I can.
But there are also people that don’t use banking apps or pay via NFC, etc. They use their phone just to call and text people, browse the web and take pictures. I will not recommend buying a Pixel and putting GOS on it, if they don’t specifically ask for a high security device.
If they are in the market for a new phone, I will recommend phones that are maintained for a long time and have a good active open source AOSP port community around them. For example the Fairphone with /e/ or Lineage with MicroG. Somewhere where people aren’t funneled towards google services. Since privacy is a bigger issue for most people than security.
Well, my old phone, with LineageOS. It is a OnePlus 8, but I probably wouldn’t recommended OnePlus phones generally, I was hopeing that it eventually get mainline treatment, like the 6T, but that hasn’t happen yet.
I rooted it for managing battery charge limits, among other stuff. Having a root shell in termux makes debugging or fixing app and other issues very easy.
GOS by all its strenghts, is following the paths treat by Google and Apple on defining what a smartphone has to be and how its security model has to look like, where only the OS distributor has full privileges, and you are just allowed to use it.
If you have the same requirements for your system as the people who designed these phones assumes you have, then GOS is great for you.
But if you want to tinker and customize, like we can with Linux systems, then Android and especially locked down systems like GOS aren’t for you.
I am using GOS myself, because it is good, but I also have a separate device of tinkering.
For me it’s a necessary compromise.
I’m a Linux user on my other devices and I’d love to have a fully libre and open phone, but the most important thing for getting my life tasks done is that apps work, so I’m somewhat hostage to where the apps are available and will run.
Graphene is me trying to achieve that in the least-bad way I can.
Sure, I get that.
But there are also people that don’t use banking apps or pay via NFC, etc. They use their phone just to call and text people, browse the web and take pictures. I will not recommend buying a Pixel and putting GOS on it, if they don’t specifically ask for a high security device.
If they are in the market for a new phone, I will recommend phones that are maintained for a long time and have a good active open source AOSP port community around them. For example the Fairphone with /e/ or Lineage with MicroG. Somewhere where people aren’t funneled towards google services. Since privacy is a bigger issue for most people than security.
What do you have for a tinkering device, if I may ask?
Well, my old phone, with LineageOS. It is a OnePlus 8, but I probably wouldn’t recommended OnePlus phones generally, I was hopeing that it eventually get mainline treatment, like the 6T, but that hasn’t happen yet.
I rooted it for managing battery charge limits, among other stuff. Having a root shell in termux makes debugging or fixing app and other issues very easy.