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Android: sideloading blocked and open source updates withheld to twice a year (www.youtube.com)
submitted 8 months ago by to c/technology@beehaw.org
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Google moves to lock down the Android operating system, effectively stealing features away from millions of existing users.

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[–] 3 points 8 months ago (3 children)

I'd love to put Lineage or Graphene on my phone, but neither one supports it. I think these OS fall prey to the "losing the hardware lottery" problem that Linux has, a term coined by @mcc@mastodon.social. So imagine a world where we do get Linux on a phone, how easy it would be to lose that lottery.

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  • [–] 5 points 8 months ago (2 children)

    I have never lost the hardware lottery, by virtue of not playing it. I buy my hardware to support the OS I run, not the other way round.

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  • [–] 4 points 8 months ago* (1 child)

    A little holier than thou don't you think? Like I've got existing hardware and I'm leaving Windows. If (for example) Bazzite doesn't work on my hardware, you think I should go out and buy brand new hardware to run Bazzite? Or maybe find some way to extend the lifetime of the hardware I have?

    I mean you even admit yourself that you moved from one Android OS to another. You bought a new phone every time you went from Cyano to Lineage to Graphene?

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  • [–] 6 points 8 months ago

    I'm assuming people are buying a new system. If you have legacy hardware, that's a crapshoot. If you're a gamer and are moving to Linux that can become difficult, due to your special requirements. Good luck with your migration.

    I am buying new hardware when the old one breaks or becomes unusable. My LOS Poco X3 Pro from end 2021 has a bad case of ghost touch, so I bought a new Pixel 7a end 2024 for GOS. My LOS Galaxy Tab S5e from mid-2022 refurbished is somehat usable, but my main driver since mid-2025 is a Pixel tablet with GOS.

    These are reasonably long lifecycles, and I try to buy refurbished when possible.

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