1354
don't let google alter the deal (lemmy.blahaj.zone)
submitted 6 months ago by to c/privacy@lemmy.world
168 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
[–] 3 points 6 months ago (4 children)

Serious question: what's to stop Google from just axing AOSP, and what would that mean for GraphenOS? As a company they seem to have become vindictive and I just feel like as soon as it becomes a big enough thorn in their side they will retaliate.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • hideshow 4 child comments
    •
  • [–] 11 points 6 months ago (2 children)

    They are basically heading down that path; I believe they started developing in private then they dump all their code twice a year for the public, which has made developing GrapheneOS (etc) way harder to manage.

    I can only imagine they want to limit projects like Graphene, but they still want to release source because what made Android big was/is all of the "3rd party" phones like Samsung, etc... but now Google has their own hardware who knows what could happen.

    It definitely feels like the end times where we are clinging onto our last freedoms (thanks to privacy friendly roms) before we privacy-seeking folk jump to linux phones (when they become useable/stable).

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
    •
  • [–] 3 points 6 months ago (1 child)

    I think they (GOS) saw the writing on the wall, and this is why they're now partnering with an OEM (Motorola) so that they are able to continue developing GOS without being kneecapped? I may be wrong, just my understanding

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
    •
  • [–] 2 points 6 months ago

    Yeah you are probably right, Google could at any point (for example) lock the bootloaders on Pixels, which would mean no one could install GrapheneOS in the first place.

    They are still kneecapped in the sense that they are still developing on top of AOSP, so sadly the bi-yearly code drops will probably still affect them greatly.

    No getting around that though and there's always the possibility Google restrict access to AOSP source code to the point where GOS can no longer access it, in which case the sales of their new phones might allow them to go down the road of full development of their own hard fork of android from the last released version (that might be an impossible ask, I dont know).

    Anyways I'm specticilatin' 'ere

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent
  • [–] 4 points 6 months ago*

    Amazon's Fire OS is android but they've announced a new webOS ripoff, VegaOS, Linux running HTML5/react apps. Normally I'd think this kind of diversity is a good thing, but apparently it's locked down even tighter and side loading into Vega OS just isn't a thing at all.

    Edit: the point I was trying to make is that some vendors are working to get away from Google's Android foundations completely. I would think that graphene could go that route if the rug was pulled. But good luck with device support when the device specific source isn't released.

  • permalink
  • fedilink
  • source
  • parent