GrapheneOS

Hopefully this leads to a lot more development of and for Ubuntu Touch. Biggest issues it faces are lack of compatibility and lack of apps. I think the core is solid though. I used it for a week when switching from iOS (so no Android background) and enjoyed it, but a few too many minor issues built up and I ended up going to Calyx.

Thank you for these links they are fantastic! I was aware of the procedural lock in via play integrity services and also the lockdown on side loading so that didn't get past me, but I wasn't aware google also wants to alienate developers now by requiring ID. It seems to me google want to now fully commercialize the platform, transforming it into the ad infested network that web2+3.0 already became. I think their plan, by alienating non commercial devs, is that all apps will run on their ad models and non without them will be left.

Yes, like GrapheneOS

any version of android that's not vendor or downloaded from the official android website

• like https://lineageos.org/
• https://e.foundation/e-os/
• or the aforementioned GrapheneOS
• calyxos.org (paused)

Yes, think cheap android tablets that are so shit google store can barely run on it. Those devices are usually chinese knockoffs and do not ship with google services, google store or any gapps.

First of all thank you for providing a foss app!

I think it's a big difference if the platform tolerates you or actively wants to stop you from doing it. You got my fullest sympathy.

Even apps installed outside the Play Store will need to have a "verified developer", and this change will affect any devices that use Google Play Services, so it will be a problem even to old devices.

If you don't have Google Play Services installed, then you're not affected. Of course, how many custom ROMs will live to that day is unknown.

There won't be Fdroid on Google OS phones period

From what I gather, yes. But will you be allowed to install F-Droid? No.

Unclear, but they are saying it will affect side-loaded apps, and no way to bypass with Developer Options, so I would assume so.

I think you could still adb install unverified apps into your phone.

That untill they'll block that path too.

Also I suppose that you'll need to adb every update. So apps that would want to go this way should self check updates instead of relying on an external store.

Don't think so, bud

They're baking this right in the package installer of android, it goes beyond play services. I have my doubts that this will pass in the EU

From what I've seen elsewhere, yes. adb sideloading will still be possible, but that adds a level of inconvenience many people will not enjoy, especially since FDroid and similar have been so easy.

Install, maybe. What about updates though? Do you plan to pull out adb for each and every one of them? Or would you rather keep using old, potentially insecure, versions?

Just use a custom ROM. This sadly will affect app developers. But if you are on a custom ROM without GMS it will continue to work just fine.

End-users can use e.g. waydro.id to run Android apps on Linux.

I'm not deep into Android development, but I doubt it's possible to just port an app without basically a complete rewrite. Android has an own layer on top of the JVM, called Zygote, and there's presumably lots of system libraries which the Android apps implicitly depend on, for handling graphics and whatnot, which make tons of assumptions about running on an Android device.

Screw that!
Get a Fairphone with /e/OS before you switch to the rotten apple.

I switched to iPhone in 2016. I had no idea Pixel was coming, and my choices all sucked. The more I looked at the iPhone 6s, the more I realized it was the right phone at that time.

I’m now on my fourth iPhone and I’m kind of done with them. “Apple Intelligence” and the keyboard gets so many things wrong. On a 16 Pro Max. And yet my Galaxy S10 which is 5 years older gets almost nothing wrong.

iPhones have great screens and the newest Snapdragon barely catches up to the new iPhone chip. But I think it does more. The Pixel chip is much further behind (comparable to an iPhone 11, I hear) but even that phone seems smarter.

I feel like iPhones are really nice basic/feature phones. They work well with my Macs, but Macs don’t stop working if your phone runs Android. They just don’t play well together.

Apple is a lot better on privacy. They never pretended to be or care about open source though. iOS is based on macOS which is certified UNIX; Android is Linux more or less but neither is open. I think it's a moot point at best and a bullshit non-point most days. Open source I mean. As far as privacy, I think Apple is better on a good day but maybe misleading, but Google never really pretended to care. The deal was always, premium stuff for your personal data. We just didn’t care as much back then.

Honestly there are no great options. If I had to buy a phone right now, I’d probably get a Galaxy S25. I just hate what’s going on with Nova Launcher. But I love using my S10, it’s just a dated screen at this point.

How does this do that. To get in the play store you already have to be registered. This is for apps not on the play store.

How does this help with malware?

this wont help with malware, in the past there was malware on the google play store.