Pixels are the main target of aftermarket ROMs because they are reference Android devices with highly available unlocked developer modes. Most companies producing phones do things like add propriety changes that require substantial workarounds for relatively basic hardware functionality and make it much more difficult to even install an aftermarket ROM.

Really this is all a consequence of capitalism itself and the need to lock in ecosystems to establish controlled markets (allowing for controlling one's own profit). Every phone could be fully unlockable and hackable by the end user, but companies specifically prevent this in order to maximize their own profits.

I also like having expanded storage. But if you actually care about privacy?

You want the minimum amount of data on your phone at any given time. Your recent camera roll, any cached music and apps, and that is really it. Everything should be offloaded to your private storage ASAP

Because for as shit as google and apple are? You can also remote wipe those devices. less effective if it is a government agent that has it, but it is a thing. And, depending on the storage setup, that sd card might be raw dogging it to begin with.

It is because there are hardware security features that most other Android phones do not support and Graphene OS is going for maximum security and privacy. Besides, they're coming out with their own hardware by partnering with Motorola shortly.

I can't accept the fact that there is no external sd card support.

OK, this is going to sound dismissive, and I really don't mean it to be. But why?

For data transfer, you can still use the USB port (I do it all the time). Other than that, there's more than enough storage available onboard for any reasonable amount of usage. I don't even really keep anything critical on my device at all, so what there is is kind of overkill already.

I just don't understand the need for an SD card with storage being as plentiful now as it is. I want to understand.

I feel your pain on storage and headphones but Graphene is worth the sacrifice to me. I also like that my 8a will get updates until at least 2030.

They're not that impressive specs wise, somewhere between mid range and a "real" flagship that has a Snapdragon Elite chip. The only reason to get it is the top of the line security features that allow GrapheneOS to function. Or the software if you're into Ai and such and don't want Graphene, but that's like the opposite of privacy.

(Edit: Maybe) You can't do mobile deposit, but surely you can still just use the bank's website.

You can install Google app store in a container, and all the apps I've used work fine on it out of the box. It absolutely works fine as a daily driver.

I have been using it for 2+ years exclusively. I had a few issues with mobile deposit with my old credit union, but I moved to a new one and it works. So does the Discover app. Pretty much everything else is great, and I worry much less about my phone spying on me.

Sad thing is that Linux used to be ahead on phones. Everyone swore by N900 and it was sabotaged by ms buykilling Nokia.

By those standards, Halium + ubports might be worth while, it's using enough of the android binaries to get the job done but is still real linux.

Graphene only supports pixels currently.

They have hardware encryption tech other phones don't have that graphene uses

Fairphone can't run Graphene and the other de-Googled Android ROMs that it can run aren't nearly as secure

Maybe. But for now I'm on an 8a.

Yes, Obtainium supports installing from F-Droid repos. It's a bit more of a pain compared to using something like F-Droid, though.

Yep! It's not the same experience as F-Droid (e.g. it's not gonna be you scrolling through a list of apps, picking the one you want, and hitting install. Obtainium is more of a "get the URL to where the app's releases are, paste it in here, add it, then hit install, plus you might have to do a little config so it selects the right release if there are multiple", but once it's set up, it's set up.

I fully replaced the F-Droid app with Obtainium for actually installing and updating apps, but I still keep the F-Droid app around just because I can go on there, search up apps, do a little browsing, then take the app I want and put it in Obtainium.

I've been meaning to try out Obtanium anyway since the Linux Unplugged podcast talked about it.

Thank you for the information!

Breezy Weather is abs excellent. Perfectly functional but also looks beaut! Not something you often see in open source. Highly recommended!