I am looking for a new Android smartphone (currently on iOS).
Obviously I read about GrapheneOS as the „Gold Standard“ of alternative OS. But the downside is that it only runs on Pixels. Which is kinda weird to buy a device from a company you want to „boycott“ (de-Google).
On the other hand I kinda like the approach of Fairphone: most parts are easy repairable, parts are available and cheap compared to Google and Apple. But the downside here is that it isn’t supported by GrapheneOS, doesn’t have the most capable hardware for the price and probably won’t get 7 years of updates like the Pixel 8a in comparison.
So that leaves me with a „analysis paralysis“: I have to choose a device and a CustomROM.
/e/OS does seem interesting but I read some comments that it isn’t that secure like GrapheneOS. I don’t need that high-level of security but it should be significantly more than stock Android to be worth all the hassle by installing/using a CustomROM. On the other hand I don’t want to sacrifice every comfort for the sake of the last bit of (theoretical) security.
Did someone go down this path as well recently and can share some experiences? Maybe there is even some better alternative.
You can buy a used Pixel smartphone
I thought about it too but I don’t see any other benefit buying a used Pixel besides that it isn’t a new phone from Google.
- Battery life will be shorter already
- It isn’t the newest model so it won’t get the longest period of updates
But do you really need update from Google if you’re planning on installing a custom rom ? Genuine question, I thought your security updates would be handled by /e/ or graphene or whatever you choose
Not necessarily, they’ll get some OS updates after google pulls the plug, but they’ll stop getting firmware and other hardware-specific updates.
Per GrapheneOS:
Pixel 4a (5G) and Pixel 5 are end-of-life and shouldn’t be used anymore due to lack of security patches for firmware and drivers. We provide extended support for harm reduction.
https://grapheneos.org/faq#device-lifetime
You can buy a used Pixel 8 and it will be supported by Graphene through 2030 at the very earliest, probably the best support lifecycle you can possibly get on a phone.
The Pixel 8a is more affordable vs the 8 and 8 Pro. The 8a comes in at $499, while the 8 cost $699 and the Pro runs $999. The 8a still has an amazing camera, the battery will give you no problems, and it’s not a MASSIVE device like most phones these days. It’s probably the best way to get on Graphene OS at a reasonable price point.
$500 is NOT “affordable”. $300 for my 7a new was already hard to swallow, and I think only previous-gen models border on “acceptable price”. 7 was only a bit more expensive in the store I used though - didn’t go for it because it is larger, and 7a is already at the edge of what I can comfortably use one-handed, but for someone this might be indeed a better deal.
Edit: just remembered another factor in favor of 7a: it has a plastic back instead of glass. I don’t know why you’d put a more brittle material on a more expensive phone…
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Battery life isn’t a given - I have a 2018 flagship that still runs most of a day because it runs DivestOS instead of battery-eating Google rom
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You can replace a battery for little
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Updates are over-rated. Yes, they can be important, but if your security is layered as it should already be, it’s just another piece of the puzzle, not the only barrier.
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Graphene does a great job trying to keep it updated.
I think divest most supported because based on lineage. But not nearly as secure as graphene.
Edit: i think most of benefit of custom rom is not really security, read graphene faq on future device, say most hardware not secure enough on own. more like privacy, choice and control. most custom rom probably enough for that.
if you want real linux, look at postmarket. but not great experience iirc because hardware thing.
Just get a pixel. Use the enemy’s weapon against them.
Even if you buy a phone that isn’t a pixel, then you just end up giving money to a different privacy-invasive corporation that will continue to partner with Google for search deals and surveillance advertising.
Pixels have wide aftermarket repair parts available, relatively reasonable pricing, and the largest support from custom roms since they all test on Pixels as a standard device. (same with app developers)
Pixels often have longer update periods than other brands, and many custom roms provide extended security updates on top of that.
Android development is guaranteed to continue supporting at least the Pixel phones over all others, it’ll be easier to repair down the line, and the money Google makes from the sale is nothing compared to the money they’ll lose by having less power to surveil you.
And as much as I like Fairphone, the specs just aren’t worth the cost currently, although they are catching up as time goes on.
I personally use a Pixel with GrapheneOS, and it works better than any phone from Samsung I’ve owned in the past. (plus it’s usually a bit easier to unlock the bootloader)
Just make sure that, no matter what phone you buy, you don’t buy it through your carrier, as that will make your bootloader un-unlockable unless you pay off the full payment plan and have a carrier that supports unlocking the bootloader in the first place.
Hopefully the next Fairphone closes that spec gap. I could easily live with 2022 specs for a long time, giving plateauing performance gains, as long as the phone is supported with updates.
Of course, I would also kill for a headphone jack and a 5.4-5.8" iphone mini-sized screen. It’s so frustrating that I want to buy a fairphone but the compromises are too much.
I think we’ll probably see a phone comparable to at least 2022 specs in the coming years, since they seem to release a new model every 2-3 years, with pretty decent improvements each time. Especially with their growing partnerships with chip manufacturers, it might even be possible to keep prices more reasonable too.
I currently use a phone released in 2022, and it’s perfectly functional for all my needs. Would more performance be nice? Sure, but yeah, I don’t actually need more than that.
If Fairphone could reach that mark, I would consider my next replacement phone being a Fairphone, although the lack of GrapheneOS support is kind of a deal-breaker for any phone purchase for me right now.
Next best thing to GOS would be Calyx OS. Seems only pixels are getting full updates unfortunataly… https://calyxos.org/install/ The hardware on the pixels security wise is unfortunately hard to beat. Get a used one?
E/OS seems like a good choice if you don’t want to use a pixel.