this post was submitted on 14 Jun 2024
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I'm happy with GrapheneOS on my Google Pixel. It's basically Android without the Google crap. It's not for everyone though.
That said, I'd really like a third option. iOS is too locked down, Android phones have short support cycles (getting better, and is a huge reason why I picked Pixel), and Linux phones have fundamental hardware and software issues. I'm sad Microsoft, Palm, and Blackberry all gave up, there were interesting things happening in the mobile space back then.
I switched to Graphene in December and I can't say it enough, GrapheneOS is everything I wanted Android to be for the past 15 years.
Same. I thought it would be a bigger change, but it turns out I only need 5-6 apps from the Play store, and 3 need Google Play services. I only need those periodically, so I leave them in a separate profile.
My main profile has a bunch of F-Droid apps and a few manually side-loaded that update themselves. It's pretty nice! I have also disabled most permissions on most apps, far more than stock Android lets me do (esp. sensors permission).
It's pretty much what I want from Android. There are a handful of things I wish it did (I like shaking the phone on my Moto to get the flashlight), but all in all it's what I expect from Android. I still want a Linux phone though.
I use Tasker to handle stuff like shaking for a light, enabling certain DND settings, etc.
I would love a phone that could dock and be a desktop replacement, I'm fine with using moonlight or something else to reach back to a server for games or bigger lifts than my phone can handle.
Cool, I'll have to play with Tasker. I just got it recently and I think I have all my data synced over, but I haven't gotten too far in customization.
BTW, do you know of anything like Niagara launcher? I liked that one quite a bit, but I didn't find anything FOSS to replace it. The default is okay, I just want something that only lists a handful of apps to reduce clutter.
I just use the default one and put a couple folders on the home screen (one for stores, one for games, one for media, one for utility), then a couple widgets on the next screen over.
Are persistent notifications still a requirement for background apps, such as Signal? One of the reasons I switched to CalyxOS. Not the Signal persistent notification specifically, but it, in combination with all the others I needed running in the BG, made it very difficult to not miss new notifications. I like CalyxOS just fine, but I agree with you on GrapheneOS. I was very excited that it was exactly as I've always wanted android to be (but wasn't), except for those persistent notifications.
I haven't had to do anything special for signal, Home Assistant has some issues with permissions and not always reporting back if its on in the background. Still trying to figure out why its fine on mine but not on my son's phone.
The fine tuned controls for things like network access, storage and contact scopes, etc. are just amazing.
You don't have a persistent (albeit silent) notification for Signal and still receive push notifications? If so, my next OS may just be GOS.
The fine tuned controls are different than stock android? I thought GOS doesn't alter the stock experience (more than is required to decrapify the OS)?
No, the only persistent notification I have to put up with is Tasker.
I honestly can say how far from stock it is because I have no clue when the last time I saw unadulterated Android (if ever lol), but it doesn't have a lot of crap added to it.
That's really great to hear. I'm currently on CalyxOS and, besides the Google crap added to stock, it's very close to the last time I used stock (granted, it's been a hot minute). Next phone will likely be GrapheneOS, as I believe my posture has shifted since I decided on CalyxOS, and the lack of persistent notifications for background tasks (such as Signal) was the main deterrent that allowed me to settle into a more relaxed posture.