Wanted to get a new phone since my S20 is starting to show its age. And with all the enshitification of Android lately I thought it’d be good to try a different phone OS.

However, I don’t really want to buy a Google Pixel so GrapheneOS is a no go. I was really interested in the Fold 7 but it seems that will not be possible to get without Android. Thought DivestOS was good but it looks like support ended in 2024.

What other phone OS are people using?

  • utopiah@lemmy.ml
    1914·
    2 days ago

    If you want a new phone consider /e/OS as you can directly buy a phone from Murena (who maintains /e/OS) and thus get something working from day 1, no tinkering.

    To clarify, because there is constant FUD around /e/OS (I think the deGoogled Android crowd is VERY passionate and invests a lot of effort into picking the “right” ROM for them leading to a kind of “holy war” which tends to lose focus on what actually matters, namely leave Google!) so to clarify

    • /e/OS is not Murena
    • Murena is the French company that sells phones, including refurbished, running /e/OS
    • /e/OS is open source https://gitlab.e.foundation/e/os/
    • services from Murena are optional, including STT (which is a premium service) and anything cloud based requires Murena accounts
    • one can buy a phone from Murena and not using any of their service, it’s as straightforward as NOT creating an account when booting the phone the first time, or not using an account, that’s it.

    Honestly I recommend this solution if you want a good compromise because IMHO

    • Linux phones, e.g. PinePhones (I have 2, cf post history for details) aren’t daily drivers yet for most
    • it works, simple as that
    • it’s quite affordable, you don’t need a flagship to run /e/OS
    • it is actually deGoogled Android, which is IMHO the whole point
    • depending on your bank you might be able to use their banking app

    Feel free to ask questions, happy to clarify.