70
Which phone to get for alternative OS (lemmy.dbzer0.com)
submitted 1 year ago by lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com to c/degoogle@lemmy.ml
80 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Recently I've been looking for a phone that will allow me to install an google-free OS. I've never installed a different OS on a phone before. I've been looking online but haven't really found a clearly best option.

Problem with standard recommendation

From what I've read GrapheneOS seems the best alternative OS. Unfortunately they only support the Pixel devices. I want to have local, offline access to my files (e.g. music files, documents) and don't want to be dependent on cloud services. The Pixel with the most storage comes with only 256GB and no slot for an SD card.

Possible options

There are some other routes that may be feasible that I've listed here.

Fairphone 6

  • No USB 3
  • Pricey for what you get, both in terms of hardware and in terms of fairness, at least according to this post).
  • It has an SD card slot
  • You can order it with e/os installed, very convenient
  • No GrapheneOS

Fairphone 5

  • According to this post, the FP6 is a lot snappier
  • Not significantly cheaper than the FP6
  • It does come with USB 3
  • It has an SD card slot
  • Can also order this with e/os.
  • No GrapheneOS

Sony

According to the Bootloader Unlock Wall of Shame Sony isn't the worst of the bunch.

Pixel

Get a refurbished Pixel anyways and get a separate dumb MP3 player for music.

  • Might be an option but 256GB is still cutting it tight with what I want to have available offline.
  • The 256GB option is a lot more expensive than the 128GB option compared to the cost of a 128GB SD card
  • Extra costs from buying the extra MP3 player
  • Have to install the OS yourself
  • Can install GrapheneOS

DumbPhone:

Get a dumbphone for calls, texting, banking, govt stuff, 2FA app, and music listening. Have a separate linux phone for all the other stuff.

  • Not sure how privacy friendly the dumbphones are, might still be using Google Play services?
  • Two devices instead of one to carry around
  • Extra costs for two devices
  • Tinkering with a linux phone could be a fun project

Bonus option: don't get the linux phone

  • Less screen time
  • Only 1 device to buy/carry
  • Can't go on the internet while traveling

Questions

  • What would be your recommendation that allows plenty of storage on the phone?
  • Do you have good/bad experiences with any of these phones/operation systems?
  • Are there any good options I've missed?
top 50 comments
sorted by: hot top new old
[-] jet@hackertalks.com 28 points 1 year ago

Pixel + GOS - no complaints works great

[-] monovergent@lemmy.ml 15 points 1 year ago

Pixel + GOS just works, even has proper sandboxed Play Services if the need arises. Never had a Fairphone myself, but I really do fancy a SD card slot and removable battery.

Words of caution on dumbphones though, especially if you live somewhere with 4G as the minimum:

  • The overlap between 4G+VoLTE support and true dumbphones is very small
  • Watch out for KaiOS "dumbphones", which will come bundled with Google's goodies and telemetry
  • Voice calls and SMS are already unencrypted and monitored, so I don't see any undue risks from a dumbphone, as long as you don't store any more data on it than you need and use a true dumbphone rather than one with KaiOS or even Android.
[-] hansolo@lemmy.today 8 points 1 year ago

Additional dumb phone warning:

SIM swapping attacks take all of 10 minutes to accomplish, and will give an attacker access to your phone number for them to use SMS 2FA codes to lock you out of your email and accounts. You will have zero access or recourse until you physically go into a carrier location and get your phone number fixed. Then you begin a lengthy process of reclaiming accounts to see how bad the damage is.

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 1 year ago

Thanks for the warning about the SIM swapping attacks. Do I understand correctly that this is an issue on the dumbphones because you can't install a 2FA app on it but have to rely on SMS? I thought there were also some 'dumbphones' where you can install apps, just not browsers or social media apps. But maybe those are the ones @monovergent@lemmy.ml was warning about.

[-] hansolo@lemmy.today 4 points 1 year ago

Correct. 2FA apps are the safest option.

2FA codes sent by SMS are barely better than just a password, but if your password leaks and your phone number is public info on a data broker site, it's simply a matter of when the attacker makes it to you on a list. It's especially bad for people who flaunt crypto or stock wins online and make themselves a target worth trying a SIM swap on.

[-] monovergent@lemmy.ml 3 points 1 year ago

Indeed. One of my pet peeves are services, especially from financial institutions, that force you to use SMS for 2FA with no option for more secure options.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 year ago

Yes, I wish GOS would support the fairphone, then it would be a no-brainer.

Thanks for the warning re: dumphones, I had no idea. Is there one that you think is suitable for privacy and 4G+VoLTE support?

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 12 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Does your no cloud policy extend to running a nextcloud instance on your own computer and pulling data over the network when necessary?

If that's something you are willing to do, then I would go with the Pixel and just pull data from your nextcloud device when needed. I believe you can install nextcloud through Docker to make it super quick to update and deploy.

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 year ago

Kind of, it seems like a lot of extra work to keep that secure and up to date, esp with having access from outside. My current solution is just Syncthing desktop <-> phone and works exactly the way I want.

[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 9 points 1 year ago

In that case, I'd probably go with the Fairphone 6, since you can get /e/OS on it by default, but you can also put lineage on it, if you wished.

Personally, I absolutely hate the /e/OS launcher. It reminds me too much of iOS. And I honestly hate it.

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 year ago

Thank you, yes, that does seem super convenient and in case /e/OS sucks I could change it to Lineage

[-] shortwavesurfer@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 year ago

So I wanted to make sure before you did so, and it turns out the Fairphone 6 is not as of yet on the lineage OS website as officially supported. So you might be stuck with sl/e/OS for now. I'm fairly certain the Fairphone 6 will get lineage. It just does not appear to have it yet. So you might either want to wait or consider buying the 5 instead, which already is supported for certain.

https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/#fairphone

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] FrostyPolicy@suppo.fi 2 points 1 year ago

Personally, I absolutely hate the /e/OS launcher. It reminds me too much of iOS. And I honestly hate it.

You can install whatever launcher you want. No need to stay on the default (don't like it either). One of my old phones has /e/os and I'm using Zim Launcher.

load more comments (3 replies)
load more comments (1 replies)
[-] Core_of_Arden@lemmy.ml 8 points 1 year ago

It's nice to see how many people wants alternatives to Google and Apple... I just wonder what would have happened, if so many people had actually supported either the Ubuntu phone, or the Firefox Phone?

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 8 points 1 year ago

No idea, this is the first I'm hearing about either of them. Sometimes a great idea can fail because it is too early. A lot of people around me who have never been interested in tech are messaging me asking about what browser is most private, what social media alternatives there are, etc. Maybe there is more momentum now?

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] HiddenLayer555@lemmy.ml 5 points 1 year ago

We still have a chance with Linux mobile.

[-] mikey@sh.itjust.works 7 points 1 year ago

If I were you, I'd wait until Aug 20, when the new Pixels get announched; they might have one with 512GB and you should be able to install GrapheneOS a bit after launch.

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 1 year ago

Good idea, I'll definitely wait and see what they come out with. A 512 GB Pixel + separate MP3 player might be a good option. Thanks.

[-] rdri@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

Is GrapheneOS even a good recommendation at this point? I won't be surprised if changes Google makes to Android will effectively kill it, as soon as this year.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] DirigibleProtein@aussie.zone 6 points 1 year ago

Sony Xperia with Sailfish

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] krolden@lemmy.ml 5 points 1 year ago

Sony phones are supported by sailfish OS

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] eruchitanda@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago

Fairphone 5 with CalyxOS?

No updates, but you'll have one of the best Android OSs, and a SD card slot.

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] saimen@feddit.org 4 points 1 year ago

https://volla.online/en/index.php

This might interest you. Comes with own google free android OS or Ubuntu Touch.

I have no experience with it though, just stumbled upon it when looking for alternatives.

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] DreasNil@feddit.nu 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I got my FP6 with /e/os a few weeks ago and I love it so far! Only downside is the camera which will apparently get a software update eventually.

Edit: someone told me to enable the HDR setting which wasn't enabled from the start. So there's hope for the camera yet! I haven't had time to try it out but it sounds promising.

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 year ago

Nice, good to know. Have you run into anything with the USB 2 connection?

[-] DreasNil@feddit.nu 3 points 1 year ago

I only use it to charge the phone, so nope. Works just as expected. I rarely even have to charge it, the battery is awesome compared to my old iPhone!

[-] rapchee@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago

fyi it's usb-c 2, not old usb 2

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] cabbage@piefed.social 2 points 1 year ago

On the FP5 with /e/OS there's an option in the settings to enable the official Fairphone camera app, which improves picture quality by quite a lot. There's no such option for the FP6?

load more comments (1 replies)
[-] cabbage@piefed.social 2 points 1 year ago

Regarding Fairphone, I found modularity to make their phones cheaper than the competition in the long run, even though the initial cost is slightly higher.

I have not experienced any performance issues on my FP5 with /e/OS, so unless you plan to do something crazy with it I don't think it being snappier should be the reason to opt for a FP6 instead.

load more comments (3 replies)
[-] Arghblarg@lemmy.ca 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

They're not new, but if you can get a Oneplus 5T or some models after that, they run LineageOS fine. With Magisk even my banking apps work. All save the finerprint reader work well. Sadly I hear OnePlus is going to stop allowing unlocking in new models.

[-] lavendertea@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 year ago

Thanks, looks like it doesn't have an SD card slot unfortunately. According to these specs

load more comments (2 replies)
[-] kittenzrulz123@lemmy.blahaj.zone 2 points 1 year ago

The simple fact is a Pixel + GOS will be the most secure option by far and is going to be the most frequently updated.

load more comments
view more: next ›
this post was submitted on 17 Aug 2025
70 points (98.6% liked)

DeGoogle Yourself

18202 readers
63 users here now

A community for those that would like to get away from Google.

Here you may post anything related to DeGoogling, why we should do it or good software alternatives!

Rules

  1. Be respectful even in disagreement

  2. No advertising unless it is very relevent and justified. Do not do this excessively.

  3. No low value posts / memes. We or you need to learn, or discuss something.

Related communities

!privacyguides@lemmy.one !privacy@lemmy.ml !privatelife@lemmy.ml !linuxphones@lemmy.ml !fossdroid@social.fossware.space !fdroid@lemmy.ml

founded 6 years ago
MODERATORS
CrypticCoffee@lemm.ee
CrypticCoffee@lemmy.ml
Byereddithellolemmy@lemmy.world
chevy9294@monero.town