zlacker

>>kotaKa+(OP)
This has the potential to be disastrous for Google, but maybe not.

Personally: I don't use Apple because I like being able to whip together little apps to side-load without having to check in with a walled-garden mothership. If Google is going to move closer to Apple in that regard... Apple's UX ecosystem is better, so I have far fewer reason to keep using Android.

>>shadow+Jf
I suspect this won't be disastrous for Google, because where will people care about this go? Apple, who is even more restrictive? This is just another in a long series of incidents showing why we desperately need a real alternative to the mobile duopoly. I would ditch Android over this, but there's no realistic alternative available to me.

Damn the future sucks ass.

>>bigstr+sj
It's a good question. I've looked at PinePhone, but last time I looked at it in detail it was light-years outside my needs for usability (very much a "we are CLI authors and are trying our hands at a mobile UI as a hobby" situation).

I think I'll look into what Android phones are out there that aren't glued to the Google Play ecosystem. Side-loading is still a feature the OS core supports even if Google switches it off (for now, and AFAIK the OS is forkable if they press the issue).