zlacker

They have the ecosystem by the balls. Phone manufacturers in recent years have been making unlocking & modifying their devices more and more difficult, google and app developers have been cracking down harder on modded devices by implementing TPM equivalents in the hardware to sign and verify that your system is a google-appproved one, and alternatives still are decades behind in terms of app ecosystem.

I think they might just get away with it.

>>mid-ki+(OP)
I don't think Google can be blamed for this - their own phones are one of the last which can still be unlocked.

>>jojoba+T1
true, and recently they deserved a lot of credit for publicly releasing their device trees and drivers. unfortunately, with the 10 series pixels they no longer will be releasing device trees, which makes it much more difficult to maintain custom ROMs

>>mid-ki+(OP)
I would say this is a bold choice for a company whose existing restrictions around third party apps and stores and in-app purchases has already been found illegal. While it doesn't look like they're pushing for it right now, forcing Google to sell Android was something the DOJ has considered as a penalty.

I'm not sure Google still has the ecosystem by the balls. It's very possible whatever Googlers who made this decision are the type of folks who don't comprehend they work for a monopoly that like actually can't do things like this anymore.

>>mid-ki+(OP)
Don’t worry though, the TPM requirements in everything are for your protection.

>>mid-ki+(OP)
Unless they give F-Droid access, the antitrust prosecution will double.

>>mid-ki+(OP)
> and alternatives still are decades behind in terms of app ecosystem.

That's if they're available at all. In my country, only cell phones certified by the telecommunications government agency (ANATEL) can be imported, so the alternatives (Jolla, PinePhone, Fairphone) simply don't exist.

>>ocdtre+64
Maybe they gave a political donation?

>>cesarb+P9
If you don't mind sharing, which country is that?

>>Spaghe+ha
When I google ANATEL, it comes up as Brazil

>>Spaghe+ha
It takes less time to search and find that Anatel is the Brazilian telecom agency than it does to type that comment.

They do marvellous things like mandate weird Brazilian Android games on the phone I bought in Brazil.

>>Y_Y+yb
It's incredibly obnoxious when people type "in my country" as if we're all supposed to just... know where they live. It's also incredibly common. Why do people do this?

>>jojoba+T1
They're also the best equipped to tell if you've done so, and restrict access from critical functionality needed by many in their day-to-day lives if you've done so.

The intentions behind all the security hardware they introduced in pixel phones first, and is now required by play integrity to function might've been well-meaning, but that doesn't really matter in the end. Security features that the user can't control and bypass aren't security features - they're digital handcuffs.

>>ripdog+Ec
Image asking someone where they’re from only to be told a US state, and only the state.

>>chasil+Q7
Yeah, I'll just ditch Google over this. The only reason I put up with their crap is because I can actually just install software on my phone. If they take that away, there's no motivation to stay.

>>_aavaa+5f
Apart from Georgia, I don't see how this could be a problem

>>_aavaa+5f
> Image asking someone where they’re from only to be told a US state, and only the state.

Atlanta or Tbilisi?

>>_aavaa+5f
Asking where somebody's from and having them respond with the state is not unreasonable -- you can already tell they’re American from the accent. The US is huge, about half of its states have more land area than half of the countries in the world. Asking where someone is from and receiving "the US" in response is about as informative as someone from Europe replying "Europe". Like yeah, obviously, I could tell by your accent, but where in Europe?

>>rpdill+lh
I rely on fdroid and am not sure what I'll do with this pixel 6a. I sometimes root, sometimes don't but I may have to get on the lineageos program full time. And I'm hoping for a rumored last batch of pinephone pro phones to be available later this month although I have no illusions about it being a real daily driver.

>>glenst+Vj
fdroid is based in the EU and the Cyber Resilience Act was already going to force them to either make their filters more strict (absolutely prohibit anything with any sort of "monetization"), or start collecting this data.

If they have anything on the platform that is subject to the CRA, they are a distributer:

https://www.cyberresilienceact.eu/cra-guide-for-importers-di...

>>rpdill+lh
And go where? IOS is worse as far as openness and controlling your own hardware. And the Linux phones are not exactly practical for normal use.

>>rpdill+lh
Ditch Google for what?

>>action+aa
It may also help to push things one way to prevent them from going the other way.

>>OkGoDo+Pm
If I can't run F-Droid and termux and all that, I have no need for Android supposed freedom. I'll just use an iPhone (it would be the first time!), minimize my use of mobile platforms to the maximum extent I can and stick with Linux laptops.

I'm currently researching Android alternatives, including Librem and Jolla C2, and I'm skeptical that those will be compelling. It's just so sad.

>>ekianj+3n
An unofficial build of Android, like Grapheneos. It likely won't be able to install apps from the Play Store, but at that point it might be a blessing.

>>ekianj+3n
I responded elsewhere, but to summarize:

Use an iPhone, minimize my use of it. Continue to emphasize Linux on all my other devices. Move away from Google and Apple services to as much self-hosting as possible. Leverage TailScale to make my services accessible, globally, without actually exposing them on the internet. I'm just assuming that I will have to have some kind of attested device in order to run banking and payment apps and that might as well be a locked down device like an iPhone.

>>glenst+Vj
LineageOS currently says that it won't install over the latest update on the 6a.

You can try it, but don't cry if it bricks.

The newish one I bought got GrapheneOS instead. That worked without a hitch, but it's got more than a few problems.

>>chasil+Iq
What problems are you running into on Graphene OS? Maybe we have different workflows, but it works just fine for my purposes.

>>chasil+Q7
> the antitrust prosecution will double.

In Brazil? In Malaysia? In Singapore? I highly doubt it.

>>rpdill+Lo
I suspect that many developers publishing on F-Droid, and the F-Droid itself, may obtain registration, and continue to be available, termux and all.

But not every developer, of course, would agree to register.

>>nozzle+Cj
Funny thing is that americans do that all the time, even in international settings like a coworking space full of expats. Everybody introducing themselves with a "hi, I'm from this country", except americans telling their state or city. Are they expecting us to be familiar with their geography, or just unaware of alternative geographical frames of reference?

>>Y_Y+yb
> mandate weird Brazilian Android games on the phone I bought in Brazil.

Uhm, this sounds more like something from the Ministry of Culture, maybe some tax incentive for manufacturers promoting local productions.

I could be wrong though. Curious to know if Anatel has issued any ordinance in this regard, just did a quick search but could find nothing so far.

>>_aavaa+5f
I'd think passive recognition of a fair few states would be a pretty low bar for relatively educated, English-speaking people. It's a pretty low bar, just placing a region with its country. People also regularly just assume that level of knowledge for globally- or culturally-relevant cities.

Maybe I think too highly of people, but I'd also imagine most would be able to get say... 6/10 right, for which countries the following list is from:

- Flanders

- Nova Scotia

- Brandenburg

- Guangzhou

- Tasmania

- Minas Gerais

- Catalonia

- Chechnya

- West Bengal

- Bali

>>nozzle+Cj
Do you assume everybody is able to recognize Americans or Europeans "from their accent" ?

>>OkGoDo+Pm
If both phone OS's are going to be the exact same on user choice then you might as well compare the two on their merits and this is not a comparison Android wins.

>>ricudi+uJ
Americans? Honestly, yes. If not, what good is this cultural imperialism after all?

>>nine_k+Lu
There are so many apps which just work and don't need updates.

All of those will disappear also on F-Droid because of that.

>>Spivak+3L
You forgot "IMO"

>>cybera+Xo
grapheneOS relies on the goodwill of Google to keep Pixel devices open right?

>>rpdill+Lo
I’ve been daily driving a Librem 5 for two years. It’s not compelling, but I’m surprised at how little all those tiny inconveniences matter in the long run.

I think we tend to underestimate our ability to get used to stuff.

>>Y_Y+yb
But now I do not have to google that.

>>ekianj+qV
They are apparently in talks with a vendor to produce official devices. But yeah, the open Android ecosystem is shrinking.

Samsung recently stopped allowing the bootloader unlocking. HTC stopped allowing bootloader unlocking in 2018.

My bet is on Nothingphone or Fairphone remaining open for a while.

>>rpdill+Yo
This is the way. I've been living this life for a while now and IMO it's the best way to go in 2025.

>>ripdog+Ec
The actual country is not relevant, the important part is that countries exist where this is the case. Mentioning the specific country invites potential bias that means people may not take the concern seriously, thinking their country wouldn't do the same.

>>ripdog+Ec
I usually say that to let people know: I'm not from the US and i'm not comfortable letting people know which country i am living in.

>>myth20+Iv
I don't think that is strange at all. If you can reasonable assume the person you are talking to is aware of e.g. England, Minnesota, Scotland, Tasmania, Sicily or what not you can go straight for that?

>>OkGoDo+Pm
Exactly how you control your "own hardware" on your Android ?

>>gaudys+su
No root is the dealbreaker.

The browser doesn't handle dark mode well.

The launcher is primitive. Why didn't they just take Trebuchet?

I was also very used to pattern unlock.

>>chasil+Lg1
No root is a major security feature, you have chosen an OS that prioritizes security.

Use some other browser if dark mode is really important to you.

I think the launcher is good and I can't think of anything to improve on it. I'm happy it's the default, but I'm sure you can switch to a different launcher if you want.

Pattern unlock is also not there because of security.

>>gaudys+su
I have issues getting sms pass through to a secondary profile, especially if it is a group message or contains media. I have to remember to open the messaging app for it to actually refresh and download/notify me of new messages.

It didn't used to be like this but started maybe a year ago.