Im stuck with an s23 for a while yet. Is it even worth the trouble of trying to use f droid, shutting off google play services and disabling all the other shit on my phone, when at its core its all spyware?

I really wish an alternative existed that wasn’t just a prototype or $1000.

  • fierysparrow89@lemmy.world
    1·
    3 months ago

    You sound not yet ready to unplug 😃

    But to provide another perspective, havent used a Samsung phone for 10yrs. I generally buy a cheap phone with as little as possible preinstalled spyware. Except for browsing and messaging, every app I use daily comes from fdroid.

  • corvus@lemmy.ml
    1·
    3 months ago

    No, IMO. For a real private android experience you have to switch to Lineage or Graphene and F-droid apps. I’m writing this from a Galaxy A5 2016 with LineageOS with F-droid only apps in one (main) profile and WhatsApp and a couple of other (in my case, sadly unavoidable) proprietary apps in another profile.

    Here is a list of supported phones by LineageOS in case you are willing to switch.

  • The 8232 Project@lemmy.ml
    0·
    3 months ago

    Hi there! I mentioned this in the other thread but I’ll go into more detail here. GrapheneOS was created as a replacement operating system for mobile devices. It’s based on Android, but improves security and removes the invasive surveillance. It’s currently only available to install on Google Pixel devices, because while Google is bad with privacy, they are good with security. In 2026-2027 GrapheneOS plans to release their own smartphone in partnership with an OEM. GrapheneOS has 400,000 users and counting. Linux phones have a lot of security issues, especially when rooted. GrapheneOS worth looking into. You can buy a Pixel for around $200 second hand, that way you don’t line Google’s pockets to get one.