I truly truly wish you the best of luck in your futile endeavor.
My wife HATES all her apple products but still won't switch. Similarly, while I love Macbooks, iPhones make me sick and developing for them is like Apple personally giving you (the dev) the middle finger every time there's an update.
I don't know the solution. Wish I did. Wish the internet was as free and wild as it used to be. But you could have a foghorn go off on an iphone every 3 seconds and people still wouldn't switch.
ahewett 445 days ago [-]
I know this article is about google but I only had a good Apple anecdote so there you are.
izacus 444 days ago [-]
Can you explain where this wierd wish to talk about Apple in unrelated articles comes from? There's always one of you around that need to run an apple pitch in every topic where it's not needed or desired.
em-bee 444 days ago [-]
it's not quite unrelated, he clearly wants to get away from apple but can't tell us what it takes to do so.
he is subconsciously hoping that /e/os will fill that need some day.
(typed on /e/os ;-)
sandreas 445 days ago [-]
I've personally gone fully FOSS with my phone, using
Aurelia - APP store Frontend
Obtainium - APP manager
Google Camera - with blocked network access
Organic Maps - navigation
K9 mail - email
Koreader - epub reader
Binary eye - barcodes
PDF doc Scanner - scan to PDF
Signal - messenger
Everything i need ;)
PDF doc Scanner
dizhn 444 days ago [-]
Is this on a non google OS? Otherwise my question is, can you ever really block the camera's network access?
By the way check out Librera for ebooks. I have koreader on my kindle and I like it, I find librera's interface and features to be better suited to a phone. (apk is free on fdroid)
skeledrew 444 days ago [-]
I still have stock on my OnePlus 12, but I've disabled everything natively Google (except the camera and gallery, because they're linked and allow taking pictures without unlocking) and use Rethink DNS to firewall all apps. Nothing gets out without me having an idea (although that also means some apps may break until their access is properly configured, and some are really stubborn).
akimbostrawman 443 days ago [-]
note using a vpn firewall is not as reliable as revoking internet android permission used by GrapheneOS
akimbostrawman 443 days ago [-]
GrapheneOS offers a proper internet permission toggle using the Android permission system. If you install an app it will prompt you for it.
ramon156 444 days ago [-]
Just a heads up, thunderbird beta for mobile is here!
The front page should clearly answer this question:
Do Android apks run on it without downsides
heartag 445 days ago [-]
Agree that the website should do this. But adding here that the answer is "Mostly, yes." e/os/ includes microg by default, which replaces some of the Google Services with open source implementations.
I am responding using an old Motorola G4 Play (2016 vintage) running e/OS.
The only software issue I have run across is a few highly security sensitive banking apps.
The solution is to simply use the bank's web site which typically works just fine except for paper check deposit and who really needs that nowadays?
a96 445 days ago [-]
AFAIK, the answer is more Yes than on most others. I might even guess second only to GrapheneOS.
ementally 443 days ago [-]
False marketing.
They are one of the least "deGoogled" ROMs out there[1]. If you want the only real "deGoogled" OS that prioritizes security and privacy, use GrapheneOS https://grapheneos.org/.
This is true. It's basically GrapheneOS or DivestOS as best options.
em-bee 443 days ago [-]
unfortunately GrapheneOS only supports a very limited number of phone models.
byb 444 days ago [-]
e/OS is the best. To anyone reading this, give it a shot - you can break from from Apple and whatever spyware garbage is installed on your Android phone.
I've installed it to three devices and have daily driven it since June 2023. I got tired of paying the Apple tax, so I picked up a Motorola Edge 30 (Dubai) for ~200 USD which was the newest non-Murena/Fairphone listed on the website - but it is no longer listed because they've shifted to the "easy installer". I've turned to community-built ROMs for my other devices, including a Xiaomi Pocophone F1 from 2017 - which works great - and a Lenovo Tab. I specifically purchased the Lenovo tablet because there was a ROM; there's a user on the forums who is creating a lot of ROMs for devices. I was looking for a tablet to serve as an e-reader and media consumption device, but it's powered off most the time.
The OS is very nice to use. It's very similar to iOS. The browser has automatic ad blocks, so some sites complain that I need to turn off my ad blocker, but this isn't possible. The privacy-first focus has helped me to avoid becoming a smart phone addict. I use it primarily for consuming hacker news articles on the go.
As far as errors go, /e/OS developers have stated they need to invest more time on tablet features, so the Lenovo Tab I have isn't an iPad competitor. Also, my Motorola Edge 30 was stuck on version 1.19 for about 7 months until I manually side-loaded the update. For the past month, App Lounge was having trouble anonymously connecting and updating apps. V2.5 was released a couple days ago and everything seems fixed.
I like being able to anonymously install apps using the "App Lounge". I tend to keep less than 30 apps on my phone and don't use it for gaming. The only Google App I've installed is Gboard for additional language input - other than that it seems like every other app is available. My bank and brokerage apps are supported. I did set up a Garmin smartwatch on the tablet so I could get offline Spotify playback. One negative is that Uber recently updated their app in the last 6 months which broke scrolling on the map, which makes it difficult to see how far away my driver is.
The only concern I really have is that the boot loaders aren't lockable, which could be a security risk if the phone gets out of my possession. Luckily, I have treated my phones as disposable for years.
There are only two things I dream of:
1. An open-source Samsung Dex alternative so that I could plug my phone into a monitor and keyboard and use it as a PC.
2. An /e/OS ROM for an e-ink device with support from Murena//e/OS developers for e-ink devices.
akimbostrawman 443 days ago [-]
/e/ like LineageOS still has many Google components and connections. If you want something truly without Google spyware you are better served with GrapheneOS which also has a desktop mode since pixel 8
unethical_ban 445 days ago [-]
Can I install their apps on a Google/graphene device? Add their App Store to my phone?
protimewaster 444 days ago [-]
Is this more "deGoogled" than something like GrapheneOS? GrapheneOS gives the option install a sandboxed Google Play (and the associated services), but it's completely deGoogled by default AFAIK.
juliangmp 444 days ago [-]
I think the core difference here is that with graphene you use (if you want to) the google play services from google, but with very different security (iirc it runs like a regular app, without special access to the system).
But /e/ (horrible name btw) uses microG, which aims to replace parts of the google play infrastructure (but still relies on google servers afaik)
akimbostrawman 443 days ago [-]
no
hnaddict123 445 days ago [-]
For a lay person, can someone elaborate how does a custom ROM like Lineage OS fare compared to eOS? Can it de de-Googled to the same extent? Or never.
thrw42A8N 445 days ago [-]
With LineageOS it's not about degoogling, it's about not googling it - don't install the Google apps and services if you don't want them. You can use the same replacement as e/OS (MicroG).
NewJazz 443 days ago [-]
Isn't microG a hassle to get working on LineageOS? With CalyxOS I don't even have to think about it, it comes stock.
thrw42A8N 442 days ago [-]
It's no big deal. If you managed to install the OS, installing MicroG is going to take few dozen minutes at most.
NewJazz 442 days ago [-]
Nope, you have to apply signature spoofing and microg every time you update lineagos. I installed CalyxOS once and now OTA updates include microg.
Trust me, I've done both. Having it in the ROM is far easier for users.
jqpabc123 445 days ago [-]
e/OS *is* LineageOS de-Googled.
Nothing short of source code changes can achieve some of the de-Googling.
The LineageOS developers made a specific and deliberate decision to *not* do this.
Novosell 444 days ago [-]
What do you mean exactly? Lineage OS doesn't come with google play services or the like. It is "de-googled".
SpecialistK 444 days ago [-]
/e/ uses MicroG, which is a reverse-engineered re-implementation of some Google services. It requires spoofing the signature of the original Google apps, which official Lineage does not support for security reasons.
thrw42A8N 444 days ago [-]
That is not true. MicroG works just fine on Lineage and there are no Google services on their AOSP distribution until you add them yourself. You have to manually Google the OS; not de-Google it.
jqpabc123 444 days ago [-]
Google servers and services are hard coded into the AOSP distribution at various points. These could be used to facilitate identification and tracking.
e/OS/ removes, replaces and/or anonymizes these. LineageOS does not.
> Why do we need a custom build of LineageOS to have microG? Can't I install microG on the official LineageOS?
> MicroG requires a patch called "signature spoofing", which allows the microG's apps to spoof themselves as Google Apps. LineageOS' developers refused (multiple times) to include the patch, forcing us to fork their project.
> Wait, on their FAQ page I see that they don't want to include the patch for security reasons. Is this ROM unsafe?
> No. LineageOS' developers decided not to include this patch for various reasons.
The signature spoofing could be an unsafe feature only if the user blindly gives any permission to any app, as this permission can't be obtained automatically by the apps.
Moreover, to further strengthen the security of our ROM, we modified the signature spoofing permission so that only system privileged apps can obtain it, and no security threat is posed to our users.
Or... Just use an OS that includes it by default. Way less convoluted, and I don't have to redo things on updates.
thrw42A8N 443 days ago [-]
I don't like all the fluff that eOS adds. LineageOS is just clean android.
NewJazz 443 days ago [-]
CalyxOS, lineage for microg...
There are options besides e.
thrw42A8N 443 days ago [-]
Calyx is good but not officially available for as many devices. LineageOS is the most supported one. I don't trust random forum builds of smartphone OS - and they're too old/never existed anyways in case of my devices.
NewJazz 442 days ago [-]
Lineage for microg isn't a random forum build
akimbostrawman 443 days ago [-]
There are still tons of Google connections similar with /e/. If you want a fully degoogled android use GrapheneOS
More like, /e/OS: A fork of LineageOS but for-profit and uses "deGoogle" to lure people while offering their insecure Nextcloud instance as some alternatives of Google services
Years back I decided it wasn't worth my time to check out because of the name alone. What do you search for when you need help? "/e/ boot looping?".
poulpy123 445 days ago [-]
I don't see your issue, "/e/os boot looping" works fine. I'm even surprised to not the usual LLM generated slop
em-bee 444 days ago [-]
the name was supposed to be temporary, because the previous name (eelo iirc) had a trademark problem that they needed to fix quickly. so it looks like they picked the worst name possible to make it easier to change later. that new name was going to be murena. but then it appears they decided to use murena as branding for the phones with /e/os preinstalled and keep /e/os as name for the os itself
terrycody 444 days ago [-]
Can such system use social media apps like twitter and youtube?
skeledrew 444 days ago [-]
For YouTube access you'll likely need an alternative such as NewPipe (which I've been using for years and has only minor issues once in a while)
bdjsiqoocwk 443 days ago [-]
What's with non mainstream things having such shitty names? e/OS/ wtf
Rendered at 12:41:01 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) with Vercel.
2019 (190 points, 82 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=19005903
2018 (275 points, 183 comments) https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=18521970
My wife HATES all her apple products but still won't switch. Similarly, while I love Macbooks, iPhones make me sick and developing for them is like Apple personally giving you (the dev) the middle finger every time there's an update.
I don't know the solution. Wish I did. Wish the internet was as free and wild as it used to be. But you could have a foghorn go off on an iphone every 3 seconds and people still wouldn't switch.
he is subconsciously hoping that /e/os will fill that need some day.
(typed on /e/os ;-)
By the way check out Librera for ebooks. I have koreader on my kindle and I like it, I find librera's interface and features to be better suited to a phone. (apk is free on fdroid)
https://doc.e.foundation/support-topics/guide-micro-g
The only software issue I have run across is a few highly security sensitive banking apps.
The solution is to simply use the bank's web site which typically works just fine except for paper check deposit and who really needs that nowadays?
They are one of the least "deGoogled" ROMs out there[1]. If you want the only real "deGoogled" OS that prioritizes security and privacy, use GrapheneOS https://grapheneos.org/.
[1] https://eylenburg.github.io/android_comparison.htm
I've installed it to three devices and have daily driven it since June 2023. I got tired of paying the Apple tax, so I picked up a Motorola Edge 30 (Dubai) for ~200 USD which was the newest non-Murena/Fairphone listed on the website - but it is no longer listed because they've shifted to the "easy installer". I've turned to community-built ROMs for my other devices, including a Xiaomi Pocophone F1 from 2017 - which works great - and a Lenovo Tab. I specifically purchased the Lenovo tablet because there was a ROM; there's a user on the forums who is creating a lot of ROMs for devices. I was looking for a tablet to serve as an e-reader and media consumption device, but it's powered off most the time.
The OS is very nice to use. It's very similar to iOS. The browser has automatic ad blocks, so some sites complain that I need to turn off my ad blocker, but this isn't possible. The privacy-first focus has helped me to avoid becoming a smart phone addict. I use it primarily for consuming hacker news articles on the go.
As far as errors go, /e/OS developers have stated they need to invest more time on tablet features, so the Lenovo Tab I have isn't an iPad competitor. Also, my Motorola Edge 30 was stuck on version 1.19 for about 7 months until I manually side-loaded the update. For the past month, App Lounge was having trouble anonymously connecting and updating apps. V2.5 was released a couple days ago and everything seems fixed.
I like being able to anonymously install apps using the "App Lounge". I tend to keep less than 30 apps on my phone and don't use it for gaming. The only Google App I've installed is Gboard for additional language input - other than that it seems like every other app is available. My bank and brokerage apps are supported. I did set up a Garmin smartwatch on the tablet so I could get offline Spotify playback. One negative is that Uber recently updated their app in the last 6 months which broke scrolling on the map, which makes it difficult to see how far away my driver is.
The only concern I really have is that the boot loaders aren't lockable, which could be a security risk if the phone gets out of my possession. Luckily, I have treated my phones as disposable for years.
There are only two things I dream of: 1. An open-source Samsung Dex alternative so that I could plug my phone into a monitor and keyboard and use it as a PC. 2. An /e/OS ROM for an e-ink device with support from Murena//e/OS developers for e-ink devices.
Trust me, I've done both. Having it in the ROM is far easier for users.
Nothing short of source code changes can achieve some of the de-Googling.
The LineageOS developers made a specific and deliberate decision to *not* do this.
e/OS/ removes, replaces and/or anonymizes these. LineageOS does not.
https://doc.e.foundation/support-topics/deGoogling-scope-and...
> Why do we need a custom build of LineageOS to have microG? Can't I install microG on the official LineageOS?
> MicroG requires a patch called "signature spoofing", which allows the microG's apps to spoof themselves as Google Apps. LineageOS' developers refused (multiple times) to include the patch, forcing us to fork their project.
> Wait, on their FAQ page I see that they don't want to include the patch for security reasons. Is this ROM unsafe?
> No. LineageOS' developers decided not to include this patch for various reasons. The signature spoofing could be an unsafe feature only if the user blindly gives any permission to any app, as this permission can't be obtained automatically by the apps. Moreover, to further strengthen the security of our ROM, we modified the signature spoofing permission so that only system privileged apps can obtain it, and no security threat is posed to our users.
https://lineage.microg.org/#faq
There are options besides e.
https://grapheneos.org/faq#which-legacy-devices
More info: https://ewwlo.void.partidopirata.com.ar/evil.html