Edit: Replaced “Restrictions” in place of the word “Ban”
I don’t think the new changes will mean that all sideloaded apps are banned. We don’t yet know how much Google will misuse this to make installing apps that they don’t find “appropriate” even though they are completely safe a burden. The verification will probably be fully automated. Can anyone clear this out?
Switching to a Linux phone
What options are there there?
Dunno yet, but I’ve quit using better products than Android for smaller offenses than this. I’ll probably settle down to do some research tonight.
Once my phone becomes that limited I may as well go back to a feature phone after mine stops being usable.
I’m not sure really.
I like the idea of alternatives like a Linux phone OS or a custom ROM like Graphene, but I also hate the idea of needing to faff around with my phone to make it work how I want it to.
my plan is not updating my phone until the google plan is reversed.
Burn google down
What about Aurora Store and F-Droid?
You have to “side-load” those apps, so they will at least need to register with Google. Aurora is unlikely to be granted such dispensation. Apps that are currently only offered through F-Droid will also need to be registered with Google. I doubt they’ll look kindly on apps like NewPipe, or AdAway.
Each individual app developer will have to register with Google, regardless of where you install the app from: F-Droid, Aurora, Obtainium, directly getting the APK from GitHub, doesn’t matter.
This is coming off like the nightmare scenario that Valve thought would happen to Windows that led them to start investing into Linux as an alternative.
I’m going to wait for someone else to figure out a workaround and write a tutorial. Then wait for some indian youtuber to make a video tutorial out of that.
Without someone mumbling into a buzzing mic, I don’t believe its authenticity.
PinePhone?
I think the only thing I sideload is AdGuard, and they’re already verified. So it shouldn’t really affect me.
I’m still against it on principal.
If this actually happens, my next phone will probably be a dumb phone, unless I can find a true linux phone.
I don’t get how this would impact de-Googled phones like GrapheneOS?
Graphene pulls their updates from Android. Not sure if they’re capable of removing this requirement
It won’t apply to GrapheneOS. It only applies to certified OSes and GrapheneOS is not certified because it doesn’t license Google Mobile Services. It doesn’t bundle it and it’s also not part of AOSP so that GrapheneOS is built on AOSP doesn’t matter.
It won’t apply to GrapheneOS. It only applies to certified OSes and GrapheneOS is not certified because it doesn’t license Google Mobile Services.
I’m on eOS, so this specific thing will be a non-issue.
I already have an old dumbphone as backup. It might actually get some use going forward. Installing Linux on my current main phone may be in order.
Another thing I’m thinking of is potentially combining the dumbphone with a tiny laptop, say 10-12 inch. We used to have this category of device in the early 2010s. With today’s manufacturing it could be made to fit into a large coat pocket or purse. Need to look up if anyone is making these at this time.
GPD Win?
Or you can get a handheld like Steamdeck and you can use it for both portable gaming and on-the-go computing.
Isn’t eOS still android?
yes, but this change only affects certified Android devices (ie, ones that run software that Google put their blessings on), and /e/OS is squarely an uncertified (and Google-free) Android fork
My eeepc still works. That PC is like a toughbook.
Well, I don’t like throwing away devices I can still do something with, so I’m going to keep using the android devices I have until they stop working. After that, I’m not actually sure. I don’t want to completely give up on mobile gaming because I do like having an easy way to play games away from home, but I haven’t found a good alternative yet. Mobile Linux devices either aren’t worth their price or, if they are, I have no way to purchase them.
I would just install a mobile Linux distro onto newer android devices but on top of the fact that you can’t just install Linux onto android devices like you can on PCs, I’ve heard that, at least with some manufactures, that’s soon to be impossible as well.
I’ve been using LineageOS for years, and have been planning for my next phone to be a used Pixel running GrapheneOS. While this announcement from Google sucks shit, it won’t affect me I don’t think. More worrying are the other changes in the pipeline that would stop development of GrapheneOS. I am dying for a working Linux phone.
It won’t apply to GrapheneOS. It only applies to certified OSes and GrapheneOS is not certified because it doesn’t license Google Mobile Services.
We HAD one. It was called Greenphone.
It didn’t sell.
Now we don’t.
Damn, never even heard of it. Surely demand is higher now.
It did sell. And it seems the vendor’s plan was to use it to promote their software platform and nothing more.
