de-Googled phones

[ocnbrze]

ok so i saw somethings on youtube that reminded me of some fellow AF members who are looking to get away from Google.

so the first one i saw is about /e/ project
https://e.foundation/
you can buy a phone with their os already added or you can install it yourself on your existing phone....provided it is supported. here is the list https://doc.e.foundation/devices/
check it out:

next is a collab with some developers and xda to come up with a phone that can run either linux or lineage os right out of the box. it has a physical keyboard!!!!!!!!! talk about a blast from the past!!!!!

Spoiler: press here to see the full ad from their website

Following the success of our first smartphone, the Pro1, team F(x)tec have been working closely with our customers and the wider tech community to bring you a special version of our award winning phone.

In partnership with XDA (one of the largest online tech communities) we present the Pro1-X; the smartphone that gives you control. Control over your data, control over your privacy, and choice over your software. For the first time, a high spec smartphone with your choice of Android, Lineage OS or Ubuntu Touch OS out of the box.

Do you want to get your hands on the world's first consumer smartphone with Lineage OS out of the box? or would you rather be amongst the first to own the most powerful Ubuntu touch OS smartphone ever made?

Whether you’re looking for a pure android experience with the controls to give you privacy from Google, or the immense power of a solid Linux smartphone, choose the OS that suits you best:

Freedom to do whatever you want, with privacy that you control.

The unique design of the Pro1-X combines a modern touchscreen smartphone with the added functionality of a full landscape physical keyboard. Users can experience the best of both physical and virtual keyboards, integrated into one slim, elegant and beautifully crafted device.

We've increased the RAM (8GB) and storage (256GB) to give users the best Lineage and Ubuntu Touch experience imaginable, and we didn't stop there... The Pro1-X comes with a special edition Sapphire Blue housing. Function really has never looked so stylish.

Our partnership with XDA comes from a shared vision to create the best Lineage OS smartphone the market has ever seen. XDA is one of the largest smartphone communities online, the best set of resources for the smartphone enthusiast and one of the homes for Lineage OS.

Privacy and security are more important than ever and XDA users are renowned for going beyond the traditional smartphone experience. Now, we want to bring this to a wider audience, with the deeper controls in Lineage OS giving users the freedom to take back control and experience the new normal for digital privacy.

Stock Android OS

• Android OS is all about flexibility, customization and productivity
• Stock Android on the Pro1-X lets you use all of your favorite Android apps from the Play Store with the click of a button. Bringing you the tools to manage both your work and personal life
• True Split Screen Multi-Tasking puts in control. Messaging in one window and watching your favourite video on the other all from the physical keyboard
• With familiar PC keyboard shortcuts (CTRL-C, CTRL-V, plus all the others) get more done in the apps you use daily
• Whether you are editing documents on the go, watching the latest box set on Netflix, playing games or using Google Pay whilst you’re out and about doing jobs. Android OS on the Pro1-X gives you productivity in your pocket

Bringing you a pure, powerful and private Android experience.

• Want the Google/Android OS, but without spying? Look no further. Pro1-X gives you the freedom to do whatever you want on your smartphone. No strings attached
• Use app control; Privacy Guard (Lineage 16.0) or PermissionHub (Lineage 17.1) and Superuser to manage your permissions & root access, so that you can control exactly what your apps do and share, wherever and whenever, you like
• Official LineageOS support providing monthly software & security updates, so you can stay productive & keep your phone running for longer
• Ships with Lineage 16.0 out of the box with Lineage 17.1 available to update straight away
• Currently running Lineage 17.1 official release

The smartphone desktop experience reimagined.

Do you want the power of a PC from your smartphone? Experience true convergence by simply plugging your Pro1-X into a monitor and watch it instantly transform your desktop.

• Ubuntu Touch's super smooth gesture based UI
• Full desktop experience from your smartphone, with gesture controls and a modern UI
• Use the Pro1-X screen as a mouse to navigate your desktop experience
• Multitask like a pro and work on multiple apps at the same time
• Run your favorite Android apps with AnBox or desktop apps with Libertine
• When you’re done, unplug and continue using the Pro1-X as your everyday smartphone

It's your phone, so we want to give you the power to choose how you use it. The possibilities are endless.

Advanced users can unlock the bootloader then re-flash and modify the OS themselves.

These familiar OSs are in development for the Pro1-X. More exciting news as developments happen!

Experience the best of a physical keyboard

Having the freedom to choose between a virtual keyboard or a physical keyboard makes it that much easier to edit documents, message your friends, play games or access terminal on the go. Your phone, your choice.

Multitask like a pro

The slide out landscape physical keyboard and large 5.99 inch AMOLED display lets you use split-screen multitasking as it should be. Open two apps at the same time without the screen taken up by a virtual keyboard. Staying productive on the go is a breeze and honestly a joy to use.

Take full advantage of the physical keyboard and its PC like features to play your favourite games.

With a resolution of 2160 x 1080 pixels, the Pro1’s large 6 inch AMOLED display really brings games to life. For the first time on a smartphone, play your favourite emulators with physical keys.

The Pro1-X hardware runs both Lineage OS and Ubuntu Touch smoother and faster than almost every other competitor device. We don't get caught up the the GHz discussions but if you really want to know, here's how the Pro1-X compares to some of the competition:

which one do you like?
if i was looking to get away from google i really like the Pro1x phone. the physical keyboard brings back memories of me wanting a sidekick back in the day when i was a young lad, but could not afford to get it. and the fact that i can choose linux or lineage is super cool.

thoughts?

 

[Hadron]

My old HTC One runs Lineage without Google apps at the moment. That's probably the simplest solution for people with a rootable phone.

A phone with a keyboard probably wouldn't suit me - I think the only small keyboard I've ever found tolerable was the Psion Series 5, but that would be a bit big as a phone.

 

[bcrichster]

Beautiful thread! Great to see ppl as excited about other operating systems as me. I think /e/ also started around Android's Nougat 7.1, but plz don't quote me on that, Lol. Just gonna put this old one right here for ppl's reminder. Maybe someone has one of these still laying around:
https://androidforums.com/threads/rom-unofficial-e-v0-1-7-1-2-for-moto-e4-plus-owens.1290368/

 

[dontpanicbobby]

Is rooting gonna make a comeback?

 

[Davdi]

It's still here - Magisk anyone?

 

[Alexenferman]

The Pro1-X is a Pro1 but with LineageOS as the stock Firmware. The Pro1 also has the same LineageOS ROMs but you had to install them yourself. Honestly 729$ for a Snapdragon 835 is too much. You better buy yourself a Motorola or another phone with Good LineageOS support and you will have the same experience. Unless you really want a physical keyboard, you should not buy this phone, mainly due to how expensive it is for what it offers.

 

[puppykickr]

Simple Moble Tools is suposed to be coming out with a de-Googled phone.

Reclaim your privacy with Simple Phone

We believe the next giant leap in consumer phones is a leap back. Let’s go back to simpler times when phones had no spyware and adware.

simplephone.tech

 

[nickdalzell]

My S4 Mini has no Google account on it and isn't set to Sync anything, and I never updated the few Google apps on it. About as De-Googled as I can get without giving up the UI I like or the size I love. Doesn't even have a data plan on it anyway so as long as I am outside my home there's no connection to the internet for Google to track.

 

[Hadron]

Simple Moble Tools is suposed to be coming out with a de-Googled phone.

Reclaim your privacy with Simple Phone

We believe the next giant leap in consumer phones is a leap back. Let’s go back to simpler times when phones had no spyware and adware.

simplephone.tech

I wish them luck: a lot of people have gone under trying to sell a non-mainstream phone.

Ironically I can't buy one as it's too "mainstream" in one important respect: it's too bleedin' big.

 

[nickdalzell]

Yeah being too big is a problem across the entire board. Even 'minis' aren't mini unless you consider the Galaxy Note II a mini phone, as that's the same size as the iPhone 12 "mini". That's the original reason I purchased the S4 mini as a protest. Now it's my main device.

 

[puppykickr]

I can understand the size of a device being an issue.

I gave up putting a phone in my pants pocket long ago.

I use a case from Nite-Ize and put my phone in my jacket pocket.

Summer time, I use the belt clip.
It works with or without a belt.

 

[Hadron]

For me it's not pockets (though that would be a deal breaker! ), it's can I use it one-handed without risk of dropping. If it's more than 7cm wide the answer is "no". My s21 is 7.1cm wide and is awkward, so anything wider than that is a hard pass.

(The height is irrelevant because I can't reach the top anyway, and most controls are at the bottom. But controls these days being right at the bottom adds extra awkwardness. Basically phones are designed for 2-handed use, but that doesn't meet my needs and so I just have to reject almost all phones these days).

 

[puppykickr]

I would love a one handed phone, but my hands are small and my vision sucks so bad that i wouldnt be able to read the screen.

And remember when phones were so small that we lost them constantly?

 

[Hadron]

Nope, I never lost a phone. And when they were that small there was never any question about where it was: it was in my pocket .

 

[nickdalzell]

The last time I used a belt clip it was when I had a Samsung Galaxy SIII. But at work each time I squatted or bent over a certain way that belt clip would no doubt POP! and hit the floor. Luckily it protected the phone and it was in a case anyway, but it happened often enough to get annoying real fast and left front pocket became the default option, with keys clipped via carabiner to my belt loops.

I also had issues with my Nokia 5185i popping off its belt clip and hitting the floor, often enough that it took duct tape to keep the battery on, which was part of the back of the phone and eventually the clips holding it on snapped off from so much of it being dropped that way.

I also see one-handed use as necessary. I am always using one of my hands whenever a text comes in, or doing something else and I like using it one-handed. Today's phones are too long and often too wide, and with my bad arthritis lately, both trying to reach the top to clear a notification to swiping around to navigate because some genius thought buttons = evil became such a chore that downgrading to what I use today was the only option left. When it no longer works, I'm off smartphones for keeps. Nobody makes a phone that checks all my boxes anymore, plus I don't rely on apps nearly as much as I once did.