I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux • Hacker News Board

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#181

Post by seba_dos1 » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 1:53 AM UTC

MrDrMcCoy wrote: post #178

seba_dos1 wrote: post #177

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Both Furiphone and F(x)tec phones are Halium devices. They rely on Android layers underneath the GNU-like userspace. They don't really work as actual "mobile Linux" phones at all, so they're not a particularly good representation.

I somehow doubt Halium explains the level of performance I've seen from them.

Something has to, Phosh runs well on much less powerful devices and several components need to be patched to work on top of Halium, so you're not really running the mainline Phosh environment there anyway.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#182

Post by armadyl » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:02 AM UTC

dsr_ wrote: post #91

streb-lo wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Probably because carriers don't want a bunch of poorly secured devices on their networks.

Counter-evidence: the Google Play Store, which is a wretched hive of scum and villainy. And also malware.

Counter-evidence: Repos such as AUR

That blast radius coupled with (non-Android) Linux's atrocious security is a far worse option

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#183

Post by Blazara » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:07 AM UTC

amelius wrote: post #39

friendlypenguin wrote: post #37

I really want to leave the Google and Apple Ecosystems, but I still need "these" Banking Apps. Some Banks don't even offer a Web based experience anymore.

Why doesn't the EU force these banks to support all platforms including web? I mean, if they can force Microsoft to support other browsers than IE6, then why can't they force banks?

If you're an EU citizen, contact your MEP and ask for it.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#184

Post by ColdStream » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:08 AM UTC

pooploop64 wrote: post #157

I would love to do this. It's shocking how little Android offers for the hardware it uses. Recently I was thinking if I could install Windows 98 on my phone, even that would be better. At least I could have more than one app open without it burning all my work just because I dared to check info on a web page while filling a form.

Oh yes, the endless joy of "We have sent a one time code to your email." Yes, but if I switch to my email then I will lose my browser session and thus the code is useless. So you have to get out a laptop to open your email just so that you have 2FA on your phone.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#185

Post by ColdStream » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:10 AM UTC

hithre wrote: post #131

po1nt wrote: post #106

Windows Phone was a great idea and worked so well. But it was killed by the fact that people didn't want to maintain apps for 3 platforms. Nowadays when most of the things runs on web/electron anyway, isn't this the time to rediscover that idea? Make something novel? RTOS like response like blackberry, secure, fully opensource and such? With the era of LLM accelerated developement (don't crucify me), this wouldn't be…

Thanksfully it is not all web. Though indeed there is no lack of native multiplaform solutions. But app is not the hardest challenge compared to supporting all the hardware, camera, screens and the many core protocols

These are problems the PC solved but we lost with mobile. Standard processors, BIOS, interfaces and general API's for use so it made systems kind of generic. Looks like those who made these things didn't want to repeat that mistake again.

Unfortunately, I suspect things like RiscV are just going to accelerate this as it means anyone can make any spec they want so long as the application code compiles to it.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#186

Post by denkmoon » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:10 AM UTC

seba_dos1 wrote: post #101

Hackbraten wrote: post #85

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've been daily driving a Linux phone for three years. The suffering was real. It's mostly gone now, I love it and will definitely never go back.

I've been daily driving Linux phones for the last 18 years and I would never switch away. Sure, at the beginning it required you to make it your hobby, but you were being rewarded for it. Sometimes when I'm looking at Android/iOS devices being used over someone's shoulder I'm quite horrified at what I see and what people consider normal these days and so glad that my phone works for me rather than anyone else.

What do you use? both in terms of hardware and software. I love the idea of a linux phone but I'm very skeptical.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#187

Post by AnthonyMouse » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:16 AM UTC

Gigachad wrote: post #128

jarbus wrote: post #80

I really want to love mobile Linux, and have given it multiple shots before. But I just don't see how it will catch up with iOS/Android in the same way it caught up with Windows/Mac: - OEMs have poured an enormous amount of resources into the camera software, Linux cameras are years behind from what I understand. - Android/iOS have thoroughly optimized the UX in all sorts of subtle ways, the big one being their keybo…

I don't expect linux phones to catch up to ios for the mainstream, but I can see them working for me. I usually carry an actual camera with me so I don't care much about my phone one other than random utility shots / photos of receipts. And very much don't like the trend of forced app usage so having a device that physically won't run these apps helps me avoid companies that don't have a functional website.

> I don't expect linux phones to catch up to ios for the mainstream, but I can see them working for me.

That's the thing that allows them to catch up for the mainstream. Some nerds can use it and tolerate the rough edges, so they do. But the rough edges are still rough, so as more people use it, the small percentage of people willing to actually do something about it becomes a larger absolute number of people, and then more of them get shaved off. Which causes more people to use it.

The point when the devices are usable comes long before the point that they're what the majority of mainstream consumers are buying. Desktop Linux has been there for more than a decade and year after year its market share slowly goes up.

There isn't going to be a single year when its market share goes directly from 3% to 97%. There is going to be a year that its market share gets into the double digits and then continues slowly going up.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#188

Post by AnthonyMouse » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:26 AM UTC

megous wrote: post #159

echelon wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

We're going to be able to dump phone firmware soon and reverse compile with LLMs. This will become an assailable salient soon and by 2036 we should have dozens of competing phone operating systems and vendors. We're going to do the same for robotics and everything that gets shipped to us.

Well, rkisp1 driver that drives ISP on RK3399 on Pinephone Pro is available upstream in fully supported manner for like 4 years. It also has full docs in publicly available Rockchip datasheets and partial docs in calibration manuals. What have people done with it? Some mediocre support in libcamera? :) I don't think lack of handholding is an issue here.

Pinephone is a low volume product. What you need is to get the firmware for some common device that has shipped millions of units so that the number of people with the incentive to make it work is high enough to actually build a community.

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#189

Post by izacus » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:27 AM UTC

OJFord wrote: post #63

amelius wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why doesn't the EU force these banks to support all platforms including web? I mean, if they can force Microsoft to support other browsers than IE6, then why can't they force banks?

I expect everyone who can conceive of something other than Android or iOS* on a phone is on HN, and not a bureaucrat in Brussels. *(or BB, webOS, Windows Phone 7 Phone OS Phone Microsoft, Symbian, etc. if old enough)

Why not have US Federal Government enforce this instead? It's way more impactful for most HN users.

Why wait for Brussels beaurocrats we all have this much and not have the most important tech country in the world make this law?

Re: I'm switching my phone from Android to Linux

#190

Post by skeledrew » Thu, Aug 06, 2026, 2:30 AM UTC

  > While the AOSP isn't exactly dead (yet), it kind of feels like it's just a question of time.

The writing's been in the wall since the renamed the Android Market to Google Play Store. Frog's been boiling all this time, and every update my croaks grow weaker.