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The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

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Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#31

Post by josephcsible »

solenoidalslide wrote: post #27
josephcsible wrote: post #24

I'd totally use a more open-source phone OS, if only there weren't communications and banking apps that check to make sure you're running an unmodified major manufacturer's OS, and refuse to run if they find any evidence that you aren't.

Which major banking and communications companies refuse to let you access their services via browser? This is when we absolutely need to name and shame.

Snapchat refuses to let you access their services at all via browser. And most banks offer you a restricted set of functionality via browser, e.g., no taking pictures of checks to deposit (in fact, I can't think of any banks that do let you do that via browser).

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#32

Post by [deleted] »

mikece wrote: post #10
nimbius wrote: post #3

tell ya what i really wanna see from pinephone: AGPS lockdown. Currently ive learned from HN there are numerous 3GPP protocols that provide direct, clandestine monitoring of the GPS location of the phone. the feature lives unchallenged in the firmware, so if you can give me a phone that cannot report its GPS data to the carrier without my knowledge, id be ever grateful.

Does the carrier sell this information? There are many/most apps that I don't allow to get location data and that's because, in my judgement, they don't need it and I don't trust them not to sell it: I can opt out. But if the carriers are actively gathering my location information and are selling it without giving me a way to opt out then perhaps I need to think about my phone as something I turn off most of the time…

[deleted]

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#33

Post by mikece »

nabaraz wrote: post #18
mikece wrote: post #2

Why LineageOS and not GrapheneOS? I have a Pixel 4a with GrapheneOS and really like it. The lack of Firebase Cloud Messaging (Google's push notifications service) isn't an issue for personal usage; for work I still use an iPhone because I don't want to put things like MS Teams on Graphene OS. As for PinePhone: it's interesting that this article puts LineageOS and PinePhone together since the latter cannot run the for…

The choice is between GrapheneOS + Sandboxed Google play vs LineageOS + MicroG. If you care too much about privacy, GrapheneOS is the way to go. If you want a balance between privacy and usability, LineageOS is the way to go. Also, GrapheneOS only supports Pixel phones. I have tried CalyxOS but there are too many issues.

By "sandboxed Google Play" do you mean using the Aurora app?

Coming from iPhone, something I keep forgetting is the full support for PWA apps on Graphene OS. I wish there were PWA versions of apps like Signal, Wire, ProtonMail, and more; so much cleaner to update the app through a deliberate refresh than going through a middle-man service like F-Droid.

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#34

Post by benlivengood »

scarface74 wrote: post #15

So a 2015 iPhone 6S runs the latest version of iOS. A 2013 iPhone 5s is still getting security updates. A 2011 iPhone 4s doesn’t support LTE and soon won’t be able to connect to any network. Verizon is shutting down their CDMA network as is Sprint. So how does open source make my life better? From a hardware side, why wouldn’t I just take my phone to any number of places to get the battery replaced?

Why is your cellular modem wedded inseparably to your pocket computing device? I think that's the bigger picture.

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#35

Post by fartcannon »

hrbf wrote: post #16

Just like the Linux desktop, alternative smartphones will forever remain a tiny niche market for highly technical people. Mainstream adoption can and will never happen given the current state of hardware design and manufacturing.

Please elaborate on how the current state of hardware design and manufacturing ensures that mainstream adoption will can and will never happen.

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#36

Post by solenoidalslide »

josephcsible wrote: post #31
solenoidalslide wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which major banking and communications companies refuse to let you access their services via browser? This is when we absolutely need to name and shame.

Snapchat refuses to let you access their services at all via browser. And most banks offer you a restricted set of functionality via browser, e.g., no taking pictures of checks to deposit (in fact, I can't think of any banks that do let you do that via browser).

What a wonderfully ripe area for disruption.

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#37

Post by fancyfredbot »

There are repairable and upgradeable phones (Google search for fairphone). If people really cared about this stuff companies like fairphone would be dominating the market now. But people don't buy those phones because they don't agree that "smartphones are shit". They would rather have cheaper less upgradeable less repairable phones. Not sure that's a problem which Pinephone are solving?

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#38

Post by zaik »

hrbf wrote: post #16

Just like the Linux desktop, alternative smartphones will forever remain a tiny niche market for highly technical people. Mainstream adoption can and will never happen given the current state of hardware design and manufacturing.

If I get the usability of today's Linux desktops I'm completely fine with that. I don't care if my setup is widespread or not if it works for me.

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#39

Post by fartcannon »

josephcsible wrote: post #31
solenoidalslide wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Which major banking and communications companies refuse to let you access their services via browser? This is when we absolutely need to name and shame.

Snapchat refuses to let you access their services at all via browser. And most banks offer you a restricted set of functionality via browser, e.g., no taking pictures of checks to deposit (in fact, I can't think of any banks that do let you do that via browser).

You have to do the open source phone first, and help convince others, before the banks and snapchats will support you, not the other way around. It's normally a small sacrifice, but the payoff is fundamental to a free future.

Re: The case for LineageOS and the PinePhone

#40

Post by saidinesh5 »

spaniard89277 wrote: post #11
mariusor wrote: post #6

I wish Sailfish OS had a mention. If someone tries to escape the Android/iOS duopoly, it's probably the most mature linux based distribution out there. It's not fully open source that's true, but it can be daily driven on a number of modern(ish) compatible hardware. The most prominent of them being some of Sony's Xperia's line(official) and a slew of other older devices through the efforts of a community of enthusias…

They claim to be compatible with android apps in their site, how true is that? For me, the problem with phones is the sense that you're just one step away of having no more OS updates, or updates making it slower, or basically getting locked-in in some way. Phones feel very different to computers.

They have an Android compatibility layer, which lets you run a lot of Android apps and adds various integrations with sailfish os: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6Amrr766crc

The integration with Android apps, when it works, is fairly seamless.

It is kind of like using wine to run windows applications on Linux. Sometimes things may not work, but otherwise it's fine.

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