I have been convinced to switch from apple, and i am soon purchasing a pixel 7 pro. I would then like to put a custom rom on it because i would:
- like to use foss more
- like to maintain better privacy than apple offers
- would enjoy the control over the system
- not like to ever touch google chrome
There are some limitations to what i can choose though, as i need the following to work:
- google apps like sheets/docs/classroom/youtube
- banking app (usaa specifically)
- play store (could be replaced)
Additionally i would like to keep the flashy camera stuff google talks about with the camera as i use the camera a fair bit. I have also heard that androids can have different UIs, so i would appreciate a nice looking one (i use gnome on my desktop for this reason alone). What ROMs would you guys recommend i choose?
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I mean, I’m always gonna recommend GrapheneOS. With sandboxed Google Play Services available in a work profile using Island, I’ve not yet found an app I can’t run.
Something worth mentioning is that android auto will not work for graphene. I was so on board until that. It’s understandable why that’s the case though.
This is exactly my dilemma. I’m trying to completely degoogle, but not having android-auto kinda screws me with my cars current audio unit.
Tap to pay too. I was on Graphene and I tried to set up GPay, which is the point I realized Graphene couldn’t do that (something something Google security services not compatible something something)
I would not be able to get by without that feature, it’s pretty much the only way I pay in-store now.
Yup. Basically immediately reflashed back to stock when I figured that out.
if youve already got a pixel, then grapheneos is hard to beat.
- google services (for maps, drive, docs, etc) can be used (not installed by default tho)
- youtube can be replaced with revanced (using microG) even without google services
- google play can be replaced with aurora store (alternative frontend only)
- afaik most banking apps should work, as phone is not rooted, tho i may be wrong
except for limited hardware support (pixels only really), grapheneos is definitely the best imo
Everyone else has mentioned the aurora store as an afterthought, almost as if it wasn’t really a recommendation and more so a mention. Why might they not recommend it?
Additionally do I need a google account to use grapheneOS?
i think most people would prefer foss apps, which arent common on aurora store, becuse it only shows apps from google play. if you need a proprietry app, like banking or something, aurora store is your best bet. it is debatable where you should get an app, if it is on both aurora and fdroid, but i personally would say go with fdroid if it is on there, because you know its foss, and theres less tracking. technically, you shouldnt need a google account to use aurora store, but i have had problems with the anonymous login, so im not sure. other than that, grapheneos does not need a google account connected to anything, by default. if you want to run google apps, like drive or docs, i believe they rely on ‘google play services’, which can certainly be set up on grapheneos, but you will need a google account, so its best avoided imo. also: the ‘droid-ify’ app is a nicer frontend to ‘f-droid’, and they use the same main app repository. some apps, like signal, are only available through aroura/play or downloading an .apk, but one installed, i think it automatically updates itself. hope this helps
Let me just add, if you for some reason like the UI of Aurora Store, there’s a FOSS equivalent called Aurora Droid, which includes on the same repositories as F-Droid and Droid-ify instead of Google Play.
On a sidenote, if you want to keep single apps up-to-date from a github repo, or even F-Droid, IzzyOnDroid etc. without installing an actual app store, use Obtainium.
ooh yeah i switched most apps to obtainium since my comment, and i much prefer it. less installation problems (like infinite loading), and better ui
Someone correct me if I’m wrong here, but GrapheneOS should meet all those requirements.
LineageOS is always a good bet, but using a custom ROM will require you to root, which breaks most banking apps.
From what you are looking for, I would say you might not need a custom ROM, as you have much greater control over your system compared to an iPhone already, and unlike iPhone where all browsers are variations of Safari, Firefox is available as an alternative without using a custom ROM.
UIs (called launchers) in Android are a matter of personal preference, a lot of people do like Pixel experience though.
I’d say get the P7P and use it as is for a couple of days before you decide if you want to use a custom ROM instead.
This is good advice, i will wait a few days. That being said, if i can get all my apps working and i do decide to go for it, how would lineageOS compare to something like GrapheneOS for example? what other kinds of things might i lose if i choose to use a custom ROM?
I’ve been using Lineage since it was called CyanogenMod (was maintainer for Samsung Tab S2). It is the cleanest rom I found. You’ll need a gapps (google apps) source, but there is Nickgapps that gives a core set that only gives google store and the required services, so you can add whatever you want from the store.
I don’t know GrpahenOS, but the only one even less bloated I know is AOSP, on which Lineage is based. You can add whatever you want, root is available via Magisk, which gives even more options. (Ad blocking via LSposed and MinMinGuard spring to mind)
lineages is focused more on customisability and features and device longevity
grapheneos is focused on security and privacy
many features implemented in grapheneos has been upstreamed in aosp(base) android
one disadvantage of grapheneos’ approach is it stops updating after vendor(google) stops updating the firmware as it considers the device depricated
Will it receive updates after reflashing the stock ROM? Or is there another way? Through updating GrapheneOS?
I don’t understand, can you clarify?
Oh, I think I misunderstood your comment. I thought what you said was that after installing GrapheneOS, you wouldn’t receive firmware updates from Google. What you actually said was, correct me if I’m wrong, that GrapheneOS will only be able to release updates for a device as long as Google itself does so, because they’re based on Google’s updates, right? Does this mean that other custom ROMS that are based on a different approach will be able to keep releasing updates for a device after Google stops at “EoL” after 7 years?
yes, there are hardware security fixes and os security fixes
google only releases updates for 3-5 years, so grapheneos also supports that device for the same period
but others like lineageos just keep porting the os to older devices which no longer receive hardware security fixes as they also focus on device longevity
Guaranteed 3 years of OS updates while 5 years of security updates for most Pixel phones. The recently released Pixel 8 and 8 Pro are exceptions with 7 years of each. Source: Google
I like Lineages take of bringing new life to “old” yet still great devices too!
You will lose Google services and will have to replace them with something called MicroG, an open source implementation.
I personally haven’t done much custom ROMs, you may want to see if someone more knowledgeable on the topic will chime in here.
Graphene os does not require root
but using a custom ROM will require you to root, which breaks most banking apps.
this is misinformation
installing a custom rom doesn’t require root in fact, some custom roms advice you against it like divestos, grapheneos, calyxos and some more
Sorry if this is really basic, but what is rooting? What are the positives and negatives of it?
rooting means gaining root access of android device
in Linux file systems, root is the base folder called / and then comes other folders
like(simplified) /Downloads/boku_no_pico means boku_no_pico is in downloads folder which is inside root
so now, in traditional android based os, there are some folders which are not permitted to be accessed like system folder and rooting means gaining access to that folder, which gives you access to modifying any property of the system
some negatives are that there are some crappy services who think rooting is only/mostly done by bad actors who are trying to abuse their services (basically Netflix, bank apps) so they try to block rooted users from using their services
but these dumb big tech employees can’t even do one thing properly, hiding root is really easy once you get used to it, so now bad actors can still abuse their system and honest users suffer
basically, its like gaining superuser access on Linux (sudo su)
Oops. You’re right, my mistake, guess my information is a bit out of date.
no problem :)
just accepting this made me happy
have a nice day!
as the other commenter said, you don’t need
USAA bank app works on grapheneos here is a report - https://privsec.dev/posts/android/banking-applications-compatibility-with-grapheneos/
gcam can be downloaded via play store or aurora store
about ui of apps, none of them are as good as ios
I haven’t done it yet as I’m still shamefully dependent on NFC payments, but most Pixel owners who have installed a custom ROM seem to prefer GrapheneOS. It’s literally made for Pixel phones:
GrapheneOS has official production support for the following devices:
- Pixel Fold (felix)
- Pixel Tablet (tangorpro)
- Pixel 7a (lynx)
- Pixel 7 Pro (cheetah)
- Pixel 7 (panther)
- Pixel 6a (bluejay)
- Pixel 6 Pro (raven)
- Pixel 6 (oriole)
- Pixel 5a (barbet)
- Pixel 5 (redfin)
- Pixel 4a (5G) (bramble)
- Pixel 4a (sunfish)
The following devices are end-of-life, no longer receive full security updates and are supported via extended support releases of GrapheneOS:
- Pixel 4 XL (coral)
- Pixel 4 (flame)
We provide extended support releases as a stopgap for users to transition to the far more secure current generation devices.
GrapheneOS will fit your bill. I am using it on my Pixel 7. With the sandboxed google services installed, there is only few apps that do not work (most notably Android Auto). I didn’t face any problem with banking apps.
Installing GrapheneOS is super easy, but you will have to install Chromium webbrowser on your computer.
Once installed, I like to get my apps from F-droid (FOSS app store) and I go to Google Playstore only if I can’t find what I need from F-droid. There is also Aurora-store that is a sort of proxy for playstore that doesn’t requie you to login with a google account, buy I’ve never use it myself.
If apps are not behaving properly, they probably require more permission, and if those depends on the google services you must check the permissions for it as well. One example Google maps was not calculating routes properly until i grant google services the location and sensors access.
Since no one seems to be saying so, I’ll chime in in support of GrapheneOS. /s
I’m kidding. But really, I’m replying to you from Graphene on a Pixel. It’s terrific.
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I appreciate the privacy design. That’s why I switched. I spend a lot less tone wondering if big brother is watching me through my phone, now.
But the speed is what made me a huge fan. GrapheneOS is so fast. I’ve had $1000 phones that aren’t as responsive as my $300 Graphene phone.
I use calyxos personally since 6 month now and it work perfectly
Just installed Calyx and its great so far
What’s better/different about calyx from grapheneOS or even stock android?
I just installed Calyx and I love it, the biggest difference for me is.
1 MicroG instead of sandboxed play services.
2 You can relock the bootloader, which got some of my banking apps to work again.
I don’t know if Graphene has these features but some other things I like:
You can revoke fine network access (revoke all or jikust background/mobile/WiFi data per app).
Seedvault can backup your phone over webdav. Unfortunately it uses abd backup so it doesn’t backup all apps.
It adopts some Lineage features like snoozing notificationsMicrog is objectively worse than sandboxed google play
You can relock bootloader with grapheneos, too.
Been on Calyx 1.5 years myself. Been a solid experience thus far and highly recommended. We have 2 phones on it here now.
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Have you heard about /e/OS?
Been using it for a out 3 months now and been enjoying it. Found it after Aurora became slightly unusable. Built in tracker blocker is nice
Seems interesting, but the screenshots seem very ugly and unappealing to me.
Btw, what happened to the aurora store?
The accounts that they use were rate limited to login attempts and made the store unusable. The workaround is to open the Google Play page for the app in a browser and opening it up in “another app” in which Aurora should take over. It might be fixed but hasn’t been an issue on /e/os.
I agree that /e/os looks boring or looks like iOS but doesn’t every Android OS look the same to some degree? They are redesigning the UI in an upcoming release.
The main I like /eOS is the built in tracker blocker.
Android 14 Beta 5
What makes that better than an actual custom rom like grapheneOS?
I don’t think there’s a “better” option, but Graphene’s maintainer throwing tantrums at people who criticize him doesn’t inspire confidence
