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PinePhone?
I’ve been meaning to get around to installing GrapheneOS on my phone (Pixel 7 pro) for a while now. I’ll make sure my next phone has a LineageOS ROM available.
Can wholeheartedly recommend.
Waiting for someone in Europe to sue them.
The ban is only in Brazil, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. Terrible, and those are some of the bigger markets, but I am not affected in a years time. I will have to see more as we approach the date on working around it.
The change is global, but it’s hitting those countries first (2026).
From the official post about the change:
I think it was clear I know about it, because I said “in a year’s time”. I even already sent this exact timeline in this thread
What’s their PR flavour text for that?
And how does a company get the authority to do a “ban”? Isn’t that supposed to be a Government thing?
Seems like their real goal is to make the users of their devices as vulnerable as possible. How?
This comment is very conspiratorial. While this change is making people more vulnerable to malware and lessening their freedom, the screen lock thing is complete nonsense. Your launcher has been given permission to keep the screen on. If it is the system launcher and that permission was provided automatically, all you need to do is use another launcher.
The official Google blogpost states this timeline:
October 2025: Early access begins. Invitations will be sent out gradually.
March 2026: Verification opens for all developers.
September 2026: These requirements go into effect in Brazil, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand. At this point, any app installed on a certified Android device in these regions must be registered by a verified developer.
2027 and beyond: We will continue to roll out these requirements globally.
There is no PR stunt here, just the need to read. Unless you are considering a PR stunt the claim that it is 50 times more likely to get malware from outside of the Play Store, that is just a complete lie as the Play Store is filled to the brim with malware.
I am using stock android on a smartphone that was in the Android One program. I have not changed the the launcher.
My expectation when keeping the Google first party screen lock thing is for it to not make it easier for me to make the mistake of leaving the phone unlocked.
And that will mean that if I were to feel like making my own app for the smallest of things and just install it on my own phone, I need to tell Google: “Hey! I am programming for Android!” as if they don’t already have enough of my data.
And then sideloading would probably require signing it with a certificate, so Google will always know that I made a software and installed it on my phone.
Yes. There is no PR “stunt” here. Not everything that includes PR is a stunt.
Using the phrase “PR flavour text” refers to whatever PR is saying to make the actions of a company, seem less controversial. And that is the main job of a company’s PR department.
In this case, it is:
‘This change aims to reduce malware and scams associated with unverified apps, as sideloaded apps are significantly more likely to contain malicious software’
And yes, that thing is a lie as you already explained. That is why I call it PR flavour text.
This just gives me a deadline for switching to a Linux phone.
Seems to have come earlier than what I thought I would be able to manage, but I will have to manage somehow.
I use F-droid for everything. I’d truly be fucked.
Chaos and rebellion.
Sell off any phones that I can’t modify. Aggressively de-Google while setting up fake accounts to send garbage into their system training.
Light my way with the burning of bridges.
Not updating my phone for now. Installing a custom ROM on my next phone
Hoping that EU comes to the rescue.
google saw that EU allowed apple to do something similar, so why not take the chance to lock the garden…
Nah they wont.
Sure, they are really good on the right-to-repair issue, but that’s because they want to be more independent and less reliant on other countries to make new phones. As for privacy and information control, the government don’t really have an incentive to give people more privacy and freedoms. They are still trying to pass chat control with a majority of the EU members in support (the only reason its not passed yet is because EU laws need to be unanimous)
You obviously don’t understand EU, it’s far from only right to repair, but EU has many protections against American shenanigans, like tracking and storing of personal data, and right to be forgotten (GDPR). EU Also dictated Apple should allow sideloading, something Apple of course mostly circumvented, but they could face steep fines for that too.
EU also has way stricter regulation than USA and UK on mass surveillance. And generally way better consumer protection than USA.
EU also mandates de-anonymisation online: (1). EU also plans to have every single message one sends to be scanned by them.
I think the reasoning behind their decisions is simply summed up as: more power to the EU administration, less freedom for everyone else, be it US tech giants, EU citizens or small software developers.
FUD
Honestly no idea. It’s hard enough finding a phone with an audio jack, and now I have to find a phone with an audio jack, and an unlockable bootloader so I can install another OS?
Just seems like my way of living is incompatible with modern society. It’s all just too hard
I know right?
Used a locked phone! Submit your ID to the web! Create a Instagram account! SUBMIT! SUBMIT! SUBMIT!
We’ll have to see how they implement it first. If it’s just through Play Protect, I’m fine as I’m already not using that. If not, guess I’ll have to make-do with a Linux phone.
There hasn’t been anything Google on my phone for a while now, so I’ll first wait and see how they regain control over my phone :D
the “:D” really made the comment, its like the “this is fine” meme, but simplified to 2 characters xD
Basically, yes
All we can really do is deal with shit as it arises, but it’s still shit
It affects only people using factory roms and google play services. I don’t remember the last time I used a factory rom, I’ve use microg for nearly a decade, (and I’m a mod of [email protected]) and I’m not planning to change this workflow even when I will replace my phone, so I’m pretty sure I’m not affected at all.
See the thing with this is, Google would be forcing manufacturers to meet their “requirements” in order to get Google Play Certified, now they are using the requirement list to force this change, they could also add a “Disable Bootloader Unlocking” requirement to certification.
Its the mobile equivalent of the “Windows 11 TPM Requirement”.
Unlockable bootloader is indeed more and more important. Hopefully a handful of manufacturers still allow that
This seems like an ideal opportunity for samsung to fork android.
Judging by the “Galaxy Store” they tried to get people to use, Samsung would just make apps go through their approval process instead, not that much better.
Gonna push me to using a dumb phone and a Linux laptop I guess.
i’ve tried to do this on several occasions but sadly i have to travel at odd intervals for work. part of that is ride “sharing” services, apps to unlock doors (no web alternative), and notifications from work on the go.
the last time i tried this i simply kept a spare stock phone for when i had to travel for work and i just set it up before a trip and then wiped it after. it’s extra effort but it’s doable.
Doesn’t sound bad at all really when you think of it.
Does anyone know how graphine performs on foldables? The big reason I haven’t just switched to it is a healthy skepticism about it’s ability to handle the two screens well.
Using graphineos on a pixel fold, only complaints is that the taskbar isn’t editable like it is in stock android, and sometimes it does not enable the inner screen when I unfold it, but only when full screen stuff is open. Close it and it works fine.
Super small nitpicks overall. Everything else works as expected for me.
That is very surprising and promising, thanks for the feedback