Linux Phones Corner

Linux phones are one of the final steps to being totally free of big tech. However, there are many options that can cause confusion. Hopefully we can get the dust to settle here once and for all.

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Has anyone used the PinePhone? If so, what are the things to lookout for? Was it easy to convert to from whatever phone yoy were using?

Yes, @LoneRanger is the expert on the PinePhone and I believe he can help you out on this.

As far as I know, itā€™s mostly for development purposes with several of the deviceā€™s functions not operating (such as MMS, video recording, etc.). Iā€™ll let him catch up on this as he knows it much better than I do.

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The PinePhone is about $200. It runs lot of different operating systems. I like the Mobian OS because it is very similar to Mint or Ubuntu. You can easily change from one OS to another. If you are not experienced with Linux, you should consider this experimental and keep your existing phone until you learn the ropes. It can call, text, provide a hotspot, browse the web and has a dock to plug in a mouse, keyboard, HDMI and Ethernet. I run mine on the Verizon network. There is a chat group for Mobian/Pinephone on Telegram: Telegram: Contact @mobian_project
Where to buy: PinePhone Archives - PINE STORE

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I bought one of the PinePhones as an option to get out of the iphone trap, knowing fully well that it will require some effort on my part to get it working. The Libre5 ohone was to expensive and reminded me of the iphone costs, which are ā€œirrikulousā€ :slight_smile: Hopefully, as I take this journey, you gents, wonā€™t run and hide when I put forth my questions :slight_smile:

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I was wondering if anyone has had a good experience with a Motorola g phone? I was considering an unlocked one and then installing ubuntu on it.

No personal experience, but I have read that Moto G7ā€™s have successfully been degoogled with little to no problems. So you might be on the right track with that model.

Good luck with it!

Hereā€™s a good video from Rob Braxman regarding ā€˜deG :eyes:gledā€™ phones:

Rob Braxman: Android without Google? How is that Possible? (Odysee)

UPDATE: Like a goofus I realized I posted originally using the YouTube video linkā€¦to a video DEG :eyes:GLING a phone. Doh! Changed it to the Odysee video. You can check out Rob Braxman on Odysee. He has a great library of videos on Digital Privacy.

The phone thread should be pinned. Popular topic

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According to a Techlore video I watched recently, Android phones offer the best security right now, and the open source Android OS have great security and better functionality than Linux Mobile OS right now.
So, a Pixel with Graphene seems to be the way to go.

On Tuesday, I installed Lineage on an old Samsung Galaxy S5 that was laying around at work. So, a de-g00gled phone. Iā€™m still getting used to it. I can surf and have installed Protonmail, Telegram and Signal apps. I managed to copy my contacts from g-ma1L to my proton mail account, but itā€™s a bit messy to get them to the phone. One by one for now. Not sure how to handle the calendar problem quite yet.

I may actually try installing ubuntu touch, if it works on this model, before I decide what I really want to do.

I must have a g00gle phone for work, since we use gmail enterprise there. Right now, I am using a my private telephone (One Plus 7Pro T with 2 sim card spots), so Iā€™m not quite ready to chance bricking an expensive phone that I own.

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The topic is now pinned and in its own Phones category. :blush:

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I received my community PinePhone yesterday. Sometime next week I will embark on the ā€œwhat the heck did I doā€ process :slight_smile: I will be asking a few questions Iā€™m sure :slight_smile:

Refering to number 7 in your list, USB, I received my pinephone yesterday and it is running Manjaro. When I first powered it up my Ubuntu computer would recognize my phone. There was an update so I updated the software and after the update my computer wonā€™t recognize my phone, it will only charge the phone now. Could this be the reason, that it was disabled in the update? Thanks in advance for any help.

Did I hear somewhere that itā€™s not possible to change an iphone OS to Linux OS? I have an old 4s I found sitting forgotten in a drawer. It would be so exciting to resurrect that thing in Linux. Is it possible? TIA

As a rule of thumb with iPhones, always assume that you canā€™t. They are so locked down that it is nigh impossible, and only hard-core techies have ever really attempted it.

That being said, it may be a slightly different story with the 4s as it is a lot older. But at this point, even if you could, I donā€™t think it would be worth the effort. Specifically if you plan on using it as a phone. I donā€™t know about other countries, but the US is ending service for 3G phones come January. And the 4s may have even been pre-3G, so I donā€™t think youā€™d be able to find a carrier that would be willing to provide you service for it.

If you just want to use it as an iPod, music player, watch some videos, that should be fine.

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They do advertise that the PinePhone is in beta, meaning that it is likely to have issues and hiccups. You can try to search online for a solution or even contact Pine64 support for some advice or direction as to how to remedy it.

Thanks @SBHX itā€™s as I suspected thenā€¦ not good for much more than a paper weight.

Iā€™m looking at a Google Pixel 3 XL. If I get one specifically for my carrier (Verizon), unlocked, am I able to simply remove the sim card from my iPhone and switch it to the Android phone without notifying the carrier? Thinking that would allow me to de-Google it, use my iPhone in the meantime, and then just swap the sim card when Iā€™m ready. Thanks for any input!

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