Any one know a good custom rom for Fairphones? Is /e/OS a good option?
Are there downsides that arent realy known?
I have a fairphone 4 with /e/OS. It’s been everything I’ve needed without being spectacular.
A big complaint is the way you get apps. I don’t add apps often, and often I use adb, but the App Lounge is slow af. I predominately use obtanium to get the apk’s directly. It has F-Droid built in, but if that doesn’t work I use F-Droid proper. This splits my apps into 4 separate bins which I absolutely hate.
The camera also sucks. Stabilization, quality of images, low light, images with motion. They are all bad. Luckily for me, I don’t take pictures of people often. This applies to most camera apps. The default camera app has been patched to eliminate some of these problems, but I haven’t applied it. I’ve heard past the fairphone 4, these problems have largely been fixed.
What could be a dealbreaker for some is something I haven’t verified nor use. (If this is important look into it. I don’t want to spread rumors) The voice typing on the default keyboard now has/will have telemetry. Potentially to Google? I understand Murena needs to make money, and it isn’t personally a dealbreaker, but it is opening a door to other privacy violations. Many people in the community see this as unacceptable and once you’ve violated trust, you never get it back. For me, I’ll hang in there until I see a more substantial reason to switch (same as Proton, but leave me alone about that)
Those are all the negatives of the Fairphone 4 and /e/OS I can think of, but there are many other positives that imho outweigh the negatives. And depending on where you are coming from (e.g. google/samsung android or ios), you have to realize that with phones like the fairphone and roms like /e/OS there are large pros, but there are often large cons. Here, I’ll gladly accept those for what I’m getting in return.
LMK if you have other specific concerns. I might have just left them out. There are also ways I better secure my privacy, but you didn’t ask about that 🙃
Are there downsides that arent realy known?
That is not known.
I have LineageOS installed on my phone. Without the app InviZible Pro from F-Droid, my phone connects to Google servers for connectivity checks, system webview and time adjustments. The disadvantage in terms of privacy of /e/OS would be the default presence of micro g, which is proprietary. In LineageOS it’s not present by default.
In essence any de-googled Android fork is valid (/e/OS, LinageOS…). You can also use any Linux for Mobile, eg. Ubuntu mobile and similar, but there is the problem of compatibility if you need certain Android apps.
Some dont get security updates. Others still share data with google. As I understand it.
Mobile phones are never really secure, but any other than the stock Android is an advance. The worst privacy breaches are the used apps, if they are from Google Play, always check the app permissions in the phone settings, use WiFi only if needed, never store sensitive data in the phone, desactivate localisation/GPS if not needed, usw VPN or at least DNScrypt (InviZible Pro from F-Droid, never from Google Play), check apps with Exodus Privacy, use private chats (Matrix or similar instead of Whatscrap & cia), storing photos in a privacy respecting cloud instead of Google Photos, eg. https://ente.io/, especially always common sense, PEBCAK.
Regarding privacy breaches I agree with your tips but its not Google play specific. Fdroid apps can do the same and random apks from links or github can be worse.
It is always needed to check well an soft (Exodus Privacy, reading PP/TOS, permissions in the phone…), independing from where you download it, but certainly apps from Google Play are not the same as from F-Droid or their corresponding homepage. eg.I mencioned InviZible Pro, which from Google Play is an castrated version, without the original adblock function, same also in other privacy apps. Google Play is the worst place to download an app, always use it as last option if possible. Adding also the need to use an AV in the phone, eg.BitDefender is a good choice, even the free version, because the Google Playprotect is absolute trash, which protect against nothing. Apk from the Play store with malware are only removed after claims from affected users.
