Related
Hi I'm trying to decide which custom ROM to use to get off Google's grid on my smartphone.
I wonder which and how custom Android ROMs are better able to deliver privacy? To better evaluate that, I guess you need to seperate exactly which Google services monitor details on a typical ROM. Also, which of those services, if any, are used in popular custom ROMs like Cyanogen, anything AOSP /K/ MIUI etc. To prevent over-analysis, the bottom line is about finding a custom ROM that uses as few Google services as possible.
Do any of the above custom ROMs use more or fewer Google services? Is there is still a base of Google services which report back to Google regardless of it being custom? Is there any ROM built from the ground up (of Android open source)?
I hope this thread can find like-minded, respectful people and no critics, trolls, *****ness or 'noob' talk.
SharpnShiny said:
Hi I'm trying to decide which custom ROM to use to get off Google's grid on my smartphone.
I wonder which and how custom Android ROMs are better able to deliver privacy? To better evaluate that, I guess you need to seperate exactly which Google services monitor details on a typical ROM. Also, which of those services, if any, are used in popular custom ROMs like Cyanogen, anything AOSP /K/ MIUI etc. To prevent over-analysis, the bottom line is about finding a custom ROM that uses as few Google services as possible.
Do any of the above custom ROMs use more or fewer Google services? Is there is still a base of Google services which report back to Google regardless of it being custom? Is there any ROM built from the ground up (of Android open source)?
I hope this thread can find like-minded, respectful people and no critics, trolls, *****ness or 'noob' talk.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am in exactly the same boat. I'm beginning my search on how to do this with my Nexus 7. That's how I got here. I am a noob and I did watch the "Noob Video". Hilarious! Any info I can find, I will post back here.
Tonight i showed installing CyanogenMod on my Galaxy S4 live at a cryptoparty.
After reboot, the device showed up with exactly all that Google bull**** i wanted to get rid of - and i still can't uninstall it!
I really wonder:
Where is that ROM project that claims to allow for a Google-free experience?
I mean a real FOSS ecosystem. One that can be secured from sinister interests.
Those CyanogenMod guys, however, have ultimately lost my trust tonight.
Any hints, out there?
blausand said:
Tonight i showed installing CyanogenMod on my Galaxy S4 live at a cryptoparty.
After reboot, the device showed up with exactly all that Google bull**** i wanted to get rid of - and i still can't uninstall it!
I really wonder:
Where is that ROM project that claims to allow for a Google-free experience?
I mean a real FOSS ecosystem. One that can be secured from sinister interests.
Those CyanogenMod guys, however, have ultimately lost my trust tonight.
Any hints, out there?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why would CyanogenMod have lost your trust? CM does not come with proprietary Gapps included. What is in the package is very clear and spelled out. But the % of people that prefer their phone sprinkled with Google goodness far outweigh the % of people who feel the need to be so secure that they have to partially neuter the functionality of the phone in some form or another. Anyway, you can check out the NoGapps project here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/sho...tmctr=(not provided)&__utmv=-&__utmk=34876962
Is CM11 just missing a switch to keep the GApps of the former ROM or drop them?
es0tericcha0s said:
Why would CyanogenMod have lost your trust? CM does not come with proprietary Gapps included.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, then explain what i find in my Harddrive: (see attachment).
I haven't figured out yet why these GApps persistently stay on my phone no matter how often i wipe /cache and /system and reinstall CM, but i do guess something has changed in their policy.
Maybe it's just a missing switch that should ask me if i want to keep them or drop them?
What bothers me even more, is that i can't uninstall GApps. I can just deactivate them, where what i seek is pure absence of code. Operating virginity fu(king system.
And what makes me lose trust in CM is that, coming with the commercialisation, this windows installer comes up with this clean black box window that just says "downloading" or "installing" for ages, leaving me without any clue about what is currently transferred - and in what direction.
"Theoretically, the CyanogenMod installer could easily have uploaded literally every bit of my private data off my phone within that time."I guess everybody would feel a lot better if the installer eats the good old .zip i feed it, or at least reports which one it is downloading and at what bandwidth or percentage.
es0tericcha0s said:
Anyway, you can check out the NoGapps project…
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for that, man. It's so refreshing to learn about these little steps in the right direction. Will definitely support them!
I much prefer to just download the roms myself vs. using an installer. That would eliminate the "What is it doing??" issue. http://download.cyanogenmod.org/ - I didn't know which version of the S4 you have, so couldn't be more specific. The only time Gapps should be persistent across wipes (though shouldn't happen if you wipe the system...) is when the Gapps you are using also includes a script to save the Gapps across updates. Look in your /system/etc/init.d folder and see if you have any scripts in there you don't recognize or say something about Gapps. CM does come with a few of the open source Google apps included like Voice Search and such. But you can uninstall the apps that you do not want with a file manager that has root access or a system app remover app like this: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.jumobile.manager.systemapp You can also remove unwanted apps BEFORE you install if you have the rom zip on your PC combined with a PC app like 7zip that will allow you to open as an archive (regularly unzipping with break the signature of the rom) and deleting the apps from /system/app before you flash.
Keep in mind that disabling will typically be better than uninstalling the app because the end result is the same : not in the app drawer, not able to run, can't use CPU processes, etc. but if you do decide you need it, it is easy to enable, reboot, and use the app again. Removing the apps from /system does not give your phone more usable space for other apps or anything like that since the apps we install get put into /data/app not /system/app whose partitions are already set. Now, you can throw apps from /data/app into /system/app and save some space like that, but you have to give those apps the right permissions as well as some do not like to update properly when there.
Other alternatives include seeing if there is a solid AOSP build for your version of the S4 and use the NoGapps project, or to learn how to dev yourself.
Currently, CyanogenMod helps google to maintain a trap
Again i appreciate your words, es0tericcha0s.
As described before, these scripts work for Google, making their Apps happily survive any attempts to really wipe my own phone.
Today's stock ROMs contain bloatware and spyware, which every proprietary component with root privileges must be considered to be.
Rather than saving memory or improving performance, my goal is to teach to as many "normal" people as possible an easy way to setup trustible alternatives.
I know everything can be accomplished in a root shell, but the way out of this observation hell must be prepared for the masses now.
Starting with Dominik Schürmann's article about An Android without Google i will continue focussing on Replicant.
"As soon as Cyanogen and his team offer a simple exit door to the trap they currently help Google to maintain, i shall be in peace with them again."
blausand said:
Again i appreciate your words, es0tericcha0s.
As described before, these scripts work for Google, making their Apps happily survive any attempts to really wipe my own phone.
Today's stock ROMs contain bloatware and spyware, which every proprietary component with root privileges must be considered to be.
Rather than saving memory or improving performance, my goal is to teach to as many "normal" people as possible an easy way to setup trustible alternatives.
I know everything can be accomplished in a root shell, but the way out of this observation hell must be prepared for the masses now.
Starting with Dominik Schürmann's article about An Android without Google i will continue focussing on Replicant.
"As soon as Cyanogen and his team offer a simple exit door to the trap they currently help Google to maintain, i shall be in peace with them again."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But I'm certain that the scripts that keep the apps are from the developers, and not Google themselves since they aren't the ones who bundle the Gapps for our use with roms, and that script to keep them across flashing is helpful to more people as is often requested to make it easier to update the rom without a complete reflash.
Ah, I forgot about the Replicant program. I had seen it pop up before but couldn't remember the name. I do a lot of android modding at my shop and it's just something that no one ever asks me to do, so never really bothered to get that far into it. People who know about it are typically gonna be able to do it themselves and the ones that don't know often are not the type of people wanting to relearn how to use their phone. I just weigh the pros and cons for Google's oversight of my phone vs not using some of my favorite Google apps easily like Maps and Gmail and the pros of Google win every time, for me. Luckily there are alternatives though as that is what keeps things moving along. I triple boot with Ubuntu Touch and FireFox OS on my Nexus 5, so it's not like I am against alternatives at all.
You could go full out security geek style and rock this: http://www.theverge.com/2014/2/24/5441642/blackphone-silent-circle-geeksphone-pre-order-launch
Peace after all. A short apology.
Since i tampered quite a bit about cyanogenMod in this thread, i should at least tell how i finally got rid of GApps.
I installed OmniROM just to learn that it's wizard leads me into even wilder Google service agreements than CM did.
(So, unfortunately, i haven't seen and felt it at all )
After that, just out of sheer curiousity, i went into the "advanced" menu of the ClockworkMod bootloader. Surprisingly, the wellknown "clear dalvik cache" was hidden there. So i did and also installed CM over, restarted, earned an endless loop in the Cyanogen Account wizard, did "wipe data /reset", installed CM once more, and finally rebootet into a virgin CM that seemingly didn't contain any GApps anymore.
So, in fact i thank everybody who contributes to a better smart phone experience and of course the community behind what is now venturing as "CyanogenMod". Always remember:
"Don't be evil!"
blausand said:
Since i tampered quite a bit about cyanogenMod in this thread, i should at least tell how i finally got rid of GApps.
I installed OmniROM just to learn that it's wizard leads me into even wilder Google service agreements than CM did.
(So, unfortunately, i haven't seen and felt it at all )
After that, just out of sheer curiousity, i went into the "advanced" menu of the ClockworkMod bootloader. Surprisingly, the wellknown "clear dalvik cache" was hidden there. So i did and also installed CM over, restarted, earned an endless loop in the Cyanogen Account wizard, did "wipe data /reset", installed CM once more, and finally rebootet into a virgin CM that seemingly didn't contain any GApps anymore.
So, in fact i thank everybody who contributes to a better smart phone experience and of course the community behind what is now venturing as "CyanogenMod". Always remember:
"Don't be evil!"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just another reason I prefer TWRP recovery as it has the dalvik cache in the regular Wipe menu.
If you don't want any Google stuff on your phone don't have an android or flash a completely different os, cyanogen, omni or just about any ROM in this forum will be based off Google. You can probably flash pure Debian but that won't do you much good if you want to use it as a phone. So youre stuck with hoping someone ported Firefox os or Jolla or Ubuntu touch or whatever.
Your other option would be getting something akin to pdroid or imbed some framework spoofing, some of which may be done for you if you look into your device forum.
But compiling about cyanogen or any other custom ROM is silly as not one of them claim to be Google free or even suggest it, and not installing gapps won't mean there is no Google 'stuff' as its still running android
Best of luck in your endeavors
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Android withour Google: Pdroid permission control.
demkantor said:
If you don't want any Google stuff on your phone don't have an android or flash a completely different os, cyanogen, omni or just about any ROM in this forum will be based off Google. (...)
Your other option would be getting something akin to pdroid or imbed some framework spoofing (...)
But compiling about cyanogen or any other custom ROM is silly as not one of them claim to be Google free or even suggest it, and not installing gapps won't mean there is no Google 'stuff' as its still running android
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for commenting.
I was thinking that Google's initial contribution to android is both open source and promised to stay away from google's servers. Am i wrong with that?
I've never tried Pdroid. To be honest, the approach shows clearly how conceptually failing the whole perrmission system of android is. And since it is so crucial to the architecture of android, i guess in the next 2 years the real long term killer mobile OS will appear.
I'm also writing this because cyanogenMod is driving me crazy with some bugs and shortcomings, and today i checked the Replicant website and nothing has changed since march.
http://www.cnet.com/news/firefox-os...web-gaming/?part=propeller&subj=news&tag=link
Maybe Firefox OS will become what you want, my guess is that a couple more years and it will work out the kinks and those with a dislike of apple Google and Microsoft will have another choice. Well also jolla looks promising
Sent from my Nexus 4 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Hello, developers. I'm Dondre Johnson (XDA: Scholeggo; an XDA newbie), and I currently have a Sprint variant of the Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime (G530P). It's sad to hear the Unofficial Lineage OS 15 won't be supporting this variant. But I believe there's a solution you probably heard of by now, that can fix performance on any updated ROM, on all variants of the Grand Prime: and it's Android Oreo: Go Edition. (Don't confuse this with the original Android 8.1)
Developers, if you're seeing this thread, (including you guys, @vince2678, @Has.007), I am requesting that you guys please consider importing Android Oreo: Go Edition in the ROMs for these variants. It would really benefit us.
(I know that Sprint sucks, but, unfortunately, I'm one of them, and I won't be getting a new phone anytime soon. Please don't leave me out! Android Oreo: Go Edition is guaranteed to increase performance and help save mobile data, storage and battery juice. So it will be easier on me, and it should also be easier on you as well, developers, when developing the ROMs. (Correct me if I'm wrong))
I'm excited to hear your response and opinions. Thank you for your consideration.
Scholeggo said:
Hello, developers. I'm Dondre Johnson (XDA: Scholeggo; an XDA newbie), and I currently have a Sprint variant of the Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime (G530P). It's sad to hear the Unofficial Lineage OS 15 won't be supporting this variant. But I believe there's a solution you probably heard of by now, that can fix performance on any updated ROM, on all variants of the Grand Prime: and it's Android Oreo: Go Edition. (Don't confuse this with the original Android 8.1)
Developers, if you're seeing this thread, (including you guys, @vince2678, @Has.007), I am requesting that you guys please consider importing Android Oreo: Go Edition in the ROMs for these variants. It would really benefit us.
(I know that Sprint sucks, but, unfortunately, I'm one of them, and I won't be getting a new phone anytime soon. Please don't leave me out! Android Oreo: Go Edition is guaranteed to increase performance and help save mobile data, storage and battery juice. So it will be easier on me, and it should also be easier on you as well, developers, when developing the ROMs. (Correct me if I'm wrong))
I'm excited to hear your response and opinions. Thank you for your consideration.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ugh. This again? -_-
Again, Android Go is only given by Google to OEMs and are not possible to be built from source. Only new devices given by such OEMs are capable of Android Go, given that the OEM selected Android Go as such device's ROM.
Thank you.
I agree with @Jovic77
Also you also will never need Android go edition anyway. Android Go is for Low-end devices which has less than 1GB (example 512mb) and lower SoC (like Snapdragon 200 series or MTK SoC). Grand prime has hardware powerful enough to run a full version of Android 8.1.
If you want to experience Android go just wait for Android 8.1 to be release for your device. Install Go Editon of GAPPS like YouTube Go, Play Go, Maps Go, Files Go etc.
tasnim_tamim said:
I agree with @Jovic77
Also you also will never need Android go edition anyway. Android Go is for Low-end devices which has less than 1GB (example 512mb) and lower SoC (like Snapdragon 200 series or MTK SoC). Grand prime has hardware powerful enough to run a full version of Android 8.1.
If you want to experience Android go just wait for Android 8.1 to be release for your device. Install Go Editon of GAPPS like YouTube Go, Play Go, Maps Go, Files Go etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, I guess that could work, but the guarantee of taking up half of the original space for the system, compared to Android 7.1.1 is the main reason I wanted it.
No offense to @Has.007, but his Resurrection Remix ROM bricked my Class 10 SanDisk SD card, weeks after I formatted it to internal storage, and days after I set in Developer options to force eligible apps onto the card (Ok... now I don't know if that was my fault.)
Sorry if I annoyed you @Jovic77, but I really thought Android Go would improve the performance as well, since that and multitasking between the maximum of 3 apps is troublesome on these ROMs. Plus, I'm not the only one who requested Android Go.
But Ill take your suggestion, tasnim_tamim. I'll wait for the original Android 8.1 to be released for my Sprint Grand Prime, port the Go edition of Gapps, and see if the storage management has improved. Thanks forthe suggestion and feedback.
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Scholeggo said:
Well, I guess that could work, but the guarantee of taking up half of the original space for the system, compared to Android 7.1.1 is the main reason I wanted it.
No offense to @Has.007, but his Resurrection Remix ROM bricked my Class 10 SanDisk SD card, weeks after I formatted it to internal storage, and days after I set in Developer options to force eligible apps onto the card (Ok... now I don't know if that was my fault.)
Sorry if I annoyed you @Jovic77, but I really thought Android Go would improve the performance as well, since that and multitasking between the maximum of 3 apps is troublesome on these ROMs. Plus, I'm not the only one who requested Android Go.
But Ill take your suggestion, tasnim_tamim. I'll wait for the original Android 8.1 to be released for my Sprint Grand Prime, port the Go edition of Gapps, and see if the storage management has improved. Thanks forthe suggestion and feedback.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah, I'm not annoyed. xD
But yes, @tasnim_tamim's suggestion may work for older devices. But the full Android Go will never be available to any older devices. I;m also hoping for a "Go" set of GApps too, since they work for Android 4.1 onwards.
If performance is your concern with your current rom then I suggest you get rid of Google play-services completely. I use my phone without google , it runs absolutely flawless and lag free.
iRyan41 said:
If performance is your concern with your current rom then I suggest you get rid of Google play-services completely. I use my phone without google , it runs absolutely flawless and lag free.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude. Getting rid of google play services means NO google services at all. Everything related to google won't work, including PLAYSTORE, google play games, books, music..etc. No one can live without play store, dude
Damn..
Click this thread because i think this is new rom.. But..
Noureo said:
Dude. Getting rid of google play services means NO google services at all. Everything related to google won't work, including PLAYSTORE, google play games, books, music..etc. No one can live without play store, dude
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't use GApps on my 5 years old Galaxy Tab 2 running on LineageOS 13 and I can easily live with it. I download my apps from APKMirror and Aptoide, Use OGYouTube as a YouTube alternative that uses its own Gapps called MicroG, and most of the games doesn't forces me to use play games (I don't even have play games on my Grand Prime )..
So it's not really impossible to live without GApps. Although sure it's annoying to not get updates or getting easy access and features like play store.. but it still is better than using GApps which really slows down my already slow tablet.
tasnim_tamim said:
I don't use GApps on my 5 years old Galaxy Tab 2 running on LineageOS 13 and I can easily live with it. I download my apps from APKMirror and Aptoide, Use OGYouTube as a YouTube alternative that uses its own Gapps called MicroG, and most of the games doesn't forces me to use play games (I don't even have play games on my Grand Prime )..
So it's not really impossible to live without GApps. Although sure it's annoying to not get updates or getting easy access and features like play store.. but it still is better than using GApps which really slows down my already slow tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually I see no difference between gapps and microg in performance. There's still a huge difference between the battery life though. My phone is smooth af with gapps, on los 14.1
I couldn't get used to microg.
Noureo said:
Actually I see no difference between gapps and microg in performance. There's still a huge difference between the battery life though. My phone is smooth af with gapps, on los 14.1
I couldn't get used to microg.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use MicroG on my tab.. not phone.
I used MicroG for a while on my phone.. and yes the performance boost was not noticeable. But still for me RAM was really great. Play Service on GApps takes more than 70mb... But MicroG only takes 25-60mb. Not noticeable battery though.
My phone is smooth with GApps... But my really old tablet lags alot with GApps on LOS 13. My tablet is really old (2012) and can't even run TouchWiz properly. So MicroG is only option for my tab.
tasnim_tamim said:
I don't use GApps on my 5 years old Galaxy Tab 2 running on LineageOS 13 and I can easily live with it. I download my apps from APKMirror and Aptoide, Use OGYouTube as a YouTube alternative that uses its own Gapps called MicroG, and most of the games doesn't forces me to use play games (I don't even have play games on my Grand Prime )..
So it's not really impossible to live without GApps. Although sure it's annoying to not get updates or getting easy access and features like play store.. but it still is better than using GApps which really slows down my already slow tablet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm extremely dedicated to the Google ecosystem. All of my emails are in Gmail, all of my devices are connected to my Google Account, my photos are synced to my Google Photos. Heck, even builds of my ROMs are uploaded first to my Google Drive.
I dunno, maybe a Filipino (like me) relies on Google so much since we really don't have better services or as seamless as Google's here. xD
there is no impossible in android world....
What is the difference between microG and Gapps? It still features all the Google functionalities, right?
Did you have any problems using any Google apps and APIs?
Who has noticed difference in performance/battery life on a G530P?
There's a storage space difference, right?
On their download website, how do you scan the QR code to download the package?
Jovic77 said:
I'm extremely dedicated to the Google ecosystem. All of my emails are in Gmail, all of my devices are connected to my Google Account, my photos are synced to my Google Photos. Heck, even builds of my ROMs are uploaded first to my Google Drive.
I dunno, maybe a Filipino (like me) relies on Google so much since we really don't have better services or as seamless as Google's here. xD
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually , yeah i kinda can't get used to MicroG as well. Sure that MicroG gives you more RAM, but is it really matter with a 1 GB RAM phone? This why buy a new phone is way better than tweaking your phone too hard.
I know that not everyone's rich, but that's the only way if you don't want to experience lag anymore .
Besides, some of Gapps won't work without the actual Google Play Services. For example, the Google Search app. It won't retrieve my account info, and i really need it . Heck, even the Go version can't do it.
But then again, we all have different tastes and opinions. Although if MicroG can make all Gapps working, i might gonna switch to MicroG in the future. But i'll stay with Gapps for now because i need some of the Gapps to be truly working ( and hoping that OpenGapps Go will exist in the future. ).
And @Jovic77 , i think you're way too much dependent on Google.
D.R-Ult.Googler said:
. ).
And @Jovic77 , i think you're way too much dependent on Google.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I know. There isn't really better services (than Google) here in the PH. xD
D.R-Ult.Googler said:
Actually , yeah i kinda can't get used to MicroG as well. Sure that MicroG gives you more RAM, but is it really matter with a 1 GB RAM phone? This why buy a new phone is way better than tweaking your phone too hard.
I know that not everyone's rich, but that's the only way if you don't want to experience lag anymore .
Besides, some of Gapps won't work without the actual Google Play Services. For example, the Google Search app......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same, I can't get used to it. All my emails are on Gmail, all my games depend on google play games, not fb. MircoG I don't like. Lol
Noureo said:
Dude. Getting rid of google play services means NO google services at all. Everything related to google won't work, including PLAYSTORE, google play games, books, music..etc. No one can live without play store, dude
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't dude me , it would be much appreciated. I know no google playservices means no google at all. I CAN and many others can live without Google. It's all about preferences and I like my Android "Google Free".
What if you downloaded microG and the Aroma package of Gapps (it should allow you to choose which apps to install, right?) to only download the Play Store, services, etc? What would happen to the phone's performance?
As the title suggests, I'm looking for a privacy oriented ROM.
LineageOS isn't official and nobody posts there anymore.
Any ideas?
Crdroid is the rom for you then. It has signature spoofing for microG
Jemec26 said:
Crdroid is the rom for you then. It has signature spoofing for microG
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nice.
I tried searching some comparisons betwen LineageOS and this, mainly for differences, especially depending privacy, but I didn't find any.
Any info?
Well, CRDroid for mi a3 is based on lineage, mainly differences besides that, are the amount of features that CRDroid has compared to lineage. And you have a big plus with OTA updates.
For your concern, privacy is very strict between both of them at the same level, as of now, CRDroid has already April patch which lineage doesn't.
Yeah I read it's a fork of LineageOS and has more features.
My concern is not security (which is what patches address) but privacy, it has to do with google telemetry hard coded in the kernel, and other stuff like network scanning, wifi triangulation etc.
if you're really really concerned about privacy and will go overboard my advice is just flash any aosp rom without gapps. Just find alternative apps for youtube (this was my main concern) like newpipe.
I've been researching a whole lot of privacy focused apps and started replacing them one by one.
But ROM should be first.
Does aosp ROMs or CrDroid contains Google services?
Voliminal_8 said:
I've been researching a whole lot of privacy focused apps and started replacing them one by one.
But ROM should be first.
Does aosp ROMs or CrDroid contains Google services?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Crdroid contains signature spoofing if you want to install microg.
Probably the best rom at the moment when it comes to privacy and going gappsless
garylawwd said:
Crdroid contains signature spoofing if you want to install microg.
Probably the best rom at the moment when it comes to privacy and going gappsless
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What exactly is signature spoofing?
And microG?
Voliminal_8 said:
What exactly is signature spoofing?
And microG?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you are so focused on privacy then ditching all Google apps and researching microg would be the first thing you should do. Replacing apps now is useless as Google will still pull your data from every app on your device so long as play services are installed (or any Google app for that matter)
Read here
And here for more information
Paranoid Android 10 is out, someone needs to bring it to this phone.
debido666 said:
Paranoid Android 10 is out, someone needs to bring it to this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It is. But it comes with gapps. I think there is a build without gapps also though
garylawwd said:
If you are so focused on privacy then ditching all Google apps and researching microg would be the first thing you should do. Replacing apps now is useless as Google will still pull your data from every app on your device so long as play services are installed (or any Google app for that matter)
Read here
And here for more information
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok thanks for the links.
So wait, is microG needed? If I got it right, you only need it if you want to run most of google apps. Right?
If I get CrDroid without Gapps and install very other app replacement like, NewPipe, Singal Messenger, etc. won't it be google free?
Damn I'm confused.
Voliminal_8 said:
Ok thanks for the links.
So wait, is microG needed? If I got it right, you only need it if you want to run most of google apps. Right?
If I get CrDroid without Gapps and install very other app replacement like, NewPipe, Singal Messenger, etc. won't it be google free?
Damn I'm confused.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Micro G it's kinda confusing first times you read. To answer your questions, yes, you will be Google free. Microg is mostly for apps that depends on Google services to live. It replaces the Google apps but without sending any info to Google anonymously. They just connect to make a login, that it's why signature spoofing is important, without it, microg wouldn't be able to fake gapps for those apps who required then.
Different thing is that you don't use any app who doesn't require Google services. But banking apps, for example, most of them requires it, so that it's the moment when microg plays the fake game.
I'm wondering what people think is the best ROM (no gapps) for this phone today, and how that's likely to evolve over time.
Do any ROMs stand out in terms of features, performance, or battery life? Are there any ROMs that have significant problems?
Are any ROMs "official", or likely to be? Should that be a concern or factor?
Also I'm looking to set this up no gapps, so micro-g integration is a factor. It seems like the Magisk module should work well enough with most ROMs, but I'm new to this part.
Bump. Anyone…?
"Best" is such a personal thing that I can only tell you that I'm using Resurrection Remix and am extremely pleased; lots of customization, stability, Slim Recents, and no Gapps are what make it perfect for me.
It's the first ROM I tried on this phone, and it works so well for me that I'm not (currently) considering trying something else...although my curiosity and general nature (see my sig) may lead me to trying out a different ROM...eventually, maybe.
- Resurrection Remix has a long history, but who knows for sure about developement for this phone?
- Feels nice and snappy to use, but I have no Gapps and I've only installed a few (5 or 6) apps.
- Battery life is great, for me, I don't use my phone much and go 3-4 days with still 80% left.
- Not interested in Google or microG, so can't speak to that.
TiTiB said:
"Best" is such a personal thing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Certainly there's allowance for people to describe what they consider best.
TiTiB said:
I'm using Resurrection Remix and am extremely pleased
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So far I'm liking RR, but IIUC there's no plans for that to be official for this phone.
Previously, I loved CR-Droid, but on this phone it's missing a lot. IIUC, there's a plan to make that official, but I haven't seen any progress for a few months.
TiTiB said:
Not interested in Google or microG, so can't speak to that
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm curious, how does that work? I'm new to de-Googled phones, and I thought microG was kind of necessary to get most apps working. It certainly seems important for apps that use location, eg weather and mapping.
go vegan said:
Certainly there's allowance for people to describe what they consider best.
So far I'm liking RR, but IIUC there's no plans for that to be official for this phone.
Previously, I loved CR-Droid, but on this phone it's missing a lot. IIUC, there's a plan to make that official, but I haven't seen any progress for a few months.
I'm curious, how does that work? I'm new to de-Googled phones, and I thought microG was kind of necessary to get most apps working. It certainly seems important for apps that use location, eg weather and mapping.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I do my best to never allow anything to know my location. I use Open Street Maps in offline mode for maps, my weather app uses my zipcode, etc.
I'm totally ungoogled on my phone. F-droid apps only.
EDIIT: Preemptive correction. Not true about F-droid apps only, or even FOSS only. Obviously Brave Browser, for instance, is neither.
TiTiB said:
I do my best to never allow anything to know my location. I use Open Street Maps in offline mode for maps, my weather app uses my zipcode, etc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been using this - https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.tobykurien.webapps/
If I want a "web app" to have access to my location, I can permit that on an as-needed basis.
I'm also migrating towards weather apps from F-Droid - https://search.f-droid.org/?q=weather&lang=en
TiTiB said:
I'm totally ungoogled on my phone. F-droid apps only.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not there yet, but I think I'm on my way. Location (via microG/NLP) is handy for lots of things, especially when I have control over it.
I'm new to de-Googled phones. Can you point me to resources about the pros and cons of microG? I was under the impression that it's kind of necessary for notifications and location services…? But maybe if you don't need/want notifications and location services, then there's no need for it?
go vegan said:
I've been using this - https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.tobykurien.webapps/
If I want a "web app" to have access to my location, I can permit that on an as-needed basis.
I'm also migrating towards weather apps from F-Droid - https://search.f-droid.org/?q=weather&lang=en
I'm not there yet, but I think I'm on my way. Location (via microG/NLP) is handy for lots of things, especially when I have control over it.
I'm new to de-Googled phones. Can you point me to resources about the pros and cons of microG? I was under the impression that it's kind of necessary for notifications and location services…? But maybe if you don't need/want notifications and location services, then there's no need for it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Haven't had interest in microG in years, and don't have any info about what is or is not required for location or notifications. I have no need for either. I use my phone for calls, texts, and, very rarely, web access via Brave, Bromite, or Fennec—that's it. If need to look at a map, I have it already downloaded is OSM.
TiTiB said:
I use my phone for calls, texts, and, very rarely, web access via Brave, Bromite, or Fennec—that's it. If need to look at a map, I have it already downloaded is OSM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use a dumb-phone for calls and texts. I use a smart-phone as a pocket-size portable computer.
Which custom rom did you end up trying? Im also on the same boat as you in terms of wanting to degoogle. I just successfully unlocked the bootloader and rooted the device via magisk. Now I'm trying to figure out the next step in getting rid of gapps and having microG in place of play services. The user fulalas created a debloat magisk module, and if that removes core gapps I'm wondering if implementing that and then installing microG will be the solution for me