Comment by tgsovlerkhgsel
20 days ago
Stop buying Android and what? Buy an iPhone that's even more locked down or live like an outcast that can't access essential services? Because those are the realistic options.
20 days ago
Stop buying Android and what? Buy an iPhone that's even more locked down or live like an outcast that can't access essential services? Because those are the realistic options.
For years I've been buying middle-of-the-road Android phones because they provide pretty good bang for the buck, but if I can't use a computer I paid for however the fuck I want, I'm just going to start getting the cheapest crap I can get away with and use it as little as possible. "Vote with your wallet" doesn't have to mean total abstinence.
I think getting a flagship device that's a few years old probably makes for a better experience. I check the LineageOS supported devices list, then search eBay for something from there.
> live like an outcast
in all things. I would encourage you and everyone who reads this post to stare down this option with realistic consideration. In a society this broken, it is the solution to more and more things. To checkout, to accept the hard mode because to pick the path of convenience is to be exploited.
Again, and again, and again.
I've been doing it. That's why I'm vegan.
I'm sorry, this is such a funny follow up comment, I literally lol-ed when I got to it.
Eating on hard-mode is what we do.
I respect at least your choice but I'm not growing tofu on the farm. Veganism is one of those protests that while i appreciate going after factory farms, you're only enabled to do so by large corporations.
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Flip phones can access essential services just fine, if some business or government office is only allowing something to be done via smartphone app, that’s a problem.
A problem for who? Go ahead and raise it, I’m sure the government office will get right on fixing it.
>live like an outcast that can't access essential services?
I don't own a smartphone and I am happy as ever. I used to own one a while back, but it wasn't worth the effort and the rage when it was slow.
If a service can be accessed only with a smartphone, I complain (which is of little use).
Do you not have to use a 2FA app for things like banking? In Singapore, they are phasing out 2FA options other than the banking app. The banking apps only work on iPhones and Google-approved Android phones. It's pretty bad.
Wow. My bank provided me with an external token to do 2FA. If I have to guess, however, the code that generates the OTP code (assuming that is a code that is requested) should be easy enough to reverse engineer.
I admit, though, that being forced to RE a f**ing android app just to do banking is grounds to change the aforementioned bank. Isn't there any other alternative in Singapore?
It's kind of stupid when you consider the number of people who don't have screen locks (or else have easily guessable ones) on their phones.
It really isn't that bad. I've never owned a smartphone, and can do everything I need through websites and the occasional phone call.
What if people stopped buying brand new Android phones and instead bought used ones and then installed alternative Android versions and app stores.
Can't access banks, ticket systems etc. unfortunately we are in the era of tightened screws, the freedom is running out :(
Lol all these things work via the web. You just log on via the browswer. Not everything needs an app.
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you can usually just use the web-interfaces for those services. less convenient, sure, but the options are there.
What types of tickets are you referring to here? I’m not familiar with that restriction.
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Buy Apple; the point is to hurt Google. If enough people do it, Google might reconsider. Show them that the open ecosystem is the only value Android added, and if they refuse to bring back the open ecosystem then their platform will slowly die. Won't be long until Google's as locked-down as Apple at this rate, so all Android gives you is a power-hungry OS that protect your privacy even less than iOS does.
Buying closed stuff to show we want an open ecosystem?
At this point, I believe the most effective ways one can help with this is:
(1) advocacy - it's slow and difficult, but having people at least agree / be familiar with the idea that closed stuff is bad is a good first step.
Open ecosystems can't work for the general public if it's trapped in closed networks that won't work on anything else than the two big mobile operating systems, so making people start using open chat apps and such will help a lot. It'll take years, but so be it. It's worth it I think.
(2) helping improve the more open stuff.
I think Linux mobile for instance is a potentially viable alternative in the medium term for at least the basic use cases: Calls, SMS, GPS / Maps, Signal, photos. All this has no reason not to work with some polish. I daily drove Linux mobile 4 years ago for a year. The main thing I'm missing is good hardware for it, and a lot of polish but nothing impossible. Yeah, indeed, no payment with the phone (Google Pay / Apple Pay). But it's still possible to use the physical cards and not use the phone for this.
You've got to be kidding. Doesn't work, Apple is even more locked down than what this article announces. No sideloading whatsoever, signature checks ala Play Protect are mandatory and cannot be switched off, no alternative app stores, etc.
You can side load three apps at a time outside the EU and unlimited inside the EU.
Not sure why this is downvoted. The entire value proposition of Android is the semi-open OS. For things you can’t do with Apple devices, you use the myriad of Android devices out there.
A locked-down Android is pointless.
Yet most of the world runs Android. Its main value proposition was always wide selection of hardware for however much money you're willing to spend, not its relative openness.
I make relatively decent money by our standards, and I wouldn't even think about dropping $700-1000 on a phone (which isn't even officially sold or supported over here). For the vast majority of people it's their whole income over 2-4 months. I don't know or care how much you make, let's say it's $10k per month. Imagine if you had to pay $20-40k for a phone which is good for maybe 5-8 years.
And most of the world is like that.