My pixel 7 is shitting the bed and I am considering upgrading and just installing graphene immediately on the new phone as part of my degoogling journey.
Is there anything I need to know about this? I work in IT, so I’m tech savvy. This is my first time installing graphene, however.
I’d be upgrading to a pixel 10 probably.
My carrier is verizon
If you can use a web browser and connect your Pixel to your laptop/pc with a usb cable, you know enough.
Flashing GrapheneOS is the easiest I’ve even flashed a custom ROM. Just follow the instructions and you’ll be fine.
You’ll probably need to know how to install GrapheneOS on a Pixel phone. Would be helpful anyway.
You actually don’t. The web based installer walks you through every step as you’re going along.
I buy used/refurbished phones a generation or so out-of-date, and recently upgraded from a Pixel 7 to a Pixel 8. Amazon sells “unlocked” phones, but does not distinguish between carrier-unlocked and OEM (bootloader)-unlocked. Whatever phone you get, you’ll want to immediately do the “enabling OEM unlocking” step (enable Developer Options and make sure that “OEM unlocking” exists as an option and isn’t grayed out) before the return period expires.
It took me two tries to get an actually-unlockable phone this time around, and I’ve still got the unsuitable one sitting here on my desk waiting to get packed and shipped back to Amazon.
Also, I’ve been actually screwed by it a year or so ago, when I got a Pixel 7 for my dad, with the idea of preserving the option to install something like GrapheneOS or LineageOS at a later date. When that later date came (after the return window had closed), we discovered that his “unlocked” phone wasn’t actually OEM-unlockable and now he’s stuck on the stock ROM.
Same story here OP Im currently stuck with an oem locked device think ill just buy a used one from ebay this time that someone already did the hard part on. This was an expensive fuck up I cant do again.
Installing Grapheneos has been fantastic for the last several months since I made the jump. It quite literally took longer for the phone to update Google’s Android out of the box than for me to rip that shit out and install Grapheneos lol.
I’ll say the best thing about it is the flexibility to your level of security needs. You can completely run it exactly as you would a normal Android phone, or you could go balls to the wall and have separate user accounts for different services and only use non-google play store apps. I personally chose not to have separate user accounts because while they will show notifications, it doesn’t allow (at least not that I could figure out) you to show the content of said notifications. It was immediately annoying as I don’t want to sign into another account just to find out it was a notification I didn’t care about.
Do NOT buy a phone from Verizon or Verizon MVNOs like Spectrum. They can be carrier unlocked but the bootloaders are permanently locked and there is no way to unlock them. Their sales reps will tell you they can be completely unlocked but that’s not the case.
US Mobile’s Pixel prices are good and they can be unlocked (carrier and bootloader) after 60 days. It is one MVNO that doesn’t bootloader lock phones when you choose Verizon service.
Amazon’s Google store (in addition to Google direct) has bootloader unlocked phones but they are pretty expensive most of the time.
I thought all pixels where unlocked.
I bought a used pixel and did my 1st grapheneOS install just a while back. I used to flash phones with OG images like Aesop many years ago. Honestly, the Graphene install was a few clicks and so easy I was sure I messed it up… But it was really that easy.
Just follow the how to and you’ll have no problems as long as your pixel isn’t OEM locked.
if you can, buy an unlocked phone. Some carriers like to mess with things that might prevent you installing Graphene. I haven’t heard any recent specifics if Version is a problem or not.
Export app configurations for any app that lets you, it speeds setting up the device a lot.
Assume no data will properly be transfered (as a percussion), so have backups of everything you care about. (I forget if Graphene even has a transfer feature?)
Graphene’s stock software leaves a lot to be desired. I like the Fossify apps for phone, contacts and files. For texting, I stick with google messages, its the only one I know of that works right with everything. For camera, I love Open Camera. For the Home launcher, I like lawnchair.
There’s many options for app stores; ideally you pick and one or two, having more than needed adds complexity. I stick to fdroid, play store and graphene’s “store”. Graphene’s app store pretty much only has their core apps and what’s needed for compatibility with the play store.
It’s really easy. Graphene has a web flasher with very good instructions, and once flashed, you’re good to go. I haven’t looked back. Once installed you’ll want your apps.
If you want to sign in to the play store and connect your google account to the phone for your apps, you can do that, bu then you’re kinda right back where you started. Not fully, because Graphene, but Google is still gonna google and suck up any and all data it can.
So for apps, look to F-Droid, Obtainium, and Aurora store.
F-Droid and Obtainium for FOSS apps, and Aurora store for play store apps without having to sign in to the play store.
And if you need google play, make a separate container thinghy and install all google BS there, no?
Google Play is sandboxed on GrapheneOS by default, and you can choose which permissions to give it.
Eehhhh I still wouldnt trust it in the same container
Besides, I can be assured that it is 100% not even running if it’s in a different container, right?
I’d suggest getting directly from google store and make sure it’s unlocked. I think direct from Verizon/Verizon varient can sometimes have locked bootloaders.
It’s really as simple as 4 mouse clicks with the Web GUI installer. Actually easier than re-flashing Vannila Android 16.
On my Linux install, I used Ungoogled Chromium since it supports USB passthrough and Firefox doesn’t.
Checkout Obtanium for getting Apps/Updates direct from source like Github.
Aurora Store for Google Play mirror for apps that perhaps are troublesome working from the Default included Mirror.
Accrescent Mirror is also installable, right from inside Graphene’s “App Store” app. And there’s also always F-Droid.
I still use the Google Phone/Messages app from the default Google Play Mirror since I can’t live without Spam Blocking.
The Graphene Mirror strips out all the Google Gemini/AICore/Personal Compute crud. Though Visual Voicemail/RCS doesn’t work on Mint Mobile for me, but I live without those.
I was unable to use Chromium. I forget why, but I snagged real Chrome after hitting errors and my Google search telling me the issue.
I then immediately removed real Chrome.
Worked for me with chromium no problem in the past. Even with vanadium. You can use your phone to flash another phone. Cool.
I think it might have been related to being on Linux. I’m not using flatpack or snap, but it was just something that wasn’t supported. I wish I remember what it was.
If you’re already in IT you’ll be fine honestly, GrapheneOS is pretty straightforward now with the web installer. Main thing with Verizon is making sure the Pixel 10 model you buy allows OEM unlocking, because some carrier variants can be annoying. Other than that just expect a couple apps/banking features to act weird compared to stock Android
Installation was pretty easy. RCS is only available through the Google Messages app, and even then only seems to work with certain carriers. Other things that don’t work are NFC payments,
Android Auto, and any app that uses the the Play Integrity API since it requires access to device identifiers.Some apps can be hit or miss, but there is an option to disable some of the exploit protections on an app by app basis, and that can sometimes get you signed in and then you can re-enable them.
I make use of multiple users to keep certain apps isolated further.
The forum is a good place to check the compatibility of specific apps. Personally I haven’t been very inconvenienced, and the trade off is well worth it.
Edit: Android Auto does work now
Adding in to this a little more. It’s a great OS but the Google integrity check can be a pain in the ass to overcome.
Banking Apps, Uber, and some networking apps did not work because of that.
Privacy first is great but it isn’t apples to apples. There are going to be some big tradeoffs you’ll need to be okay with.
Android auto is working, has been for a while. Its in the Graphene app store.
Major issues are typically banking apps, though I’ve been lucky in that regard.
My banking apps mostly work, but with some functionally problems. I can’t get Zelle to work or CashApp, so quick payments and transfers are problematic.
Android Auto does work these days
I’ve just set it up about a month ago. Some apps work fully and some only halfway. I think it has to do with some kind of authentication that Android is doing. So CoMaps only works for turn by turn, but they have said if it is installed from the Play Store, then it will work fully. Sandboxed Google Maps works seamlessly.
Audio apps play in the mini player, including basic controls (play/pause, skip, etc.), but I get a crash anytime I try to launch one on the car’s fullscreen console.
As I said, I’ve just set it up and haven’t tinkered with it yet; it could be user error still.
Nice. I never use it so I didn’t notice. Thanks!
Additional issues I’ve not seen mentioned:
- Ticketing systems have been an issue for me. I don’t do sports but went to a MLB game for a friend’s group event and it was hell. No paper ticket and can’t have someone show the ticket on your behalf from their phone. One ticket per phone. With sandboxed GPS the app didn’t show in the Play Store. Had to sideload. I probably could have used Aurora in retrospect but used Universal Installer from f-droid and a mirrored APK. Then had to disable exploit protections and VPN before I could get access to a ticket. Its random situations like this, while infrequent, it can get frustrating.
- Managed work profiles. Work apps usually require GPS but the allow list of installable apps don’t include GPS (why would it, its available at the system level). So I can’t install or use any apps for work. I honestly prefer it this way, they can give me a work phone.
Oh, yeah. This is a good point. A lot of things require their own apps to do now and quick installation is not always easy. I’ve had issues that were solvable but required some effort like this. Some friends invited me to a scavenger hunt and it took a while to get the app working (another friend on iOS couldn’t get it working either, so probably not a great design). Every parking lot wants a different app these days, which can be a pain.
Event ticketing, work apps, etc may take a little longer than normal to find, install, and get working. Not like you can explain in a group setting, “ackshully, my phone isn’t working because its BETTER.”
