Android

On the surface, the Android vs iOS debate seems to favor iOS, if for no reason other than “The Lesser Evil” fallacy. But when it comes to experts, Apple is often criticized by privacy advocates. Their walled-garden approach that keeps iOS so restricted does more harm than good. And, of course, their hypocritical actions rarely match their pro-privacy marketing.

Android-based

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Due to Android’s open-source nature, anyone can build their own version of it. The AOSP code is publicly available, and is free from Google’s spyware. Anyone can take it and tweak it to their heart’s content. You can install Google-less version of Android on your phone right now. Although plain AOSP tends to be feature-lacking. Instead, you can check out one of these more polished community projects.

/e/

/e/ is so anti-Google that the name isn’t even Google-able without a little Google-Fu. Created by privacy advocate and creator of Mandrake Linux Gaël Duval, /e/ is not only Google-less and privacy-friendly, it’s also easy to use.

Flashing custom ROMs on mobile devices is nothing new. I remember doing it on Nokia and Sony Ericsson phones two decades ago, and I’m sure it was around long before then too. But it is a very tedious, stressful, and also dangerous process. It’s easy to make a small mistake and find your device completely irrecoverable–about as useful as a brick.

One of the /e/ Foundation’s central goals is to remove that hurdle and bring privacy to the masses. Which is why they offer refurbished devices for sale with /e/ preinstalled. If you want to use your own device, you can send it to them and they’ll send it back with /e/ installed. Of course, if you’re an expert, you can still do it yourself the old fashioned way.

As for the OS itself, /e/ takes an unorthodox role in this space. Rather than sacrificing the convenience of Google’s features, /e/ created its own replacements. Upon setting up the device for the first time, you’re asked to log in to your /e/ account instead of a Google one. From then, you can install apps from the Aurora marketplace.

Aurora runs a privacy check on every app and presents you with a score that allows you to make more informed decisions. You can log in using your Google account to retrieve purchases, or anonymously browse and download apps. Otherwise your phone in exactly the same way as before. You can even run Google’s official apps using microG.

If you’re wondering how it is any better trusting /e/ with your data as opposed to Google, well for one /e/ is open-source. Being open-source means their code is publicly available for anyone to look through. That makes it hard to be shady. If that’s not good enough for you, they now allow you to self-host /e/ services. This way, you can do all your syncing to your own server.

GrapheneOS

Copperhead GrapheneOS is the most famous Android alternative. It has been endorsed by Louis Rossman for how private and secure it is. It only supports Google’s Pixel devices due to their superior hardware security. It’s currently only available for the Google Pixel 2 and 3 lines, due to their market-leading hardware security. They provide 7 years of software and security updates for every device they support.

Another major departure from the custom ROM scene is how Copperhead Graphene handles security. Unlocking the bootloader, which is necessary to flash custom ROMs, undermines the device’s security. This allows we, the user, to obtain full control over the device, but also makes it more vulnerable to bad actors. Copperhead Graphene has solved this issue by allowing you to relock the bootloader. This re-engages all the security measures built into the device.

This is otherwise impossible to do if you’re not running an official version of Android. That’s a big part of what makes Copperhead Graphene so appealing. The fact that you get to have your cake and eat it too.

CalyxOS

Despite what you may see online from GrapheneOS’s passionate fanbase, CalyxOS is also very private. It’s not as naval-gazingly hardened as Graphene, however, which makes it seem like a step down. But unless you have the threat profile of a persecuted journalist or whistleblower, CalyxOS is a great option for most people. Certainly much better than your default OS.

The main reason to choose CalyxOS over GrapheneOS is the device you own. It’s not restricted to Google Pixel devices. It also supports Fairphones and a few Motorola models. Additionally, CalyxOS supports older devices for longer than GrapheneOS does.

Unfortunately we are forever doomed to compare CalyxOS to GrapheneOS, so here we go. Compared to Graphene, CalyxOS is a lot more user-friendly and approachable. It ships with microG by default, making it easier to switch to since you can continue using your Google apps. The lack of Google Play Services alone makes the phone run a lot better than it normally does, and improves battery life.

Additionally, CalyxOS comes with a neat selection of open-source privacy-friendly alternatives to many popular Google apps. Comparatively, Graphene ships with home-brew flavors that perform essentially the same functions. CalyxOS also has their own set of home-brew app like a configurable firewall and Cromite. And more interestly, a privacy-hardened dialer with built-in support for Signal and WhatsApp calling.

DivestOS

DivestOS is a bit of a middle ground between GrapheneOS and CalyxOS. It’s more hardened than CalyxOS and less user-friendly, but it supports more devices. Now many Sony and LG devices can also be deGoogled, not just Google Pixels and Fairphones.

Like GrapheneOS, DivestOS is not compatible with microG.

iodéOS

iodéOS is another privacy-focused deGoogled fork of Android. It also ships with microG, like CalyxOS. Also like CalyxOS, iodé ships with a collection of privacy-friendly alternatives to popular Google apps.

As for features, it comes with a firewall app that by default blocks all ads and trackers system-wide. They offer a subscription service that allows you to block specific apps from accessing WiFi, mobile data, or both. You can even block specific servers (e.g. Facebook, Google, Amazon) across all apps. Of course, you can always use a third-party firewall, but the appeal is that it’s baked into the OS.

In case this phone is in use by a child, parental control features are also baked into the device. These are custom-made by iodé and don’t use Google’s tracking that usually comes with parental controls.

Not based on Android

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You may have heard that Android is a version of Linux. That’s half true. Android runs on top of a Linux kernel. But here are a few Linux-based Android alternatives.

PostmarketOS

PostmarketOS ships with the open-source Pinephone. 100% Linux-based, free, open-source, and tinker-friendly. It uses the Phosh GUI.

It’s not the fastest or the most bug-free in the world, and hardware compatibility is pretty hit and miss, but that’s what developers are for. It wasn’t launched as a consumer product, but rather for the developer community to play around with and continue improving.

Sailfish OS

Sailfish OS was developed by a team of former Nokia engineers who had worked on the beloved Symbian s60. It’s another Linux project designed around touch gestures. The swipe-based UI feels far more natural and intuitive than Android and iOS.

Sailfish is open-source and supports many Android devices, but may need some tinkering to get going.

Plasma Mobile

Plasma Mobile is a mobile GUI that can run on any Linux operating system, including PostmarketOS. If you’re already using Linux on your PC, you can do a lot of cool things between your phone and computer.

In comparison to Phosh, Plasma is a bit more sluggish. Of course that will depends on hardware, compatibility, and optimization.

Ubuntu Touch

If you’ve ever used Ubuntu, Ubuntu Touch should seem pretty familiar. Unlike other mobile Linux implementations, Ubuntu Touch was built with touchscreens in mind. This makes it a lot more intuitive and user-friendly than say PostmarketOS.