Hi,
A friend wants to degoogle his phone, so I suggested the OS I’m currently using. The one we can’t talk about… He wants a small/compact phone, so I suggested pixel 4a (not buying second hand though), but I’m afraid that planned obsolescence may kill the phone rather soon. What’s your opinion?
Cheers and thank you for your help,
Yes, it is. You should not recommend such a phone. And this only in terms oft update.
The arguments against the company behind this phone would Film books, but that’s another point
It goes for like $80-120 in my country. For the price it’s an interesting deal but it’s extremely old so GrapheneOS won’t support it. I think you can still find something like LineageOS or crDroid but tbh it’s too old for a new daily driver. Lack of firmware updates will kill custom ROMs due to incompatibility with new Android versions eventually (and most likely very soon).
Compact phones are dead now and the last ones don’t even seem to support degoggled custom ROMs. You’re out of lack with that.
extremely old
Dude it’s less than four years old lol I get what you are saying but Q3 2020 is not that long ago.
It’s extremely old for a new daily driver phone you want to buy and for Android updates.
I know what you meant but unless you’re gaming there’s nothing you can do with a Pixel 8 that can’t be done with the 4a (though I usually reccomend the P5 because for a few dollars more you can get wireless charging and significantly better battery life).
Compact phones are dead now and the last ones don’t even seem to support degoogled custom ROMs.
The XZ2 Compact still has LineageOS and DivestOS support and there are ongoing unofficial iodéOS builds for the XZ1 Compact (which I am using). The S10e has decent support too, although it’s a bit larger. But yes, modern compacts are dead in the traditional form factor - it’s now flips or a niche micro-brand phone like the Unihertz Jelly series.
These are older than Pixel 4A lol.
Sorry if I’ve misunderstood what you were trying to say. I interpreted that quote from you as suggesting the last true compact Android phones (the Xperia Compacts and, to a lesser extent, the S10e) don’t have custom ROM support. If you were instead saying the most recently released “compact” phones (which are really just medium-sized phones) don’t have custom ROM support, then that would also be partially incorrect since the Pixel A series is widely supported and the Xperia 5 III has official LineageOS support.
The only “new” compact phones I know are iPhone Mini and some Asus Zenphone. Neither have custom ROM support afaik and both don’t seem to be in production anymore. Medium size phones (6-6.4 inches) are not compacts.
The Jelly Star is even smaller and released last year. Not that I would recommend it to anyone concerned with updates or custom ROM support, because it probably won’t get any lol
Is that a Russian website?
What’s the OS we can’t talk about?
The OS-who-shall-not-be-named lest you summon it’s power.
The open-source one that’s so powerful it summons an online fight with at least 50 members if mentioned. It’s kinda anomalous so it is recommended not to mention it online until further research.
To be more helpful than the joke comments you’ve received so far, it’s graphene OS that’s causing a lot of controversy.
What’s the controversy?
I’m honestly not quite sure, I just know people are getting riled up when it’s mentioned.
It gets people going, (Daniel) 'Mkay?
I stole this from another lemmy comment, please don’t come after me
They claim their security measures are better then other custom ROMs.
Don’t they all make that claim?
Hannah Montana Android.
We don’t talk about Hannah Montana Android.
Yes, that is too old for a new phone considering it’s already past its end-of-life for both official support and your OS. I’m not sure why you’d recommend them to buy new either - a phone like that is only going to be good value if you pick up a used one for cheap. A new model will be massively overpriced for what it is (and may not even be new, just refurbished and repackaged).
I guess they were talking about a refurbished or a used one.
They specifically said “not second hand” so I assumed not.
Sorry I am really blind recently. A new 4A is a terrible deal
Yes, it’s too old. Does not receive software updates anymore. The newer a-series of phones are still quite a bit larger than the 4a but also quite a bit smaller than the 8 or especially 8 “Pro” or whatever the fuck stupid name they’re giving phones these days.
The software updates are maybe not an argument when it comes to degoogling? Then it depends if the OS they plan to use still sends updates.
The hardware driver updates are absolutely critical if you want to have a secure phone. The phone has to be within the support window, to get any hardware driver updates. The risk surface of a phone’s hardware is huge, you’ve got the Bluetooth drivers, you’ve got the Wi-Fi drivers, you’ve got the modem drivers, and any other sensors I may have forgotten about.
I mean…you’re gonna have to run some operating system on it. And that operating system is going to need security updates.
Depends on your friends threat model, lineage will work on it.
No security updates makes the Pixel 4a a bold choice for your main phone. I don’t recommend it
I would follow the graphene OS recommended phone guide, that gives you maximum flexibility to put any operating system you want on the phone.
Phones are insecure devices, by design. Should be OK.
Just don’t do anything on a phone that falls under “sensitive” on your threat model. Use a proper computer with a proper password for that.
Could you explain how phones are insecure by design?
You can install LineageOS or e/OS on it (instead of Graphene, if that’s too controversial), and then the 4a is a good phone to use.
After my 6 year old Redmi 4X’s screen touch decided to die, I got an opened-not-used Pixel 4a (in perfect condition) at the end of 2022, because it was one of the few small-ish phones that had good modding support (Pixel phones are ofc known to be very good to degoogle). I love it. Feels good, works well, has a great camera (got a GCam mod too), etc. Only downside is the smaller battery (3100 vs 4100 mAh), but honestly it isn’t that big of a deal, I can just carry a powerbank on my backpack or, you know, use my phone less.
Back then, it was the perfect choice for me. Now, I don’t know, haven’t been keeping up with current models.
I love the battery. I got a well used phone and I rarely have less than 70% at the end of the day.
But I leave my phone in airplane mode 24/7 (just use WiFi, no SIM)
Its comments like this that lead Google to make newer phones have stupid big batteries. I hate those big, heavy phones :(
I’m using a 4a right now which I bought last year, refurbished. It’s a great phone and has a headphone jack. If you’re concerend about updates, install an alternative OS. If you want to degoogle that should be the path anyway.
Used Pixel 6, 6 Pro, 7 and 7 Pro can be found for reasonable prices these days. One of those in good condition would be a better buy because you’ll still get security patches for a while. Last time I looked, the third party OSs for Pixel phones only supported them for as long as Google did.
He wants a small/compact phone
The Pixel 5 is not much more expensive and is still a great phone with good battery life and good camera, and the last Pixel small enough to used one-handed. It also has wireless charging which is missing on the 4a.
If your friend isn’t gaming or doing anything CPU-intensive the P5 is what I would reccommend today. Everything afterwords has been an incremental upgrade for significantly more money.
tangential: I‘m using a oneplus 6 with postmarketOS but depending on your friend‘s it skills, it might not be ready for him yet.
So far its very usable but I suggest someone must want to swim against the current and do things differently. One could say a „pioneer“ type would be ideal for this.
The Pixel 5 is still a great phone with his battery life and camera, and the last Pixel small enough to used one-handed.
If they’re not gaming or doing anything CPU-intensive it’s what I reccommend today. Everything afterwords has been an incremental upgrade.
I have a Pixel 3a, and I love it. I also have a Pixel 4a and love that one too
I bought a Pixel 5a, and hated it. I think the 4a is the best phone on the market right now. Great price, great support in Lineage, and its not too big and heavy.
It is currently not being updated
