'Google Is Forcing Me To Dump a Perfectly Good Phone' (vice.com) 285
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard, written by Aaron Gordon: Not quite three years ago, I bought a Pixel 3, Google's flagship phone at the time. It has been a good phone. I like that it's not too big. I dropped it a bunch, but it didn't break. And the battery life has not noticeably changed since the day I got it. I think of phones in much the same way I think of refrigerators or stoves. It's an appliance, something I need but feel no attachment to, and as long as it keeps fulfilling that need, I don't want to spend money replacing it for no real reason. The Pixel 3 fulfills my needs, so I don't want to spend $600 on the Pixel 6, which seems to be just another phone that does all the phone things.
But I have to get rid of it because Google has stopped supporting all Pixel 3s. Despite being just three years old, no Pixel 3 will ever receive another official security update. Installing security updates is the one basic thing everyone needs to do for their own digital security. If you don't even get them, then you're vulnerable to every security flaw discovered since your last patch. In response to an email asking Google why it stopped supporting the Pixel 3, a Googles spokesperson said, "We find that three years of security and OS updates still provides users with a great experience for their device."
This has been a problem with Android for as long as Android has existed. In 2015, my colleague Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai wrote a farewell to Android because of its terrible software support and spotty upgrade rollouts. Android has long blamed this obvious issue on the fact that updates need to run through the cellphone company and phone manufacturer before being pushed to the user. At the time, Google didn't make any Android phones; the Nexus line was the closest thing, a partnership with other manufacturers like Motorola and HTC (I had one of those, too). But for the past six years, Google has made the Pixel line of phones. They are Google-made phones, meaning Google can't blame discontinuing security updates on other manufacturers, and yet, it announced that's exactly what it would do. Gordon goes on to say that he's "switching to an iPhone for the first time," noting how the most recent version of iOS can be installed on phones going as far back as the iPhone 6s, which was released more than six years ago.
"Unless you routinely destroy your phone within two or three years, there's no justification from a sustainability perspective to keep using Android phones," he adds. "Of course, Apple is only good by comparison, as it also manufactures devices that are difficult to repair with an artificially short shelf life. It just happens to have a longer shelf life than Google."
But I have to get rid of it because Google has stopped supporting all Pixel 3s. Despite being just three years old, no Pixel 3 will ever receive another official security update. Installing security updates is the one basic thing everyone needs to do for their own digital security. If you don't even get them, then you're vulnerable to every security flaw discovered since your last patch. In response to an email asking Google why it stopped supporting the Pixel 3, a Googles spokesperson said, "We find that three years of security and OS updates still provides users with a great experience for their device."
This has been a problem with Android for as long as Android has existed. In 2015, my colleague Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai wrote a farewell to Android because of its terrible software support and spotty upgrade rollouts. Android has long blamed this obvious issue on the fact that updates need to run through the cellphone company and phone manufacturer before being pushed to the user. At the time, Google didn't make any Android phones; the Nexus line was the closest thing, a partnership with other manufacturers like Motorola and HTC (I had one of those, too). But for the past six years, Google has made the Pixel line of phones. They are Google-made phones, meaning Google can't blame discontinuing security updates on other manufacturers, and yet, it announced that's exactly what it would do. Gordon goes on to say that he's "switching to an iPhone for the first time," noting how the most recent version of iOS can be installed on phones going as far back as the iPhone 6s, which was released more than six years ago.
"Unless you routinely destroy your phone within two or three years, there's no justification from a sustainability perspective to keep using Android phones," he adds. "Of course, Apple is only good by comparison, as it also manufactures devices that are difficult to repair with an artificially short shelf life. It just happens to have a longer shelf life than Google."
Yeah (Score:5, Informative)
Let's hear the Apple haters spin how a 7 year old phone still getting security patches is bad.
Re: (Score:2, Flamebait)
Won't somebody think of Tim Apple's profits!
Re:Yeah (Score:4, Insightful)
Maybe Mr. Apple thinks in longer time spans.
My choice for work-supplied phone: iPhone
My choice for work-supplied laptop: Macbook Pro
Our choice for son's phone: iPhone
Our choice for tablet: iPad
My choice for desktop: NeXT
[which I had for ~20 years or so]
Re: (Score:3)
Widescreen isn't really all that important for a lot of tasks, and standard HD resolution is 1920x1080, so old monitors that ran at 1280x1024 aren't much different. An old 19 inch 4:3 monitor has as much height as a modern 24 16:9 monitor.
Re: (Score:3)
My desktop at home is still using a 1680x1050 display. Bought it refurbished probably 11-12 years ago and it refuses to die. You can't beat 16:10 aspect ratios.
Re: Yeah (Score:2, Interesting)
I'm a Mac user since the 90s, but no Apple partisan.
Don't think Apple's long patch window (good for security, yes, certainly) is doing a bunch for the planet.
Keeping the oldest iPhones out of the dumpster is like getting rid of the disposable straws in the coal power plant lunchroom.
Apple's commitment to sustainability is a greenwash, by my lights. Lets you feel like you're doing something good for the planet, just like driving a small car, say, a Volkswagen (yeah, got one too. 15 years old).
What's so bad,
Re: (Score:2)
That milled aluminium laptop case might have something to do with the longevity of the mac laptops I have owned, compared to the plastic fantastic offerings from Dell, Toshiba and Lenvo, all of which fell apart pretty quickly.
I guess my most recent work Lenovo has lasted pretty well, since it hasn't moved from my at-home work desk during the covidities. I imagine I will start traveling some time in the future so I can get back to breaking laptops.
Re: Yeah (Score:2)
No doubt it's sturdy (as I said, I have one), but the aluminum-skinned ones were long-lived as well, and they were covered in stamped metal, just as recyclable, just as pretty to my eye, and the case anyway was lighter (though the internal electronics, including a DVD writer) weighed enough.
Re: Yeah (Score:4, Interesting)
Re: (Score:3)
Combined with total lack of even the most basic liquid resistance?
Because I had a Lenovo laptop that took a shower three times (literally, another person turned the shower on accidentally while I was sitting in the bath working on the laptop). Turn it off, pull out the battery, turn laptop upside down at 45 degree angle to drain the water out from the side channels built into the laptop to ensure that water doesn't get to the motherboard. Then dry it out for a day and it's going to keep on trucking for year
Re: (Score:3)
Obviously aluminum can be recycled well. The point is, the milling process is enormously wasteful of energy (and as such releases more CO2 unnecessarily):
1. A significant portion of the aluminum blank has been created with energy used to cast what will be nothing but the shavings.
2. More energy is used to melt these shavings back into recyclable aluminum (than would be used to do so with a smaller quantity of waste from, say, stamping).
3. Milling uses significantly more energy than a single stamp to produce
Re: Yeah (Score:4, Informative)
AFAIK the reason they chose 3 years is because Qualcomm won't supply new drivers past about that period. Pixel 6 uses Google's own homegrown SoC, which means they can do whatever they want, and probably the reason why they extended it to 5 years for that phone.
Re: Yeah (Score:4, Interesting)
Re: Yeah (Score:5, Interesting)
Are you suggesting that Google does not have the technical ability to write drivers, or that Google is unable to tell Qualcomm to keep the drivers updated? Further more, are you suggesting general Android updates all require the Qualcomm drivers to be updated?!
You are starting to understand what working with Qualcomm is like.
Re: Yeah (Score:5, Informative)
Are you suggesting that Google does not have the technical ability to write drivers, or that Google is unable to tell Qualcomm to keep the drivers updated?
Yes, because Qualcomm doesn't give out the specs for its hardware. Google could possibly reverse engineer it, but there is probably a clause against doing that in the NDA they signed to get the chips in the first place. Paying for updates is likely to be extremely expensive.
Further more, are you suggesting general Android updates all require the Qualcomm drivers to be updated?!
No, and TFA is wrong about this. While the Pixel 3 won't get further OS updates, it still gets security fixes via Google Play. All the critical stuff on the phone, like the browser engine, OS components, and system apps are updated via Google Play and continue to get support.
It's not like a Pixel 3 is vulnerable now, you can safely keep using it.
Re: Yeah (Score:4, Interesting)
Apple has used Qualcomm components in its iPhones. How's it working for Apple and not Google?
Re: (Score:3)
Let's hear the Apple haters spin how a 7 year old phone still getting security patches is bad.
As if there wasn't enough to hate about Apple after recognizing there are some good things there, too.
Same goes about Android and all the big manufacturers there, by the way. Why do people always have to fight camp wars?
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
It's still locked down. It's a pretty jail you have.
You see a jail, I see a fortress.
Until the open source community is able to come up with a more viable solution than Android, iOS provides the only compromise I'm willing to stomach.
However, I use my phone in a very appliance-like manner. Pretty much the only apps I've downloaded are ones I need for work or my bank. Like 99% of my time using the phone is split between calls, texts, and the web browser. I don't want apps on my phone, so the more difficult Apple makes it to install apps the better. That makes
Re:Yeah (Score:5, Informative)
You see a jail, I see a fortress.
Yeah, you're wrong. The jail is designed to keep you in. Protection is not the goal (I've read enough OSX source code to know they would have done things differently if security were the top goal).
If it were a fortress built to protect you, then you wouldn't see this kind of thing: https://futurism.com/the-byte/... [futurism.com]
Use iPhone if you want, but stop lying to yourself. It's not super-secure, it's average.
Re:Yeah (Score:5, Insightful)
There's always a compromise between security and features. My iPhone may be my fortress, but I'm not delusional. I know that impenetrable fortresses don't exist and if you want things like doors, windows, sewage, chimneys, and the like you're going to have vulnerabilities. But I'm not going to purchase a fortress from the very architect I'm trying to keep out (Google).
Like I said—when the open source community comes up with something that works better I'll buy in. I'm actually considering buying a PinePhone as a toy, but my understanding is that they're a long way off from being a daily driver.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:3)
Average among what? Other phone ecosystems? That's Android, and among Android, iPhone stands out as a fortress. What else are you comparing it to, to declare it average?
Phones in general suck at security, by their very nature. They're appliances, and they must be convenient to use or they won't be used. And that compromises security. In addition they have to make money, or they will not get developed.
Given those constraints, iPhones are excellent. Assuming Apple should go away from either of those constrain
Re:Yeah (Score:4, Interesting)
For a phone, I *WANT* things to be locked down. For my computer, I want everything to be controlable by me. Two very different use cases. But I don't like Javascript on either of them. (See my sig.)
For my phone, Javascript prevents really locking things down.
For my computer, Javascript is designed to prevent *me* from controlling it.
As for Apple...It was my carrier that forced me to get a new phone this year (well, last year now). They want to switch to 5G for reasons that I find totally worthless (and they aren't even offered locally), but this means they needed to switch frequency bands, and at least they claim the old phone wouldn't do that. Foolish when they aren't really offering the new service, but they did coerce me into switching phones. If I'd seen this comment previous I might have switched to an iPhone, and possibly switched carriers. The "new 5G android phone" is distinctly worse than the prior phone in many separate way, and not superior in any way I've detected.
Re: (Score:2, Insightful)
You can lock things down without giving up the keys.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
For a phone, I *WANT* things to be locked down. For my computer, I want everything to be controlable by me. Two very different use cases
And your phone IS a computer so it should be controllable AND lock-down-able by yourself. Computers don't have just "two very different use cases", they have NUMEROUS very different use cases. It's a false dichotomy on your part.
Re:Yeah (Score:4)
Strange.
While I ALSO want to have the door locked tight, the difference, is that I want to be the one with the keys.
What you need for android, are the following:
1) Right to repair needs to say "Absolutely, under no conditions, can you lock the bootloader. You can implement something similar to secure boot, but you cannot mandate it at the firmware level with no option to disable it given to the end user."
2) The handset makers need to release hardware specifications and tools, in accordance with right to repair, and in accordance with the FOSS software they are using underneath.
3) Projects like AOSP and LineageOS need to implement a better security model than the "roughshod applications-as-user-identities" methods used by current android, with actual tools to secure and change the permissions granted.
4) That new security model needs to be routinely audited and tested.
The reason current android is a total clusterfuck in terms of security, is because it is a phone OS second, and an advertisement distribution, playback, and unique ID tracking platform first.
Opening the hardware up to the FOSS community would open the door to a proper OS on that hardware.
As it is, you are stuck with only a handful of modern devices that have unlockable bootloaders, many of which are now getting long in the tooth--- and on top of that, you have broken security from having to retain compatibility with Google's app ecosystem. (Android apps do not respond gracefully to having more fine controlled permissions laid on them. etc.)
Apple's "Fortress" ?
Its a cage with apple holding the keys. A castle, where you live in the oubliette.
Re:Yeah (Score:5, Informative)
I can buy several Google Phones for the price of an iPhone. And another one for the cost of fixing a broken screen.
A new iPhone costs $399. Where are you getting several Google phones for that price? Are you comparing used Pixels on eBay against new iPhones? Or are you comparing the cheapest non-Google android phones against the most expensive iPhone model?
Looking at https://store.apple.com/ [apple.com] and https://store.google.com/ [google.com] it looks like the cheapest Google phone that is still available is the Pixel 4a for $349. If you're able to buy several of those for $399 I'd like to know how you're managing it.
The most expensive Google phone appears to be the Pixel 6 Pro with 512GB of storage (the max available choice when I click through the "Buy" link) for $1099 compared to the iPhone 13 Pro Max with 1TB of storage for $1599.
So yes, the cheapest Google phone is a bit less than the cheapest Apple phone and if you look for the most expensive iPhone you can spend more than the most expensive Google phone, but I don't see how you claim to buy "several" $1099 phones for $1599 or "several" $349 phones for $399. The only way you could come up with the claim you made is if you started with your conclusion as an assumption and cherry picked non-comparable phones to support your desired conclusion.
Re: (Score:3)
This is me too (Score:5, Informative)
I've got a Pixel 3 - and its pretty much the perfect device for me.
I installed the Android 12 update, and it still works fine - does everything that I need, and does all my contactless payments etc etc.
I really don't see any requirement that would make me spend $1000-$1500AUD on a new Pixel 6 - as it doesn't add any functionality that I require.
The 3 year support is purely about forcing users to pay (on average) $300-400 every year for a new device every 3 years. It's all about a regular income stream for Google.
It's not like Google don't have enough resources to build a few extra android builds each month.... You think they'd have CI/CD just about perfect...
Re: (Score:2)
That said, I have sitting on my desk a perfectly wonderful piec
Comment removed (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
The solution is... just keep using your phone.
Exactly. I had my previous phone from April 2015 until Sept 2021. It was a Kyocera HydroVibe (IP67 certified w/a headphone jack and user-replaceable battery) and it worked well for what I needed. I finally replaced it because my carrier (Sprint -> T-Mobile) said it wouldn't support phones w/o VoIP come Jan 2022. The phone ran Android 4.4 (KitKat) and stopped getting security updates a *while* ago; sometime in 2021 it stopped getting Play updates, and then wouldn't get any app updates, but it otherwise
Re: (Score:2)
Sorry, I meant VoLTE not VoIP ...
Re: (Score:2)
Depends how you use for phone. Personally I do very little web browsing on my phone, so I'm not concerned about it not getting updates. If I using my phone as my primary internet device and browsing random websites full of ads and installing tons of sketchy apps, I'd be a lot more concerned.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
I also realize a meteorite could crash into your head, even without you leaving the house.
However, I am not going to build an anti-atomic bunker for that reason.
You have fallen into the "could/might" scare-trap.
Re: (Score:3)
The software that handles SMS and email messages is still getting updates though. The updates come via the Google app store.
Re: (Score:2)
The only practical security problem is if you use your phone to access banking etc. So don't. Buy a cheap laptop instead of a new phone, and do all the finance related transactions on that.
Re: (Score:2)
I've got a Pixel 3 - and its pretty much the perfect device for me
Same here. I don't really want or need to get a new phone, but I will be artificially forced to do so.
Re: (Score:2)
Like me, no support for secure messaging, which Apple now has as default. If I send a message, I still get replies, but if they originate on iPhone, it doesn't connect and doesn't tell anyone it failed to connect. Great feature Apple, I hope you get sued into the ground as a monopoly along with Alphabet (Google), Microsoft, Adobe, Oracle and others.
Re: (Score:2)
Then don’t buy a Google phone, and next time read the fine print.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Yup.. I have a Pixel3XL, and it also got the Android 12 upgrade, and I REFUSE to pay $600-$1000 for a damn cellphone. I paid $150 for this 128mb Pixel3XL and am on Tmobile's $25 Connect plan. In other words, I'm going to use this phone until it dies or I break it.
Re: This is me too (Score:3)
Yeah. It's super annoying. But at least Pixels have top tier support from LineageOS.
Same has happened with my wife's Android One one (Nokia 6.1): "at least three years of security updates" meant "exactly three years of security updates."
So Lineage it is, then.
Those cell repair places could make a cottage industry of doing the initial Lineage setup, but people would never pay someone so they could get SECURITY updates. What TF do they need security for?
Re: (Score:3)
This is one of the best selling points of the Pixel -- an open bootloader. When the OS falls out of support, you load LineageOS on it, and keep going for an indefinite time after that (hopefully with a small donation their way on occasion to keep the project afloat).
There are other devices that don't have unlockable bootloaders (IIRC and please correct me if wrong, anything Samsung sells in the US is this way, while Samsung's Exynos stuff sold in the EU is always unlockable since Europeans don't put up wit
Re: (Score:3)
If you flash the Gapps package, it runs google maps just fine.
Re: (Score:2)
I've got a Pixel 3 - and its pretty much the perfect device for me.
any phone without security updates is just a time bomb.
the good news is that any phone with security updates is just a slightly less volatile kind of time bomb.
the bottom line is: never ever depend on your phone for anything important. yes, phones nowadays offer great convenience but it comes with a caveat you should accept: that you are already royally screwed whichever way you go, because there is no real competition.
personally, i use an old blackberry with an outdated android version, but it has an actua
Re: (Score:3)
It's all about a regular income stream for Google.
I doubt that. While I agree Google deserves criticism for this move, I don't think it's a nefarious forced-upgrade scheme. It fits in with that whole incompetence v. malice quote.
Basically, Google does this shit with all their products. They're always focused on the next thing and they're horribly disorganized. They also tend to let algorithms and statistics make decisions for them, so if the numbers say most users only keeps their phone for 3 years, they'll make the stupid decision to drop support after th
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
The 3 year support is purely about forcing users to pay (on average) $300-400 every year for a new device every 3 years.
Except that in practice, if the device is sold for that entire 3-year period, it actually forces a 1.5-year replacement cycle, on average, depending on when you buy it.
I'm a firm believer that these sorts of support policies should be based on the date of last sale, not the date of first sale. I'm also a firm believer that, because of the security risk inherent in having a bunch of devices in common use that aren't up-to-date with security updates, governments should mandate at least three years of support
That's nothing. I have a Pixel 1. (Score:2)
Even the original Pixel phone still works fine, as hardware.
4GB of RAM, a decent CPU, nice full-HD OLED display, good camera (but just the one).
Newer and better hardware than the iPhone 6S/6S+ , which Apple still supports.
It would still make a nice primary phone, except my battery is down under 50%, and Google has made it very hard to replace the battery without breaking the screen.
So what use is it? I'm currently using for software testing. Maybe repurpose as a bike computer, thanks to the OLED display?
I wanted to like Android. (Score:5, Interesting)
I wanted to like Android. I really did.
But crap like this is part of why I just can't. My iPhone is over 6 years old, and can still run the current OS.
Re: (Score:2)
Does it really need to run the latest OS though? It's not like you're missing out on anything new. As long as you're still getting security updates, I don't see any reason why you'd want to update.
With Apple in particular, I seem to remember a lot of users complaining that updating the OS came with a noticeable performance hit.
Re: (Score:3)
Likely, it doesn't absolutely need to run the latest OS, but your line of questioning has to do with Apple's OS support lifecycle. They generally provide regular security fixes for the current OS version and two previous versions. Given that they release a new OS on a yearly schedule, the ability to run the current OS or one released in the past couple of years is somewhat of a barometer for receiving the latest security patches.
Re: (Score:2)
Same. I upgraded to a new iPhone this year because my 6-ish year old iPhone 6s was lagging pretty badly running the current versions of my apps. Shockingly, the 6s still runs the current factory supported iOS. How many 6 year old Android devices still run the latest Android release without resorting to hacks?
Or . . . (Score:2)
You could follow these people [bbc.com] and either ditch your electronic tether, or get just a phone.
Re: (Score:2)
Good luck having a tech job where at least one 2FA app isn't a requirement.
Qualcomm, not Google, is forcing this (Score:5, Informative)
The problem is not caused by Google.
It's caused by Qualcomm's refusal to support their hardware for more than 3 years.
From Ars Technica ( https://arstechnica.com/gadget... [arstechnica.com] ):
let's do a quick recap of how Android makes it to your smartphone. First, Google releases builds of AOSP (the Android Open Source Project) to everyone. This doesn't run on a phone yet, though. First, your SoC (System on a Chip) manufacturer (usually Qualcomm) has to get hold of it and customize Android for a particular SoC, adding drivers and other hardware support. Then, that build goes to your phone manufacturer (Fairphone, in this case) which adds support for the rest of the hardware—things like cameras, the display, and any other accessories—along with built-in apps and any custom Android skin work that the company wants to do.
If Qualcomm won't give Google a modern Android version with drivers (including proprietary binary code) for an older SoC, Google cannot (reliably) release modern Android for any phones based on an older SoC.
This arrogant, obstructive attitude (to many other things as well as software updates) is a major motivator for large phone manufacturers to use SoC from Someone Who Is Not Qualcomm.
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
This is one also one of the reasons why the new Pixel 6, which runs a Google-designed SoC, comes with updates for no less than 5 years down the line.
Re:Qualcomm, not Google, is forcing this (Score:5, Insightful)
The problem is not caused by Google.
It's caused by Qualcomm's refusal to support their hardware for more than 3 years.
And your suggestion is that Google had no idea about this going in and when it was revealed to them they were powerless to do anything about it?
Apple uses Qualcomm modems too so why don't they suffer from this problem?
Re:Qualcomm, not Google, is forcing this (Score:4, Informative)
Those SoCs don't include the modems [9to5mac.com], so you've done nothing to rebut the parent's proper observation. Apple leveraged its might to allow it to update phones with Qualcomm modems from 6 years ago. Google... did not.
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Qualcomm, not Google, is forcing this (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
nothing stops google from making an OS that can still work with older drivers. backwards compatibility is a thing
also, google is big enough to do their own chips and prevent the qualcomm issue. or buy them out
Re: (Score:2)
really blows chunks (Score:2)
Nothing new, custom firmware is the answer (Score:5, Informative)
Re: Nothing new, custom firmware is the answer (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Installing an image from some random dude on the internet isn't my idea of keeping a phone updated for security
Well, it's very much a 'pick your poison' sort of thing. I've been running ROMs on my phones since the WinMo 6.5 days, and I am hard pressed to think of a time when there was a ROM-specific security vulnerability which was disclosed. It certainly could have happened; I'm not saying it didn't, but it hasn't crossed my desk.
A security vulnerability by intent doesn't really make much sense; XDA is a niche, and ROMs are pretty model specific. You'd have to either target a very specific handset (and hope there a
Google forces nothing (Score:4, Insightful)
"Forced" my ass. They're not bricking it, just use the phone without security updates. You still have to do something stupid to have a problem. I've never once updated Android, and have never had a single problem, and I keep my phones until the battery starts screwing up, usually about 5 years. If you don't fall for scams to exploit it, and don't put random apps on it without researching them first, you'll pretty much never have a problem.
Re:Google forces nothing (Score:4, Interesting)
I've never once updated Android, and have never had a single problem,.
...that you know of.
Re: Google forces nothing (Score:2)
It's not about "having a problem" or not, it's about security. People who were spied using the Pegasus spyware didn't know they had "a problem" either
Overpriced? (Score:4, Insightful)
I've been buying smartphones in the $200-$300 range for quite some time. Can someone please tell me what a $1000+ phone does that a $250 Motorola Power can't? I can make calls, emails, run apps just fine. I get about 2.5-3 years out of them each time, making the annualized cost $100. I do this for my spouse too, but we only get about a year and a half since she's clumsy and breaks screens.
I know people that go after the latest and greatest phones at work. The conversation always goes quiet when they boast about something and I comment that my phone can do that too. Is it really just larger screen size or higher resolution?
Re: (Score:3)
Can someone please tell me what a $1000+ phone does that a $250 Motorola Power can't?
Way better camera.
Re: (Score:2)
You're exactly right. The reason I get a higher end phone is, one way or another, the latency. Whether it's just the loading speed, or even the increased ram and ability to multitask. Although top of the line phones aren't necessary for that anymore. You can't buy a $100 phone, but you can definitely get a $3-500 one that will last you 3 years with minimal difference between that and a thousand dollar phone.
Re: (Score:2)
Really? I have an LG Stylo 4+ on my desk. It's a 4-year-old budget phone. I paid $75 for it as a replacement for when the great 3G shutdown forces me to give up my beloved Blackberry.
It seems more than fast enough. I certainly don't feel like I'm waiting for things to load. When I pull out the stylus, the note app is on the screen before I'm ready to write. Solitaire and Firefox start in less than a second.
I'm not using it daily yet, but I can't see myself being annoyed by the performance, and I'm swit
Run alternative firmware to extend handset life (Score:5, Informative)
You can keep an older handset such as the Google Pixel 3 running for a very long time using alternative firmware, such as LineageOS 18.1 (based on AOSP Android 11), which is fully supported.
https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/blueline/
Re: (Score:2)
Does VoLTE finally work under LineageOS? The last time I checked a few months ago, the situation with VoLTE was positively dire, and Lineage seemed to be almost deliberately oblivious to the fact that if they didn't do something, and do it FAST, LineageOS would become effectively unusable as a phone operating system in the US as of approximately now.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
I have LineageOS on a Pixel4 and when I check the Phone Info, it says VoLTE is provisioned... "Voice Network Type = LTE". It seems to work just fine on T-Mobile.
Re: (Score:2)
Same here, with LineageOS on a Moto X4.
Re: (Score:2)
That's awesome news!
It's frustrating how LineageOS's leadership has almost completely buried its head in the sand over the VoLTE crisis, even if only providing clarity about which phones have seemingly zero hope of ever having working VoLTE with LineageOS, vs those that seemingly have working VoLTE. Their official silence on the matter makes Google's "stony silence" seem downright chatty by comparison.
Re: (Score:2)
"Have to" (Score:5, Interesting)
>"But I have to get rid of it because Google has stopped supporting all Pixel 3s. Despite being just three years old, no Pixel 3 will ever receive another official security update. Installing security updates is the one basic thing everyone needs to do for their own digital security."
No, you don't "have" to get rid of it.
* Apps will still update.
* A large part of the system, like all Google Services, etc, are updated through the app store now.
* You can turn off things that are not needed to reduce footprint.
* You can install Lineage or some other Android that is being fully updated.
None of the above are perfect, and I agree it would be better if there was longer FULL support for all Android phones. But to pretend that the moment the base "security updates" are no longer available bricks the phone or makes it some huge security risk is a little unrealistic as a generalization.
Re: (Score:2)
It's also a really really great alternative to a Raspberry Pi.
Spotty Rollouts? (Score:2)
This has been a problem with Android for as long as Android has existed. In 2015, my colleague Lorenzo Franceschi-Bicchierai wrote a farewell to Android because of its terrible software support and spotty upgrade rollouts.
Huh? Are we talking about Android-based phones from companies like Samsung, because I've never had patchy rollouts for a Google Pixel or Google Nexus!
Consumer protection laws (Score:2)
Search for "Google abandoned projects" (Score:2)
There are a lot of results, including this authoritative list: https://killedbygoogle.com/ [killedbygoogle.com]
Can an expired phone still use gpay? (Score:2)
Google's security posture seems really shady if they'll let you keep on using gpay on a phone months to years out of security updates, but will block your ability to use gpay if you unlock it and install a modern secure OS like Lineage.
Meet the wireless carriers, (Score:2)
I tried recently to activate my spare Galaxy S7 on the Verizon network. They told me that I can't do that. It's not supported.
OTOH, I can take an activated SIM (a sim activated on my account in another, newer phone), and move it to the S7 -- however, they will not activate the S6, S7, or S8 phones on the Verizon network.
Why? I dunno. You think you got Pixel 3 issues? I bet Verizon won't activate that, too. The S7 works great. In fact, it worked great in Brazil, and partly because of this I just gave it to a
Install Lineage (Score:2)
Re: Install Lineage (Score:2)
Android security updates don't matter (Score:2)
Installing security updates is the one basic thing everyone needs to do for their own digital security.
We've been trained to believe this, because it's certainly true on Microsoft Windows.
But a smartphone isn't the same thing as a PC. Just what threat model are you using?
On Windows, malware can get you through an email or a web page.
On Android, you have to install it from the Play Store.
A typical PC has many thousands of applications. A heavily-loaded smartphone has probably less than a couple hundred.
And think of what Google takes away with each "upgrade". I might never move on from Pie, because in later ve
Re: (Score:3)
On Windows, malware can get you through an email or a web page.
On Android, you have to install it from the Play Store.
This is a falsehood. Whoever told it to you, don't trust them anymore, because they gave you bad information.
See for example: https://resources.infosecinsti... [infosecinstitute.com]
Use another flavour of Android (Score:2)
Re: Use another flavour of Android (Score:3)
I have a pixel 2 xl (Score:2)
I bought Nexus (Score:2)
I bought a Nexus specifically because it was vanilla Android. It long ago stopped receiving updates, but overall has been a great experience, with the OS working exactly how it should,, having a dearth of bloatware, and integrating with Google's cloud. But while Android are terrible with support, Apple intentionally cripples their phones after a while, but at least you're secure for longer.
Unfortunately, the phone (and OS) I loved most was a Windows phone. It had great support and a brilliant interface.
I th
I'll Bet (Score:2)
In response to an email asking Google why it stopped supporting the Pixel 3, a Googles spokesperson said, "We find that three years of security and OS updates still provides users with a great experience for their device."
Next year they may find that two years of security and OS updates still provides users with a great experience.
And then they may find that one year still provides users with a great experience.
This is a non-sequitur response - it literally does not respond to the question that was asked at all. (If you think it does you have been listening to press flacks for way too long.)
Quite your whining and put LineageOS on the Pixel (Score:2)
Own it.
Very loose definition of "forcing" (Score:3)