Ask Android

I am interested in installing a de-googled android on my phone, but I would like to try it out a little bit first. Is there some way to emulate a phone on my PC, or is there anything like dual booting on phones?

Looking for a clean way to display newest article on RSS feed.

It's fine via Termux, but I don't seem to be able to do it at all via the new Android 15 Terminal that's running Debian.

I’m new to android. (Default android 13, not looking to install custom ROMs because I need this to be very functional and dont have time to deal with bugs).

Anyways, I’ve installed F-Droid, Helix Keyboard and my go to VPN app.

What next? What browser, third party YT player, torrent client, jellyfin client (I’m deaf so need one with opensubtitle integration), email clients, rss aggregator, note taking apps etc. should I install? I’m paralysed by choice.

Is there an equivalent to the ios shortcuts app?

Anyways, I’ll be happy to try out any suggestions. Cheers.

F-Droid has been giving me some issues for a few days (that I've noticed). It crashes immediately upon opening. Sometimes I will see it open for less than one second before it crashes, but usually it just goes right to a crash submittal screen. I want to reinstall it, but am unsure how to handle all my apps. Will it just pick them back up? I don't really know how to troubleshoot this, I am open to alternative paths!

Like the Meebok M7 which runs Android 11. I know most apps support Android 9 as minimum, but how future proof will Android 11 be for these coming 5 years for example? I know it went EOL like last year. I could go for the Meebook M8 with Android 14, but it's much more expensive..

cross-posted from: https://feddit.org/post/8317927

I have stuff I've prepared to help my family with what is coming, info, steps to take, articles and other sources and evidence, etc. Its in multiple formats. What's the best and/or easiest way to move it to SNote or another E2EE app?

As the title asks, why do so many email apps go on to add calendars? What's wrong with keeping them as separate apps?

I’m thinking of buying one of the two models, not to read but because I have a disability that basically makes it impossible for me to use normal phones due to visual overload. I have a couple questions:

1. How dim does the backlight go? Can it get so dim that you barely realise it is on — kind of like minimum phone brightness?
2. What is the experience like when typing? Could you use the phone to send messages?
3. What does the hardware feel like? It seems the CPU is pretty weak, do you feel that at all when using? What do you think the longevity would be like?
4. Do you think a usecase like leaving the display on as a button pad with a bunch of shortcuts would be a workable usecase?
5. Can the customisable sidebutton be programmed to do literally anything? Like could I link it to a Tasker shortcut or something?
6. I’ve noticed that people say the settings are rather limited compared to normal android? Has that limited you in any way, are things like DNS and VPN still usable?

So I haven't run a custom ROM for a long time and I'm thinking of trying out GrapheneOS. Before I do, is there a modern way to take a full disk image of a stock Pixel 8? The intent would be to factory restore to where I am in this moment if need be.

Silent notifications are annoying me, they put up icons by the clock and make me think I have something to notice but it's just a service.

E.g. ntfy

If I go to app management screen I can disable notifications but I'm unclear if that means the background service doesn't run as it should - I'm sure I've seen something about that somewhere.

I'm on android 15. Thanks in advance!

Does anyone know where I could find comparisons of the various Lemmy clients available? I'd like to see something contrasting things like app maturity, features available, update release frequency, and etc?

I'm looking to try out some of the more mature clients since the one I'm using (Boost) has been exhibiting some problems for me recently. I wanted to narrow down the cause of the problem and will be trying other clients to make sure my instance isn't the issue. I'm writing this from Eternity (Nightly).

I don't want to use a USB, what's a quick and secure way to get data from a phone to a computer? They can be on the same WiFi network

I recently switched from a pixel 6 to a fairphone 5. There was stuff like a smart screenshot (which worked half the time) and the ability to select text most of the time. The fairphone doesnt have that, and i wonder if its a first party google feature, or if theres a different rom i should use.

So I have a debate in my head right now about how I should handle devices stored unattended in vehicles. The criteria:

• Devices have new versions of Android
• Pass phrases or many-digit pins are used
• Biometric login is set up (but can't be used in Lockdown Mode)
• Have Bitwarden installed with biometric auth for the vault
• Has SSH keys on the device

I'm not worried about nation state attacks, but am considering the vector of a tech savy thief, and want to keep SSH keys and other device data secure. Assume they cannot be stored in a vault.

Is storing the phones on but in Lockdown mode enough, or should I turn them off completely? Off would be super annoying to wait for boot every time, but I'm not totally sure how KEK works for an encrypted device with biometrics set up but in Lockdown Mode where they are disabled.

Hello! Does anyone has any recommendations for a to-do list app? I would like one that had a widget for the home screen, that shows my tasks or reminders, so I can see them every time. Not to be confused with a widget to write a note. It doesn't needs to be open-source, but that would be very appreciated. Thanks for the help.

If the court ended up forcing Google to sell Android, shouldn't we worry that its license as an open source project could be removed and then it become proprietary?

I currently use Joplin but I find it's a bit too over-engineered with many features I don't use. For me the best note taking app would:

• Be FOSS
• Sync over NextCloud / webDAV
• Support kind of formatting (markdown for example)
• Have ability to create check box lists
• Be lightweight and fast to open
• Have ability to set remainders and alarms (if possible)
• [if possible] as either a windows desktop client or a web client or interface to access notes from work

Now depending on how I like the software, I may change a bit my habits and drop some of those requirements if the soft please me and I find workaround or drop the feature (for example an automated backup can replace NextCloud stuff and I don't use that much the work computer to access notes, so if it's good and I can share the note manually by mail or so, I can live with it).

So feel free to share what you use.

so instead of placing my google accounts on my android phone, can i just use them directly from the browsers i use?? i know i wouldn't be able to use google play but i mean i have aurora store. would this be usable in the long-term?? a good way of using an android phone?

i know some parts of it are proprietary and you need google services for it to work properly but if you don't need any of that and only rely on say fdroid apps and just use it without a google account and all of those things could android still be considered that?? i like android so much and i think it's an amazing fully american operating system, great!! so technically it is? and i know about grapheneos and other roms but what about stock android? stock android is still mostly open source and free (well gratis), and linux

I wanted to install a few PWAs in my private space but the option for installation or shortcut creation isn't there on the same websites where it appears in the normal installation of the browser app.
Is this a limitation strictly related to the private space?

Have searched about it on the net and have seen that WPA2/WPA3 is recommended, in the case of older devices n IoT.
I normally use the hotspot to share internet to other devices. They're not too old and I don't use IoT devices.

Would choosing WPA3 be better/faster for my case? Did not see much info on that or benchmarks about it?
Saw somewhere that WPA3 has more overhead because of greater encryption, but would plain WPA3 be better than the default WPA2/WPA3?

Thanks in advance

EDIT 4 - FINAL EDIT - Dec 3: I'm marking this issue Resolved now that it's been about a week since I've last had this issue. Thanks to all who chimed in in the comments.

EDIT 3 - Nov 26: It's working again as of this morning, so what I've observed over the last week is that it intermittently stops working in the afternoons when I want to actually use it, then magically starts working again when I test it in the mornings. This on again, off again is driving me mad. Does anyone have any idea why it stops working at random points throughout the day and then starts working again in the mornings? Sigh...

EDIT 2 - Nov 25: Aaaand it's stopped working again. 😢 Double checked the mic availability in quick settings, restarted my device, no dice. When I tested this morning, it worked, but whenever I want to actually use it, it doesn't work—so frustrating. If anyone has any ideas what could cause intermittently stop transcribing, I would greatly appreciate it.

EDIT 1 - Nov 25: I tested this morning, and it's working again. I don't know what changed—I'm still on the same build of GrapheneOS, same version of Sayboard, etc. As far as I can tell, the issue has magically resolved itself. I'm happy that I have voice transcription again, and by troubleshooting I learned some things about my device along the way, so I'll take the W. Thanks to everyone who chimed in.

ORIGINAL ISSUE: New-ish Android user here. About a week ago, I installed Sayboard through the Neo Store and started using it to transcribe voice to text in the default Messaging app in GrapheneOS. It worked flawlessly for a couple days; however, within the last day or two, it has just magically stopped working. I cannot get Sayboard to transcribe anything. I've tested with FUTO, same issue.

I initially posted a detailed issue on Sayboard's GitHub, then I tried FUTO and experienced the issue there as well, so now I realize it seems to be more of an issue with my device's configuration. For the life of me, I cannot figure out what it could be.

Does anyone have any other ideas I might try? More details below...

What I've tried so far:

• I've double checked app permissions - Sayboard has permission to record audio.
• I've checked for app updates - I'm using the latest version of Sayboard (v4.2.1).
• I've tested in multiple apps - for example, the Messaging app, Mull web browser, and Markor text editor.
• I've confirmed the issue is not with the mic itself. For example, I can record audio in the Camera app.
• I've searched the internet for grapheneos voice input not working, which does not yield any useful results.

Steps to reproduce the issue:

1. Open the Messaging app.
2. Tap any conversation.
3. Tap to put cursor in text field, which brings up the keyboard.
4. Tap mic icon in top right corner of keyboard, which brings up the Sayboard interface w/ the word "Ready" below the outlined mic icon.
5. Tap the outlined mic icon. The mic icon changes from outlined to solid, and the text changes from "Ready" to "Say something." A little green bubble also appears in the top right of my screen indicating that my mic is in use.
6. Speak some words.

Observed behavior:

I've tried the same steps w/ Sayboard and FUTO and gotten the same result - nothing gets transcribed.

Expected behavior:

My spoken words should be transcribed into the text box.

About my system:

• GrapheneOS stable release channel (currently build 2024111800).
• Pixel 7a

Thank you!