this post was submitted on 28 Nov 2024
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I'm thinking of getting a fairphone in the future. I like that they are modular and last a while. Are they easily customizable to where I can flash a different ROM? Is the default configuration private?

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[–] ExtremeDullard@lemmy.sdf.org 69 points 1 year ago

The stock Fairphone runs the stock full-blown Google spyware stack. Privacy isn't Fairphone's selling point: it's repairability.

You can install CalyxOS very easily on it however. That's what I'm rocking on my Fairphone 4, and it's great. I have no issues with it.

[–] skarn@discuss.tchncs.de 28 points 1 year ago (1 children)

As others said, it's pretty stock android so... Bad. But you can buy it from Murena pre-flashed with e/os and then have a stock phone with a locked bootloader running a decently private OS. The bootloader is unlockable if you so wish.

[–] Lemmchen@feddit.org 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Is the bootloader relockable with my own keys?

[–] Y5QcY2Cu9@lemmy.blahaj.zone 6 points 1 year ago

The CalyxOS installer does that AFAIK, so it should be supported

[–] skarn@discuss.tchncs.de 4 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Yes, it's relockable. You are welcome to Google for more, I had done some research a while ago.

I plan to brush up and switch my own FP4 to e/os during the holidays.

Edit: Google it on any search engine you like ;-)

[–] 0x0@programming.dev 23 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Fairly private.

Sorry, couldn't resist.

[–] ComradePedro@lemmy.ml 5 points 1 year ago

It's not tho...

[–] Matombo@feddit.org 13 points 1 year ago

fairphone offically supports /e/OS as a private option

also unlockable bootloader if you want to run linage for example

[–] toastal@lemmy.ml 13 points 1 year ago

Green washed. If they cared about sustainability they wouldn’t have removed the headphone jack for longer-lived headphones—and instead started selling their own branded Bluetooth earbuds like the rest of the manufacturers.

[–] cyberwolfie@lemmy.ml 13 points 1 year ago

I am happy running CalyxOS on my FP4. Bootloader is relockable as well, which is nice for security.

[–] uncrme@lemmy.world 12 points 1 year ago

The gold standard for privacy is still Pixel with GrapheneOS tbh

[–] poVoq@slrpnk.net 8 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (2 children)

The default Android on them is pretty standard including Google Play services, so it is not great in regards to privacy (but could be worse, like an Apple device or so).

But for most of their models you can find good alternative Android roms or even mobile Linux distributions like PostmarketOS.

[–] davel@lemmy.ml 6 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)
[–] poVoq@slrpnk.net 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Apple also runs an ad business these days and their devices collect more types of data than stock Android does. And contrary to many Android phones there is very little you can do against that in Apple devices.

[–] funkycarrot@discuss.tchncs.de 5 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Finally a good, nuanced article on this topic, thanks for sharing. Only drawback is that the author doesn't seem to be aware that degoogling your phone is a viable alternative, especially with manufactures like Fairphone offering this out of the box.

Lots of people (including myself, previously) fall for the narrative that Apple can financially justify not spying on their users because their hardware is expensive. Versus Google, who have always been about ads and data mining.

This logic unfortunately fails to consider that a publicly trading company will always use all methods at their disposal to keep up profit so shareholders are happy. Expensive hardware was probably enough a decade ago, but the golden rule is: as long as a company can fuck you over in a way that increases profits, they absolutely will, given enough time.

We need federal privacy law in the U.S. and we need it fast.

[–] yonder@sh.itjust.works 4 points 1 year ago

Fairphone's support of PostmarketOs shows me that they actually care about their mission.

[–] Undertaker@feddit.org 6 points 1 year ago (2 children)

The default is Fairphone OS. It is Google Android but they don't pay to license the name 'Android', so they have to use an alternative name.

You can install /e/OS (even preinstalled by Murena) or DivestOS. Any other option doesn't make sense as Divest is best in terms of security and privacy among all available custom roms and /e/ is most convenient (good but not perfect privacy, bad security but with MicroG, relock and App Lounge as well as Murena Cloud)

[–] Lemmchen@feddit.org 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Any other option doesn't make sense as Divest is best in terms of security and privacy among all available custom roms

X doubt
~~I have never heard of Divest before~~

Never mind, I've actually found the link to divestos.org in my browsing history, I've just forgotten about it.

[–] yonder@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 year ago

DivestOS is pretty awesome. It allows for bootloader locking, which Lineage can't do IIRC and it runs very fast on my Pixel 2 xl.

[–] kekmacska@lemmy.zip 2 points 1 year ago

it is a good choice if you don't need serious processing power

[–] IDKWhatUsernametoPutHereLolol@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

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