this post was submitted on 09 Mar 2026
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deGoogle

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Be aware that ALL samsung phones can't be degoogled anymore. Do not ever buy samsung again if you hope to make calls. (libretechni.ca)
submitted 16 hours ago by cm0002@libretechni.ca to c/degoogle@discuss.tchncs.de
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So, I just learned about this the very, very hard way. After buying a second hand S10 and finding american ones can't be unlocked, traveling 4 hours to buy another one after much research, much annoyances to unlock it (samsung requires you to be online, which I didn't know) and testing multiple ROMs, I finally read this page more properly https://wiki.lineageos.org/devices/beyond1lte/ which says "known quirks: IMS". I thought it was just something like dolby sound.

What it means is that it doesn't suport VoLTE and most currently used phone systems. Samsung made their proprietary mess, unlike most other developers, which means it will probably never have an open source version.

And that applies to ALL modern samsung phones. I had samsung phone before with a custom OS, but didn't realize because VoLTE wasn't mandatory back then. Now it is here in Australia, and many countries. So if you ever plan to buy a samsung phone to degoogle it, know that it won't make phone calls. SMS and mobile data also doesn't work.

I don't know how I missed this. It should be talked more often given how popular samsung is. There should always be a warning "YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO MAKE PHONE CALLS IN THE FUTURE IF YOU CONTINUE".

S10 was the last decent phone ever made (for me). Not too big, SD card, headphone jack (one of the most important things for me), good camera, etc, etc... That's why I was so persistent to find one to degoogle.

So I'm stuck with my amazingly shitty pixel 5 (and other ones are even worse for me). And considering the possibility of a life without smartphones at all, since this is a losing battle. Mainstream doesn't care and evil companies have every incentive to kill freedom. It has been getting really bad and it will just get worse. But anyway... this post is not about this.

Be warned, if you care about freedom don't ever buy samsung again. Not because they are evil (they are), but because you won't be able to make phone calls on your "phone".

OC writeup by @guismo@aussie.zone

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[–] Gnugit@aussie.zone 13 points 16 hours ago

I have a Samsung and have been very disappointed in this too. It will certainly be my last, if not my last smart phone ever. I'm over the enshitification of everything and might just go fishing instead.

[–] atomicbocks@sh.itjust.works 2 points 10 hours ago

My last Samsung was the Note 4. I decided back then to never get another Samsung phone. It was the second Samsung in a row that had to be replaced because the GPS and Bluetooth quit working after a couple months.

[–] jerkface@lemmy.ca 8 points 15 hours ago (2 children)

Don't use a smart phone for calls. That era is over. Get a basic, simple, trustworthy, and dependable flip phone with a hotspot feature and a separate mobile computation device.

[–] XLE@piefed.social 7 points 13 hours ago (1 children)

Which phones with those features are even available? My first thought was the Nokia dumbphones, but it looks like they are exclusively compatible with T-Mobile, not AT&T or Verizon.

[–] BassTurd@lemmy.world 5 points 11 hours ago

I would also like to know if anyone has any recommendations for US Verizon flip phones with hotspot built in.

[–] Dasus@lemmy.world 2 points 11 hours ago

Yeah but if you carry it around with the smart phone in your pocket, the phone you have just a data-connection on (or even if you don't and just use some WiFis), it's not gonna be hard for any sufficiently interested authorities to pair those two devices together as having the same user.

And granted, while it's not gps accuracy, having any wireless phone can be located (roughly) with triangulation.

But it's just like, how much privacy do you need/want, just pointing out things cause I have to keep distracting myself from having a bad day.

[–] Bazell@lemmy.zip 2 points 16 hours ago* (last edited 16 hours ago)

OK. Noted.