I don't think anyone who can install a Rom, or is willing to read a bit of documentation, should buy this.
If your choice is this, or buying some stock Android Phone and using it as is, this might be OK, but you're not getting anything special.
this post was submitted on 25 Feb 2025
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Privacy
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I would consider anything other than GrapheneOS a scam or even a honeypot at this point. Braxman is a complete utter joke, this crap is no different than that MAGA guy selling his freedom phone or whatever it was called.
I use GrapheneOS because it works better for me, but considering their personnel and how they're operating, I still would also trust Calyx. Was clearly the best choice for my fairphone back then.
DivestOS was also cool while it was developed.
This seems like a normal cheap android phone with a bootloader-unlocked operating system and some pre-installed ad-block and rethinkDNS'ish Apps imstalled?
And no offence, but the advertising video itself is more scamy then the wedding-dress shop around the corner that is always closed and dusty, but still paying a horrendous amount of rent each month...
Yes, it's just iodéOS, which is LineageOS and microg. You can do this with literally any phone if the bootloader can be unlocked. Even easier if it's officially supported by lineage.
From the specs it sounds like it's like a Vivo Y28s. It's not that exact model but something very similar. Same features, same soc, has microsd and headphone jack.
And they are selling it for USD 300. I found this vivo on middle eastern and indian webshops, and it costs less than USD 200.
There's also a bunch of controversy around their premium features and it supposedly bricking devices it deems were pirated licenses.
Yes, but where can you buy that Y28s with an AOSP ROM out of the box? Can you even install an AOSP ROM on it? Furthermore, those Asian phones likely will not work with US VoLTE. The whole point of this phone is that it is a solution for people who do not want to deal with flashing another ROM and want something that "just works". Rob Braxman also sells Pixels with AOSP ROMs (previously CalyxOS, now something else, I believe). The point is not getting the best value or the most revolutionary or amazing device ever.
So do you think the wedding dress shop is laundering money for a drug cartel?
Also, is rethinkDNS an alternative DNS which protects privacy?
rethink is an app that can do custom DNS setup, VPN client and proxy functionality, and firewall to some extent.
I never trusted that brax guy
I suppose your level of enthusiasm for this offering tracks strongly with how credible you consider Rob Braxman. I have heard people here and elsewhere say he's a quack or even a psyop. I do know that he's one of the few sources to talk about client side scanning, the illusory nature of Apple's "privacy" and other modern privacy issues.
We need robust options for privacy. Googled Android and Apple iOS are horrible options for genuine anonymity and privacy. So, I welcome any competition in this space.
I have no enthusiasm about a CEO, I have posted this article simply as an alternative more of an smartphone that does not go with Google or Apple, allows the use of Linux and also allows you to fix it by yourself with standard spare parts. This is in any case preferable to a mobile stock controlled by Google or Apple, period. I bet that some negative votes are made by users of Brave with it's nazi CEO, supported by fishy Crypto companies, the rest for sure use an Fairphone. Right?
Yeah that makes sense. And I don't mean you personally. My commentary was to solidify that many have criticized Braxman but from my perspective we need voices like his to bring awareness to privacy issues caused by Big Tech. We need different options and information in order to make informed choices. So I don't know why people would shit on someone offering information and alternatives.
Maybe some of them are, but I think most of the down votes are just from people who recognise this as an obvious scam
There is a big difference between a product that is sold at a substantial premium and an actual scam. A scam would be someone selling some cheap Chinese phone rebranded as a privacy phone without any significant differences from a regular Google Android at $1000. This is clearly not that.
But that's pretty much exactly what this is? Just some random unlockable phone with rebadged lineage on it...
How is LineageOS without all the Google spyware not significantly different from a regular Google Android phone, of which you in the US at least cannot even unlock the bootloader of, let alone install an official Lineage OS port? Also, this is a $300 device, not a $1000 one. Just because you can buy a Pixel and, if you make sure you buy the correct one at least, can unlock the bootloader and install a custom ROM if you have the skills and knowledge (and time) to do so, does not make this phone a "scam".
Never, ever put your money into an Indiegogo project. It's not investing, as you don't earn any money. It's not purchasing, as there are no guarantees of products finishing or shipping. You also don't have any consumer protections or rights, even if the project violates Indiegogo's terms of service and commits fraud, unless you reside in the same country as the company leading the project.
Don't ask me how I know; I am still bitter.
Edit: Hardware-wise, this phone is doing a lot right: microSD, headphone jack, sim slots, NFC, and what seems to /maybe/ be a user-replacable battery without needing a new water seal on the back of the case after opening it up. IMO it falls short on RAM (16GB is the new minimum and this phone only has 8) and they used a screen with a freaking notch in it.
Software-wise, they don't seem to be doing anything new, except for offering a somewhat ready-to-go product that tried to de-google Android. This could be nice for people who don't want to spend weeks or months learning how to secure their phones themselves.
Also keep in mind that AT&T (and I believe Verizon too) do not approve of any new devices with unlocked bootloaders on their network, and as such, this phone does not support the full range of bands used by these companies. Of the three main cell network providers in the US, only T-mobile allows full access to all their bands with devices that ship with official unlockable bootloaders.
Indiegogo also tries to sneak a crazy high tip to the platform when you back a project now.
IMO it falls short on RAM (16GB is the new minimum and this phone only has 8)
what the hell. just no. what do you want to run on it, desktop windows with electron apps and dozens of active (not open) browser tabs?
6 GB should be plenty fine.
also,
Of the three main cell network providers in the US, only T-mobile allows full access to all their bands with devices that ship with official unlockable bootloaders.
unlocable, or unlocked?
My current phone has 12GB and quite frankly it's amazing to have that much!
I know 16GB seems ridiculous, but with LLMs gaining popularity, running one locally on a phone really needs at least 8GB, and 16GB would be much better.
I think it's just the way things are going.
I don't need an LLM on my phone, and most people don't either. I mean, I'm not an AI addict, but also, these are battery powered devices!
if I want to use an LLM on the go for some reason, I would either run that at home on a computer that was made for performance, or just use the duck.ai site because that's just fine too.
my phone has 6 GB, and that's plenty. I have a ton of apps installed, and always running background services like Syncthing.
My last phone had 12, my current one has 8. Fine for multitasking. I really dunno what I'd want an LLM on my phone for.
Their shipping estimate sounds like a pipe dream. There is no way this ships in March, or April, or probably even May.
Why? It's pretty much just dropshipping some year old low end chineseum phone with rebranded lineageos. I could probably do that by April starting now...
I guess it depends on if they are actually designing any of their own hardware. I was assuming they were, but now that you mention it, yeah why would they.
Does it run lineage? Any other FOSS, third party OS? No? Hard pass.
iodéOS, and support for UbuntuTouch
iodéOS is powered by “LineageOS”
So yes, it also has microG. So it's the same thing again, as /e/.
It does, in it's early stage eg. Ubuntu Touch, but I think there isn't any problem to run other Distros too, at least Android itself is Linux (stock Android is only bad because it's contamined with Google APIs) and Linage OS is an Android fork. The OS isn't a problem, but the question is the compatibility of the needed apps, eg, in profesional ambit, medical apps or other official apps, all of these normally only for Android or iOS.
if it runs linux distros, that does not mean it can run android
Nothing new, ordinary Chinese phone as many. Only like that is back side is transparent.