Looking at options to degoogle etc., and these look like two valid options. I mainly use a phone for maps and authenticator, and the occasional text or call.
Also, any other good options or considerations I am missing?
GrapheneOS is GOAT.
There’s also AXP.OS
GrapheneOS is up to date while e/ is miles behind on security and features. Graphene’s sandboxed Google play works very well if you need it too
I’d sooner use Lineage than /e/
/e/ is another walled garden. Not as high-walled as Apple, but they want to be your everything.
I have experienced both first hand.
Pixels are much higher quality / ‘premium feeling’ devices, but not nearly as ethically sound or repairable as Fairphones (duh). I don’t know about the latest generation, but I was not impressed at all with their FP5.
GrapheneOS is amazing if you are willing to spend some time reading into its features and why they matter. Pretty much everything requiring Play Services is just working. /e/OS also has strong privacy features, but to my knowledge they offer less frequent updates, less involved hardening and MicroG rather than sanboxed Play Services.
MicroG (in the past at least) was much less reliable than sanboxed Play, as the latter even allows for device integrity checks to pass. And I mean genuinely pass, not ‘with hacks and workarounds kinda pass’. You’re only in trouble if you stumble across one of the few apps that use the v2 Integrity API, because that works with Google certified devices only.
Edit: As for /e/OS upsides: Slightly nicer looking, with a slightly nicer featureset out of the box, including a cemare app that crashes phones to this day.
2 completely different propositions :
- gOS is all about security - do you live in a Surveillance State? (The answer today is most probably yes)
- e/OS is all about🖕google - do you think google is a nefarious entity part of today’s world problems? (I think absolutely yes)
So your choice isn’t one because it’s apples and oranges. I can’t go for gOS because they don’t care about google, and it means I’d be waving around a pixel, I’d be a mobile billboard for google - and also if “someone” wants to get into my phone, they will anyway. A fairphone is another statement entirely, and with an alternate OS from a small French business it’s the most political choice I can make. Also, fuck google.
[edit] e/OS is built on LineageOS which runs on many many phones.
I know pretty much nothing about phones but I have a refurbished Pixel 8a, and I’ll make a comparison with an old equivalent Fairphone:
Both have a basic Android without bells and whistles.
- GrapheneOS: more secure, and applications are sandboxed
- Fairphone: you can repair it and buy spare parts (hopefully, as long as they sell those parts)
If I compare it with my cheap Pixel 8a: https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=11136&idPhone2=12937:
- bad: the Fairphone 4 is more expensive (refurbished, $300 vs $200 for the Pixel), and is older (2021 vs 2024 for the Pixel 8a)
- good: the Fairphone 4 has a microSDXC slot
- neutral: you can repair the Fairphone 4, but you can buy a new Pixel 8a for a lower price
But that comparison changes according to your budget and the model you’re looking for.
Used Pixels with Graphene will be your cheapest option. The concept of Fairphone is awesome, but for Americans they’re pretty expensive. Morally the Fairphone is the better option from a hardware standpoint.
Shiftphone 8 with /e/OS if you can get it. That way you don’t feed Google and avoid preinstalled G crap.
