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afaik GNOME Shell mobile is still very new and less polished than phosh.
The challenge is that these days a phone is rarely used for calls or texts, but used with apps like WhatsApp or Teams or Slack or your mobile banking app, or things like that. And so there would need to be a critical mass of these apps to get me to switch.
Yup. Or Waydroid (or others) mature like Wine/Proton has.
SafetyNet is an issue though
SafetyNet is also an issue on Android as soon as you modify anything or install a custom ROM :/
I hate how corporations name their lock-in bullshit names that make it sound like it's for the user's protection when it's just protecting their garbage monopolies. I'd argue an open platform not under Google's control is more secure and safer for my data than a Google spy machine.
while typically I would agree, safetynet actually does do a lot to provide a safe execution environment. Yes, it can be used for vendor lock-in BS and drm, however it does also get used to protect privileged apps like banking apps, secure email etc
Moat of those work via Waydroid I think, but I still haven't had the chance to actually try (Linux-phoneless here)
Isn't WhatsApp just a texting and call app
Yes. But if 90% of your friends use it, and have groups in it where things are planned and organised, then by not having it you’re going to be missing out on a big chunk of things going on around you.
Year since there us no cross app texting.
Thankfully with a lot of stuff like banking apps, a lot of applications actually provide a pretty decent mobile webui. so a browser with the right user agent will still work (albiet to a limited degree, don't expect nfc payments any time soon)
The reasons to use Linux phone are very similiar to reasons for not being used by WhatsApp.
For years I wanted a Linux phone.
So I switched from iPhone to Android.
Android uses a Linux kernel but the Android layer is not as transparent as Linux PC distros. As instance I have hard time to remove the bloat.
I know and agree.
Mine post was a joke.
If you hate yourself enough, any will do
I ended up choosing Plasma Mobile. Keep meaning to try Phosh. I was initially more drawn to Plasma Mobile as I use KDE on my laptop & desktop.
Currently on Phosh on postamarketOS. Would've loved to use Plasma mobile but it is very unstable.
Gnome for mobile is still very new so I'd avoid it for now unless you just want to tinker and see how it's developing
I wouldn't choose a Linux phone because I don't need a useless brick in my pocket.
But if forced, I'd look at Ubuntu Touch.
Phosh for me and it entirely comes down to the onscreen keyboard. GNOME Mobile's OSK is utter garbage as it has no control/modifier/arrow keys, not even Tab, which makes using terminal an absolute pain. Chances are if you're the kind of person who wants a Linux phone at this point, you probably use the terminal at least semi-regularly. Phosh's UI has some design choices I don't love, but squeekboard (Phosh's OSK component) is one of the best on-screen phone keyboards I've ever used, second only to Hacker's Keyboard on Android and in some ways superior to it. The reason comes down to key layouts being defined by simple .yaml files that you can edit to make custom layouts. I have all my control and modifier keys available and using terminal is easy now. I'm typing this on my custom layout.
Phosh's window management is also pretty good for adapting desktop applications to a touchscreen. The only complaint I have is the large bottom bar that can't be turned off or replaced with a gesture. Waste of screen space, especially in landscape mode which is how I prefer to browse the web and use a lot of desktop-focused apps. I created a program to turn the touchscreen into a laptop-style touchpad for mouse control that pairs well with Phosh for using applications that aren't particularly good at touch control.
I tried ubuntu touch but am afraid I had to go back to Android because the web browser wasn't having it.
I don't know about the rest but I would advise caution.
I would try them both and judge for myself which is best.
this post was submitted on 24 Sep 2023
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Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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