so I’ve got a pixel 6A and I really like the device itself, but the last several months of updates have just screwed it up over and over again.

first I lost my fingerprint sensor and it still hasn’t been fixed with any of the updates. now with one of the more recent beta updates I have seen intermittent cell service issues in areas where I never used to have service issues.

I’ve been considering switching over to graphene for a while now but wanted some feedback on how that works when I’m not really trying to disconnect from the rest of Google services.

I use family link for my kids tablets, I use Google pay I use Gmail etc.

Will I have any issues if I switch using the same Google services?

also I use Nova launcher, and it would be convenient if I could save that profile and import it, assuming Nova works just fine on graphene as well?

  • @[email protected]English
    5•9 months ago

    I used GrapheneOS as a daily driver for about two months on my Pixel 7. I ended up having to switch back:

    1. RCS messaging just doesn’t work. No matter what I tried, RCS would never connect so all texts were being sent OTA in the clear - not great when using a security-focused OS.

    2. Notifications just stopped working despite permissions being in place. Apps with all permissions just did not send notifications.

    3. Apps that rely on background updates do not update unless manually opened.

    4. Calls went straight to voicemail after my first web-based USB install - I reflashed GrapheneOS and the issue went away for a little while, then returned.

    5. Less control over my phone’s settings than I have in stock Android.

    It’s a good idea and I wanted it to work, but it’s still just not stable nor ready for daily use.

    • DataproletEnglish
      4•9 months ago
      1. This could be due to missing Google services?

      I wouldn’t say that GrapheneOS isn’t ready for daily use just because you have some issues. It’s a mature project with decent support for only a couple of devices and a lot of people use it on a daily basis without issues.

    • @LibreFishEnglish
      2•9 months ago

      On notifications if Google play services is not installed unless the app let’s you configure another server to use in place notifications won’t work that use Google Play services installed on the back end.

      If sandboxed Google play services is installed, assure it has the neccisiary permission to run in the background (unrestricted battery and network) access. Not just the individual apps, but the google apps specifically as Graphene installs thegoogle stuff with standard permissions.

      Same goes for apps that run in the background. If you expect them to be running in the background to auto update or perform another function then it needs to be permitted in the battery settings. Background updates may also rely on Google Play services.

      Edit: to clarify I haven’t experienced any issues myself that weren’t directly related to my decision to not use sandboxes google play services (no push notifications) despite daily driving for years. It’s a particularly old and reliable project in the privacy space, and while I’m sorry you experienced issues that doesn’t make it an unstable project not ready as a daily driver (any more that somebody having issues with Windows/Linux makes those unstable and not ready to be daily driven).