I have been convinced to switch from apple, and i am soon purchasing a pixel 7 pro. I would then like to put a custom rom on it because i would:
- like to use foss more
- like to maintain better privacy than apple offers
- would enjoy the control over the system
- not like to ever touch google chrome
There are some limitations to what i can choose though, as i need the following to work:
- google apps like sheets/docs/classroom/youtube
- banking app (usaa specifically)
- play store (could be replaced)
Additionally i would like to keep the flashy camera stuff google talks about with the camera as i use the camera a fair bit. I have also heard that androids can have different UIs, so i would appreciate a nice looking one (i use gnome on my desktop for this reason alone). What ROMs would you guys recommend i choose?
Everyone else has mentioned the aurora store as an afterthought, almost as if it wasn’t really a recommendation and more so a mention. Why might they not recommend it?
Additionally do I need a google account to use grapheneOS?
i think most people would prefer foss apps, which arent common on aurora store, becuse it only shows apps from google play. if you need a proprietry app, like banking or something, aurora store is your best bet. it is debatable where you should get an app, if it is on both aurora and fdroid, but i personally would say go with fdroid if it is on there, because you know its foss, and theres less tracking. technically, you shouldnt need a google account to use aurora store, but i have had problems with the anonymous login, so im not sure. other than that, grapheneos does not need a google account connected to anything, by default. if you want to run google apps, like drive or docs, i believe they rely on ‘google play services’, which can certainly be set up on grapheneos, but you will need a google account, so its best avoided imo. also: the ‘droid-ify’ app is a nicer frontend to ‘f-droid’, and they use the same main app repository. some apps, like signal, are only available through aroura/play or downloading an .apk, but one installed, i think it automatically updates itself. hope this helps
Let me just add, if you for some reason like the UI of Aurora Store, there’s a FOSS equivalent called Aurora Droid, which includes on the same repositories as F-Droid and Droid-ify instead of Google Play.
On a sidenote, if you want to keep single apps up-to-date from a github repo, or even F-Droid, IzzyOnDroid etc. without installing an actual app store, use Obtainium.
ooh yeah i switched most apps to obtainium since my comment, and i much prefer it. less installation problems (like infinite loading), and better ui