Google · The Register
Where to buy a non-Apple, non-Google smartphone
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As both Apple and Google introduce unwelcome changes in their phone OSes, here's a quick reminder that you do have alternatives to the Gruesome Twosome.
Key facts
- The team looked at the Murena One phone in 2022 and then at /e/OS 3 on a Pixel Tablet last year
- They've reported on the OTA-24 update and later the newer Ubuntu 20.04 release
- The Murena One smartphone is a privacy-centric de-Googled Android 10 phablet
- As the Reg mentioned in passing, the iOS 26.4 update introduces age verification measures to the OS. (That's as well as changing the passcode keypad
Summary
The Keep Android Open campaign is gathering attention and support as the big red numbers on its page count down. At the time of writing, the campaign says it's 123 days until Google's new measures preventing you from side-loading your own software will kick in. Starting September 2026, a silent update, nonconsensually pushed by Google, will block every Android app whose developer hasn't registered with Google, signed their contract, paid up, and handed over government ID. Every app and every device, worldwide, with no opt-out.