We also need to clean-up the mess with all those "partitions" (some of them with critical informations e.g. calibration, IMEI, etc) so that only one partition would have all those static information (reasonably protected against overwrite, e.g. colocated with bootloader and device-tree). We should be able to re-partition the storage (like we do on PC) without bricking the device...
The issue I'm pointing out is that this device integrity thing exists at all, and that Google ends up having more control over the device and its capabilities than its legitimate owner.
The warning is a great thing for security: I'd appreciate it if my phone showed me that warning after I've surrendered it to the border control agent (alternatively, a sketchy repair shop), or bought it pre-owned, or if I "lost" it and gets returned to me.
I don't think there is anything stopping Samsung from using AOSP.
This is thought-terminating nonsense, constantly repeated. What my grandma wants is for me to pick what's best for her and install it. What she doesn't want is Google (or Samsung for that matter) keeping her grandson from doing what he thinks she'll like best.
edit: and to be clear, that's what all of my computer-illiterate family members want, although not all of them from me (there are other grandchildren, uncles, etc.). The radical idea that people would rather have decisions made by the people that they love and trust rather than companies that actively and constantly prey upon them should be accepted without question.
Here you go: https://puri.sm/products/librem-5.
If HTML was invented in the current climate, I'm damn well convinced a simple <a href={external domain}> would be shot down for "security" reasons.
We're seeing a real breakdown into walled ecosystems. My opinion is that most of the steps that direction are well-intentioned (Safety, Security, Consistency, etc). The end result is fucking hell, though, where the ecosystem owner profits massively and unfairly compared to all other entities.
Compaq blew that wide open, much to IBM corporate's dismay and IBM legal's glee.
If I’m Snowden, knowing my boot loader could be unlocked and a key logger side loaded isn’t reassuring.
Example: https://www.thecustomdroid.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Ho...
But that's not really important, because unlocking the bootloader factory resets the device on every Android phone that I know of. AFAIK it's not possible to unlock a bootloader without the owner's knowledge.
Perhaps what I mean is "locked bootloaders at POS". Selling them locked should be illegal, but locking them yourself with your own key should be trivial.
This weirdly intersects for the Right to Repair movement, or for consumers whom would rather be conservative on new device purchases and software licenses.
Once the manufacturer ceases supporting a product, everything becomes open source.
I don't know if putting the government in charge of maintaining all of that would be the best idea.
Something like this would have to be done with regulation.
Shares some similarities with the gradual corruption of copyright over the years, extending it out into infinity (thanks Disney!), companies would rather hold close the things they refuse to use than give them to the people once they have no more profit to be made off of them.
[0]: https://android.googlesource.com/platform/external/avb/+/mas...
[1]: https://android.googlesource.com/platform/external/avb/+/mas...
If I'm Snowden, I would be far more concerned about that.