I wish we could use our powerful handheld computing devices as if we owned them again.
Steam should make a smart phone, fully open under the hood, decent specs, no walled gardens except optional ones.
Steam should make a smart phone, fully open under the hood, decent specs, no walled gardens except optional ones.
Should a mega corp like apple be the gatekeepers for this kind of stuff? In an ideal world no, but at least they are the only ones doing it.
I agree that side-loading apps is no panacea; I use Android, and while I do have the F-Droid store installed, and even side-load a small utility app or two that I've written myself but can't be bothered to make publicly available, I'm actually not sure I know anyone in person who uses anything but the Play Store.
But having the option there, to me -- even if I didn't use it -- is huge. Hell, having the option to install a third-party OS on the phone (even though I don't do it, because it would involve too many compromises to my daily use) is huge.
That should be the default, not this locked-down nonsense Apple forces on everyone. It's just sad to me that so many people accept it as ok and normal.
Just apply this same reasoning to Apple iPhones. Everyone says sideloading is a big deal, but it turns out that when the phones don't have sideloading, people still use them anyway. I guess maybe it just doesn't matter.
Personally I’m happy with both the operation of Facebook and Apple.
I do not wish a 3rd party with no track record of technical innovation, and especially not the US government, come and make some rules about what is a “higher standard”.
You should have higher standards too, then.
My standards are plenty high. They just aren’t aligned with your world views.
You could also do nothing, and just adapt to sideloading and anti-Meta regulation when they both come around.
That's right you didn't call me dumb or irrational, you're just using a metaphor where you look down on me from your higher plane.
Aka they used their position to crush competition not to increase privacy. They absolutely could have taken the opportunity to improve privacy overall but that would have limited their own ads platform so they didn't.
(Emphasis mine)
I'm quite amused that this is how language works.
While there are other examples, a single example I think suffices: Google Pay. I like contactless payments, and I like not having to fish around for a credit card (or just not having to bring a credit card, say if I'm out for a run). What are the chances of a Google/Apple-Pay-workalike app ever appearing on the Librem 5 or Pinephone? Seems pretty slim to me.
I'm not saying these phones have no value; clearly they do. And the world is better off with their existence. But they are not a realistic choice for most people.
Yes, unfortunately, if you want the freedom and control, you have to pay for that with some compromises.
> What are the chances of a Google/Apple-Pay-workalike app ever appearing on the Librem 5 or Pinephone?
Waydroid allows to run Android apps. It works fine on my Librem 5, unless apps require verified Android environment. Unfortunately Librem 5 has no NFC at all. AFAIK Pinephone offered a case which enabled NFC functionality.
Also, cell carrier will be tracking your location and giving that info out. Not sure if that can be avoided, but maybe a prepaid plan helps anonymize it.