Google’s Android, the world’s most widely used mobile operating system, started life as open-source software. In its quest for ever-greater profits, the tech giant has been gradually eroding Android’s open-source capacity over the last decade.

Google’s Android, the world’s most widely used mobile operating system, started life as open-source software. In its quest for ever-greater profits, the tech giant has been gradually eroding Android’s open-source nature over the last decade.

Originally published on The Lever, but that one asks you to sign up.

  • ArtixCory@lemmy.mlEnglish
    211·
    11 months ago

    And thus highlights the hypocrisy of their “let’s all be friends” messaging around getting Apple to adopt RCS; Google holds the keys to integrating RCS in messaging apps on Android. Last I heard they only granted access to Samsung.

    I’d be willing to excuse a mobile OS for being partially or completely proprietary if it was good. But neither Android nor iOS are.

  • Alas Poor Erinaceus@lemmy.mlEnglish
    193·
    11 months ago

    The last time I checked, a Linux smartphone was in the works, but still had quite a ways yet to go . . .

    • macaw_dean_settle@lemmy.world
      41·
      11 months ago

      I have been “using” a Pinephone for quite awhile now. However, since it runs Linux, it doesn’t actually work. I have invested many hours and even basic shit like calling does not work 100% of the time, let alone more “complicated” things like a working email client. It just isn’t worth it. I will stick with my Windows 10 Mobile phones for now.

  • Bronstein_Tardigrade@lemmygrad.ml
    4·
    11 months ago

    At the moment, my hope is to be able to land a Harmony NextOS phone soon. I’d just as soon cough up data to the Chinese as 5-Eyes and Google.

  • Jiří Král@discuss.tchncs.de
    4·
    11 months ago

    There’s a constant barrage of notifications, and by the time you have dealt with them, chances are you have forgotten what you wanted to do in the first place.

    There’s a notification permission since Android 13 and you can always disable any apps notifications since I don’t know when. If you download a ton of shitty social media applications and games and then click “allow” on every notification permission prompt don’t be surprised then.

    Then there is Gemini, Google’s artificial intelligence bot, which won’t leave you alone. Press the home (middle) button for half a second too long, and it pops up, offering to “assist” you.

    Change the default assistant settings. You can disable the assistant feature altogether.

  • Ardens@lemmy.ml
    1·
    11 months ago

    No wonder. A shame that people didn’t want to support neither Firefox OS or other free Mobile OS…