I was/am definitely considering fairphone as a full european alternative, however it seems they are also plagued by support issues and delays and pixels are still the best way to go, unfortunately.
this post was submitted on 23 May 2025
171 points (99.4% liked)
Android
19070 readers
483 users here now
The new home of /r/Android on Lemmy and the Fediverse!
Android news, reviews, tips, and discussions about rooting, tutorials, and apps.
πUniversal Link: !android@lemdro.id
π‘Content Philosophy:
Content which benefits the community (news, rumours, and discussions) is generally allowed and is valued over content which benefits only the individual (technical questions, help buying/selling, rants, self-promotion, etc.) which will be removed if it's in violation of the rules.
Support, technical, or app related questions belong in: !askandroid@lemdro.id
For fresh communities, lemmy apps, and instance updates: !lemdroid@lemdro.id
π¬Matrix Chat
π°Our communities below
Rules
-
Stay on topic: All posts should be related to the Android OS or ecosystem.
-
No support questions, recommendation requests, rants, or bug reports: Posts must benefit the community rather than the individual. Please post to !askandroid@lemdro.id.
-
Describe images/videos, no memes: Please include a text description when sharing images or videos. Post memes to !androidmemes@lemdro.id.
-
No self-promotion spam: Active community members can post their apps if they answer any questions in the comments. Please do not post links to your own website, YouTube, blog content, or communities.
-
No reposts or rehosted content: Share only the original source of an article, unless it's not available in English or requires logging in (like Twitter). Avoid reposting the same topic from other sources.
-
No editorializing titles: You can add the author or website's name if helpful, but keep article titles unchanged.
-
No piracy or unverified APKs: Do not share links or direct people to pirated content or unverified APKs, which may contain malicious code.
-
No unauthorized polls, bots, or giveaways: Do not create polls, use bots, or organize giveaways without first contacting mods for approval.
-
No offensive or low-effort content: Don't post offensive or unhelpful content. Keep it civil and friendly!
-
No affiliate links: Posting affiliate links is not allowed.
Quick Links
Our Communities
- !askandroid@lemdro.id
- !androidmemes@lemdro.id
- !techkit@lemdro.id
- !google@lemdro.id
- !nothing@lemdro.id
- !googlepixel@lemdro.id
- !xiaomi@lemdro.id
- !sony@lemdro.id
- !samsung@lemdro.id
- !galaxywatch@lemdro.id
- !oneplus@lemdro.id
- !motorola@lemdro.id
- !meta@lemdro.id
- !apple@lemdro.id
- !microsoft@lemdro.id
- !chatgpt@lemdro.id
- !bing@lemdro.id
- !reddit@lemdro.id
Lemmy App List
Chat and More
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
How often do you really need the support, though? I don't think I've ever needed it in >10 years of owning smart phones. I personally couldn't be happier with the fairphone.
donβt get me wrong. itβs definitely on my top 2 , however getting timely android updates is nice and the improvements are nice to have. You donβt really need them and given current ai centered updates, I canβt say they are that meaningful anymore, however pixels have android 15 and will be getting 16 soon, with that whole DeX thingy, while fairphone is releasing statement about how they will skip 14, so their flagship is still on 13β¦ Not great.
If you're comfortable with Custom ROMs, the Fairphone is still a fantastic alternative
If you're not, then nothing-phone is british
I don't get why people recommend nothing phone. They promise less years of software updates than most major brands and the best they do differently is "it's sustainable". Whatever that means.
I realize that I'm an asshole for telling them what to do but here's what they need to do: They should drop all development of their own Android and put significant resources to making their next phone work with GrapheneOS.
That would make their already very expensive phone even more expensive, if it were even possible at all.
That problem with that is the Graphene devs
Probably better to make something for the general population. If nothing else maybe work with Calyx OS or /e/os
Murena ships Fairphones with /e/os in the US
Agreed. Graphene is a fantastic product, but the devs are absolutely insufferable.
I'd heard about it as a secure, pro privacy ROM but never used it since it's not available on my current device. But after seeing their attitude on some forums, it honestly put me right off ever wanting to try Graphene OS.
I'm glad it's not just me
Even ignoring that I tried graphene but even as a tech person it was off putting. Calyx in contrast has a nice blend of usability and security imo.
I wanted to like graphene and it's far superior in security but just so much less usable IMO. I'd rather move to a Linux phone at that point.
What do you mean by "much less usable"? It's pretty much AOSP in terms of the UX, for better or worse.
load more comments
(2 replies)
No, the hardware of Fairphones lacks certain security features.
That'd make them even more of a niche option than right now, since some apps (most notably banking) will just refuse to work.
Banking apps generally speaking work, it's the NFC payments via google pay that don't and probably never will.
Most of them work fine. Typically don't have to even enable compatibility mode.
Although Google's new Play Integrity API is breaking more apps every day.
By working with the real hardware vendor, they could apply for the certification, thus making the apps requiring the useless stamp from google work again.
Well, except for those apps that specifically tries to blacklist graphene. Looking at you, Revolut!
On the contrary; many people want GrapheneOS but don't want a Google phone.
What most people don't seem to understand is that every Android phone is a Google phone unless you go through the degooglification.
I would (and did) just use Apple phones if it weren't for GrapheneOS.
Define most people
Lemmy isn't exactly a great representation of the general populous
I said many
Many do, and many want something else. Personally the uncertainty around banking apps working is what keeps me away from GrapheneOS.
load more comments
(1 replies)
load more comments
(5 replies)
load more comments
(8 replies)
load more comments
(1 replies)
Have been waiting 50 days so far for a response to my ticket about a basically unusable Fairphone 4. Save to say I will never be buying from them again and actively recommend against doing so.
I would call one week slow already, but almost 2 months with no response yet? How did they even end up in this situation? I can't believe there's a sudden spike in support requests.
I wanted to get an fp5, but all I have heard is fuck up after fuck up from fairphone.
Headphone jack removal, selling shit earbuds with "repairability" that they pull from the market (and support) a year after launch, CEO being an asshole publicly, android auto not working well, months long bad bugs, severe update delays, antennas being pretty bad overall, and now literally nonexistent support.
I almost feel like in 5-10 years it will come out that this whole time they literally have just been lying about their sustainability practices and paying factory workers fair wages just to sell for a higher price.
You have the patience of a saint.
That ticket is never going to get responded to. Make another one, and if they don't answer within 3 days, start blowing up their phones.
load more comments
(5 replies)
Imean my fp4 has ubuntu touch on it, still sad to see
This is pretty sad to hear. Fairphone was next on my list of phones to try when my current phone gets too old. With the US boycott, I might have to go back to Samsung, but I hate the bloat.
load more comments
(12 replies)
view more: next βΊ