If you use an Android distribution like GrapheneOS, Lineage, or the like, this news is for you. The summary is that Google Pixel devices were historically considered the reference Android device and so device-specific source code for the Pixel devices was included with AOSP until Android 16. However, in Android 16, Google no longer includes these sources. “Cuttlefish”, a virtual device, is the new reference device.
It is significantly more work to get AOSP working on Pixel devices without these sources.
A journalist broke the news early to Calyx and a few other Android distribution developers, as Google did not announce this before release.
They even squashed the commit history for the changes they made to the kernel! They can’t not distribute kernel changes to anyone who asks for it, but they aren’t required to deliver files with version control. This is probably really annoying to developers working on AOSP distributions.
At one time, AOSP contained the base apps that were used in Android, but many of them haven’t been updated in years. Most of the apps are now non-free. It’s been a decades-long trend toward more non-free software in Android. It may very well be that, a few years in the future, the only part of Android that’s free is the kernel…but don’t expect anything more than squashed commit history.
With the additional disruption caused by Google’s many anti-trust cases recently, who knows what will happen?
It is not directly related, but this reminds me of Openmoko which was a similar open source phone operating system alongside Android but before Google took over Android’s intellectual property.
I guess this is an example of a single point of failure. Meaning, when one company controls a large portion of the market, many people are affected by their decisions or failures. In part, a single point of failure is the underlying motivation for many competing firms. With viable alternatives, consumers are not forced to compromise.
You definitely don’t need an excuse to bring up computing history around me! I knew about Maemo, but I’ve only heard whispers of “freerunner” in some corners of the internet.
So this is what that device ran…
It sounded like a really cool project. The freesmartphone.org domain feels natural next to freedesktop.org. It’s unfortunate that it never really went anywhere…seems like Linux has had a real bad go of it in the smartphone world, excepting Android.
I know some people dislike decentralised technology because it leads to usability problems, but it does mean you don’t have a single point of failure. Nothing lasts forever, of course, but it sure would be easier to make it last longer if we had the sources
Maybe the Open Handset Alliance will become a lot more open if Google drops out of the game. Maybe it’ll just fold and every vendor like Samsung and Oneplus will buy licenses for The Android Company’s new proprietary operating system. The power of Google Play alone is probably too much for these vendors to abandon it. I can see Google abandoning AOSP having a long-term positive impact if these companies have enough capital and guts to go their own way…together. In a much more decentralised way.
I think we switched to GrapheneOS around the same time, from memory. The current Pixel devices should still be supported on GrapheneOS since they already got all the device code earlier, but they seem uncertain about newer devices.
For me, I believe it was Christmas of 2023. Got a second-hand Pixel and haven’t looked back.
I guess then, it’s best to just sit on whatever you’re using until you absolutely have to change. Mine actually could do with a battery replacement but aside from that I see no real dropoff in useability. It’s a 6a too, so it’s a prime example of planned obsolescence at this point.
I got my Pixel 6a a bit before that. It was new, but discounted.
That’s my plan! I like the phone. I barely use it. For the first year, it was hooked up to the charger almost 24/7 and never went below 80%. Nowadays, I leave it uncharged throughout the night semi-regularly because it will still be above 80% the next day. I was never able to do this with my iPhone. I ended up carrying around a power bank. I have noticed a drop in battery life recently but not to a significant degree. Maybe I should start leaving it plugged in overnight again…
So, I can’t complain about the battery. But I know Pixels are notorious for battery problems, so it doesn’t surprise me to hear you’re having issues, unfortunately.
I can see myself easily using the phone up to its end-of-life date in 2027…but it will be interesting to see where AOSP / Android / GrapheneOS is at then. And I don’t know what I’ll do then, but that’s a problem for 2027, I suppose.
