Google getting rid of all the things that made people want an android phone over an iPhone.
Google will block sideloading of unverified Android apps starting next year
Submitted 4 hours ago by themachinestops@lemmy.dbzer0.com to technology@lemmy.world
Comments
TommySoda@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
themachinestops@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 hours ago
Yep, if this happens there is no benefit to android.
NuXCOM_90Percent@lemmy.zip 3 hours ago
I mean, there is still UI/UX, app store policies, and general cost/options.
This definitely makes Android a lot less appealing. But it is also questionable to act like the biggest reason to use android was sideloading apps since the vast majority of users don’t even know that is an option (and probably shouldn’t since they have no understanding of how to vet them).
Chozo@fedia.io 4 hours ago
It's still a step up from iOS, which has had similar restrictions since they started.
Fedditor385@lemmy.world 1 hour ago
Unfortunately, that is 0.1% of their global market that is affected. So, they don’t really have much to lose.
tomenzgg@midwest.social 1 hour ago
I’m probably going to spam this around a bit, since most people don’t seem to know about it, but a reminder that FuriLabs has a (GNU+)Linux phone with decent spec.s and the ability to run Android app.s (from what I’ve heard) pretty decently: furilabs.com
Biggest drawback is it’s based on Halium. Usual growing pains of a new product/company apply but apparently the company is pretty responsive and their dev.s have worked with customers to get things like calling working with the carrier and bands of their country where it hasn’t worked before so improvements move pretty quickly.
Collection of different experiences I’ve variously seen online over the last year or so:
- clehaxze.tw/…/07-20-flx1-actually-usable-linux-ph…
- news.ycombinator.com/item?id=41839326
- www.reddit.com/r/linux/comments/…/furilabs_flx1/
- www.reddit.com/r/…/flx1_linux_phone_display_out/
- www.theregister.com/2025/02/03/furiphone_flx1/
I don’t own one, myself, so I can’t give any personal experience but I’ve seen it around for a few years now but most people don’t seem to even know about it. Maybe there’s a reason for that? But none I’ve ever seen anyone say.
xodoh74984@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
Remember that brief period in the US where, for a fleeting moment, Lina Khan went after a few companies for monopolistic practices?
popekingjoe@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
Yeah man, those were the days.
woland@lemmy.ml 39 minutes ago
Great. This could be just the boost that free android needs. Graphene and eos can brace for a few new customers i guess
Cheradenine@sh.itjust.works 4 hours ago
Meanwhile back at the ranch
Malware-ridden apps made it into Google’s Play Store, scored 19 million downloads
generator@lemmy.zip 4 hours ago
Right, only install “verified” from Google Play, but that is where malware is, other 3rd party app stores like F-Droid, that really verify apps are at risk of getting killed by Google
Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works 4 hours ago
This is very obviously step one in a plan to kill apps like alternative YouTube clients that block ads, just like the Manifest V3 rollout was intended to kill ad blockers in Chrome. Once they have everyone using this verification system, then they can just arbitrarily deverify anything that contravenes whatever new acceptable usage policy they just made up.
ItsComplicated@sh.itjust.works 4 hours ago
Google can’t keep malware off the platform now, but sure, make it mandatory you can’t go anywhere else unless they say so first.
DmMacniel@feddit.org 4 hours ago
How about letting the users decide what to sideload? What the hell?
I hope the EU is ready to also sue Google.
cabbage@piefed.social 3 hours ago
The EU already forced sideloading to be officially supported on iPhones thanks to the Digital Markets Act, and that law applies to Google as well.
The US will likely apply pressure, just like they are trying to force their death machines to be legalized on European roads. Apple already tried to pressure the union and failed, but the political climate has changed a bit since then, and while EU bureaucrats can be fierce, European leadership tends to be weak as fuck.
But yeah, chances are that this change won't apply to the EU. :)
paraphrand@lemmy.world 1 hour ago
Does the law demand unsigned software?
DmMacniel@feddit.org 3 hours ago
European leadership tends to be weak as fuck.
which is utterly disheartening.
azertyfun@sh.itjust.works 3 hours ago
The EU is currently deepthroating Trump so hard that it’s completely out of breath and all our clothes are ruined.
With how volatile Trump is this could change literally anyday, but with the current political equilibrium all google would have to do is gift trump a shiny golden thing so he makes a threatening remark about gas exports and the EU would go “uwu yes master right away master, do you want to fuck my gaping asshole while you’re at it?”.
themurphy@lemmy.ml 3 hours ago
It will probably be for the rest of the world.
EU devices not effected.
roofuskit@lemmy.world 2 hours ago
Oof, time to bite the bullet and switch email providers. Shit like this is why I’ve spent the last couple years de-googling my life.
themadcodger@kbin.earth 2 hours ago
Do it! It's not that bad. Everyone's got different needs, but I switched to fastmail and have been enjoying it.
Sir_Kevin@lemmy.dbzer0.com 54 minutes ago
If you’re making the switch anyway, get yourself a domain name from a separate company to run it through. That way in the future you can keep using your domain even if you switch mail/web-hosting providers.
nondescripthandle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 hours ago
Modern business strategy be like “If you’re not building an illegal monopoly, consider doing so for more money”
sk1nnym1ke@piefed.social 4 hours ago
I don't like how tech is evolving...
mushroommunk@lemmy.today 4 hours ago
Devolving*
pennomi@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
It’s evolving, just towards authoritarianism.
Prove_your_argument@piefed.social 2 hours ago
It was always intended to be this way.
The beginning was pre-enshittification. We're going from the good ole' days to the future, and the future sure as shit aint for you unless you're in the club... and you aint, none of us are.
Endymion_Mallorn@kbin.melroy.org 4 hours ago
The moment I don't get to run my own stuff and F-Droid, I'll be switching off smartphones.
sexy_peach@feddit.org 4 hours ago
I’ll use the ugliest command line only smartphone over fully walled garden android
mesamunefire@piefed.social 3 hours ago
Real talk, are there ones like that?
Ive seen things like https://www.tindie.com/products/zitaotech/hackberrypi5-with-9900-keyboard/ and I REALLY want one....but they are always sold out.
themadcodger@kbin.earth 2 hours ago
I'll probably go with one of the other roms on an older phone or possibly one of the Linux phones. It won't be exactly what I want, but it'll be better than their walled garden bullshit. That's precisely why I left Apple way back when.
cupcakezealot@piefed.blahaj.zone 4 hours ago
so basically i have to send in my id to google just to sideload a test apk i made in flutter to my own phone to test it out?
floofloof@lemmy.ca 3 hours ago
Ad it’s just another data point for corporations and governments to be able to tie all your tech activities to your real identity. Great for surveillance!
Mjpasta710@midwest.social 3 hours ago
Just like apple. 😔
DFX4509B_2@lemmy.org 2 hours ago
I hope MS doesn’t start doing this to Windows or else that would kill WINE/Proton, and also severely harm Windows itself given how deeply sideloading exes or msi files is ingrained into that OS.
paraphrand@lemmy.world 1 hour ago
Why would Linux have to respect the certificates?
N0t_5ure@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
Sure glad I de-googled with GrapheneOS that ironically runs on Pixel phones.
mushroommunk@lemmy.today 4 hours ago
I’ve been hemming and hawing. Switched to Linux pretty much full time for my PC, this will push me 100% into FOSS phone. Over half my apps I use would get blocked
N0t_5ure@lemmy.world 3 hours ago
Now that the Pixel 10 is out, the Pixel 9 prices are falling. If you’re going to load GrapheneOS, you need to make sure you get a phone that has an unlocked bootloader, which is different than being carrier unlocked. Any phone that was initially sold through a carrier like Verizon or ATT will have a locked bootloader, as the carriers don’t like people messing with the phone software to unlock features that they may charge for (e.g. hotspot).
BombOmOm@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
Over half my apps I use would get blocked
Consider many apps are just webpages. You can go to the website directly from a browser and everything is happy.
Obviously won’t solve everything, but that covers most apps right there.
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 3 hours ago
this is doubtless going to hurt whatever third party app store it is that you use anyway. if the only places sideloaded apps are available on, the only options are that custom roms like graphene become more popular, or apps that refuse to be put on Google will dry up.
which do you feel is more likely?
RiQuY@lemmy.zip 4 hours ago
Is that even legal? Monopolistic behaviour.
themurphy@lemmy.ml 3 hours ago
Like anyone cares outside of EU.
sylver_dragon@lemmy.world 2 hours ago
The US Government hasn’t given a shit about harmful monopolistic practices in a long time. They only pretend to care from time to time to force large companies to start donating to politicians.
Voroxpete@sh.itjust.works 2 hours ago
“A long time” would be “Since Trump got back in”, since Biden’s administration was actually doing a lot to tackle monopolies. They just did a shit job of advertising what they were doing.
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 3 hours ago
of course it is. apple has been doing it from the very beginning. now android gets the same walled garden.
chiliedogg@lemmy.world 4 hours ago
Didn’t they just lose a major lawsuit over their treatment of sideloaded apps and stores?
_cryptagion@anarchist.nexus 3 hours ago
that was apple, I believe.
bubblybubbles@lemmy.ml 4 hours ago
“
Don’tBe Evil”ivn@jlai.lu 4 hours ago
Isn’t it against the EU’s DSA?
themurphy@lemmy.ml 3 hours ago
Yes, probably why this wont affect EU users.
MaggiWuerze@feddit.org 3 hours ago
Ode an die Freude starts playing in the background
hansolo@lemmy.today 3 hours ago
Hello, I would like 1 Class Action please.
Whostosay@sh.itjust.works 3 hours ago
Oh hell yeah, I hope this means an exodus of people forking the latest open source software they can, or if not moving to Linux mobile altogether
curbstickle@lemmy.dbzer0.com 1 hour ago
If we could have a solidly performing Linux mobile that has the capability of docking into a full desktop OS, that shit would be an absolute game changer for personal computers.
Give me something like the OG Moto Droid, or hell make it a tablet and I have to carry a bag, I don’t care.
That would be my device for everything. I just remote into everything else anyway.
Lost_My_Mind@lemmy.world 1 hour ago
Thats not how most people work.
Just because there’s a problem, doesn’t mean people seek a solution.
Thats why the majority of people in this country. They can each admit there is a problem. But they do nothing about it. Most don’t even try to diet or exercise.
And you want them to switch to an unfinished linux phone system. They aren’t going to do that over this change. The vast majority don’t use more than 5 apps. What do they care? For most, the cell phone is the replacement for a pc, snd all its used for is to text, and go on tiktok and instagram.
The changes you’re suggesting will work well for a certain crowd. That crowd is maybe 5% of the general population. The rest won’t even notice. And if they did, they’d just put up with it.
Whostosay@sh.itjust.works 1 hour ago
Please read my comment below, editing above too
goatinspace@feddit.org 2 hours ago
Linux mobile is interesting but not ready yet.
Whostosay@sh.itjust.works 2 hours ago
Ah yeah, I had meant that I’d like it if people flocked from developing android to developing Linux mobile. I should have clarified that.
6nk06@sh.itjust.works 1 hour ago
Not ready but if Google and all the manufacturers kill custom ROMs, everyone will have to switch to Linux or another OS. It’s not like Linux on the desktop where Windows is still acceptable.
usernameunnecessary@lemmy.zip 3 hours ago
Same outcome as with their search engine, same thing with Chrome, Youtube and many other Google products. They built up their user base with a solid product (or bought it), and then started shitting all over their users by making horrible decisions and inserting all sorts of dark patterns in the name of “security” or whatever else pretense. I’m still hoping another entity steps up and fills the vacuum that Android leaves behind.
xcjs@programming.dev 3 hours ago
Let Google know what you think: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/…/viewform
j4k3@lemmy.world 2 hours ago
Democracy is dead. Welcome to the neo dark ages. Take up arms.
paraphrand@lemmy.world 1 hour ago
Well, I mean, we have yet to see an actual serious cyberattack right? Aren’t security needs going to increase, not decrease?
commander@lemmy.world 3 hours ago
Mobile desperately needs hardware with first class open source drivers and firmware to get away from Google/Apple/Microsoft controlled software platforms. Phones have been super powerful for a long time beyond what most need. We can take hit in theoretical peak performance to build up a better ecosystem until the market is large enough that the big money has to address the market
vivalapivo@lemmy.today 4 hours ago
Finally. This will give a laaaarge boost to harmony os based phones (Huawei) saying Americans goodbye
Konstant@lemmy.world 31 minutes ago
Wasn’t Apple sued for not allowing sideloading?