I am not a nerd(respectful), but I would like to know how you’d set up your phone. I’d like to start leaning into more opensource/privacy minded apps and such to avoid having as much of my data harvested. I’m still going to use apps like Instagram which are obviously horrible but I figure trying to do better in other areas is better than nothing.
- what to delete
- what apps are a must (calendar, maps, app store etc)
- vpns?
- keyboards?
- email besides proton? Is there a way to have my emails from Google forward to this address?
- everything needs to connect to Google accounts is there a way around this?
And yes any other advice on making your phone functional/fast/anonymous/aesthetically pleasing is welcomed thankkkkks
Send it back right away, or resell it. Then buy one of the phones listed on this page https://calyxos.org/. It must be FACTORY (aka bootloader) unlocked (not just vendor or SIM unlocked) and install CalyxOS. It installs like a dream with no bullshit and you get a functional, as private as possible phone.
You can spend hundreds of hours futzing around with sideloading and everything and get a mess of a device that is only marginally better than the default. Or 1 hour and get it done right from the beginning.
If you’re already buying a specific phone for it, might as well go for a used Pixel and install GrapheneOS