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- 1GrapheneOS adds RCS and encryption to its messaging app●GrapheneOS is overhauling its default apps, adding RCS support and end-to-end encryption to its messaging app. 🔐 It also
GrapheneOS is overhauling its default apps, adding RCS support and end-to-end encryption to its messaging app. The privacy-focused Android project also plans a secure clipboard feature that prevents apps from reading clipboard contents without user permission. Privacy-conscious users welcomed the move as a step toward more secure, private defaults on de-Googled phones.
- 2Android users urged to root devices as first step away from Google●RE: https:// mastodon.xyz/@nextcloud/117359 711364631730 if you cannot root an # android device, your most basic form of
A widely shared reply to Nextcloud on Mastodon argues that rooting an Android device is the basic starting point for de-Googling a phone. The steps suggested: download a browser from the Google Play store, allow software installation in settings, then get apps from F-Droid, the independent open-source app repository, instead of relying on Google services.
- 3Google ships ads with Android system updates▼Google now ships "ads" with their Android system update?
Google is being accused of pushing advertisements to Android phones through its system update mechanism, a change critics say blurs the line between software maintenance and marketing. Commenters are questioning whether users can opt out and whether this violates expectations that security and system updates should stay ad-free. Others note Google has long bundled promotional content into its own apps and services.
- 4Waterstones app confirmed working on de-Googled /e/OS in the UK▼If you live in the UK, just letting you know that the Waterstones app works perfectly in /e/OS # DeGoogled # iPhone # eO
UK users of /e/OS, the privacy-focused Android system that strips out Google services, are being told the Waterstones bookshop app runs without problems on it. The tip matters for people trying to move away from mainstream Google-connected phones, where app compatibility is often the biggest obstacle. Waterstones is one of the first mainstream British retail apps to get a clean bill of health from this community.
- 5Google Phone app brings back Contacts tab after backlash●Google’s Phone app begins reverting one of its most controversial changes It has taken a while, but the Contacts tab is
Google has begun rolling back one of its most controversial changes to the Phone app, restoring the Contacts tab in the beta version. The removal had frustrated many Android users who relied on quick access to their contact list. The reversal is now reaching users through the app's beta channel.
- 6CareShield app offers gentle check-ins for elderly relatives●We're fine. The app tells them. CareShield is gentle: if a phone stays quiet past the window we chose, it asks us first,
A mobile app called CareShield is being promoted that monitors whether a person's phone has gone quiet for a chosen period of time. Instead of raising an alarm, it first asks the user directly; only if there is no response does it notify family members, described as the person's children. The app, made by PulseSoul and free on Google Play, is pitched as optional and non-intrusive, aimed at relatives who want reassurance that an older parent is fine without constant calls.