GrapheneOS and E-Ink Devices

Sputnicktator

Hi all,

Looking to get a new phone soon, and I've been very interested in switching to GrapheneOS for all its security/privacy benefits. However, I've been a bit torn between going this route or getting an e-ink device such as the Bigme HiBreak Pro. I like e-ink since it's better on the eyes and (in my opinion) is more aesthetically pleasing than an LED screen.

The dream option would be to use a phone that has both, but my expectation is that a device like the HiBreak Pro would never live up to GOS's standards for device support, so I'm guessing that that's a lost cause. Basically, that leaves two options:

Is there another e-ink phone in development that has better prospects for GOS support if I'm willing to wait for it?
Is there a compromise option for third-party OSs that could be supported on the HiBreak Pro which would provide greater security than standard, even if it doesn't live up to GOS standards?

I found a discussion on Reddit about this, but there didn't seem to be any clear answer. On the contrary, the clearest statement on there is

Sadly, there's' no GrapheneOS or Lineage for e-ink phones. The market is just too small.

I was curious if this is essentially still the case (my expectation is yes), or if things have changed somewhat since that post was made.

Thanks in advance.

raccoondad

Sputnicktator

1.) No

2.) No

E-paper tablet hardware is almost across the board insecure, there's no real options available.

ZapZen

Sputnicktator perhaps look up an external eink display. I remember reading about one the size of a smartphone that had a battery and support for wireless screen mirroring

Snibby

E-ink devices are one of the worst offenders on the market for running ancient software. It doesn't even matter if they're using Android or if they are plain Linux-based. They either use very old Android releases (like 3-4 years behind, e.g. those chinese brands) or use ancient unsupported linux kernels (3.x or 4.9) (Kobo or Pocketbook for example)...

So no, until this changes (and personally I believe this won't happen in the next 15 years), we definitely won't see anything close to GrapheneOS on those devices.

Sputnicktator

Hi all. Thank you for the responses! This is basically what I expected. They're cool devices but security/privacy seems far from their main priority.

ZapZen Thanks for the suggestion! I think you're thinking of the Dasung Link. I'm going to keep an eye on external display options for the future, as I was thinking that that could be the next best thing. The Link itself seems pretty limited in functionality, though, so for now I'll just sit tight and hope a better option comes along.