Finding a compatible, affordable Google Pixel seems difficult.

RavenRandomzz

It seems that even if you purchase a non-carrier Google PIxel, there is a chance that it could be the kind where you are unable to unlock the bootloader.

I was going to trade in my Samsung Galaxy phone for a Google Pixel at AT&T (as it would have resulted in 0$), but it seems that this would have been a waste of time and money (spent on the 3 year contract). To be honest, I am very pissed at the fact that despite me having paid it off this year, I have no control over the bootloader. It is insane.

Recently, I saw a video on privacy fatigue. I'm starting to feel it. The most recent google pixels are pretty expensive and I feel like you should be able to afford a private mobile phone without having to spend too much money.

Graphene OS is really sick in its design. But it seems that given the pricing situation and the carrier shenanigans, I might have to go with Lineage OS or something.

Am I mistaken in this? What other options do I have?

de0u

RavenRandomzz I have had good luck buying a used device on eBay, as long as it is listed as "factory unlocked" and comes from a high-volume seller with a good reputation and a hassle-free return policy.

Expected support lifetimes are here: https://endoflife.date/pixel

I think there is a good case for getting an 8 or newer because the hardware has better security and other features than the 6 and 7 devices.

Given the current state of the world, security and privacy are often not free -- there are time and convenience costs, but also sometimes money costs. The easiest and cheapest options will not generally be the most secure and private.

nandohyphen1

RavenRandomzz Assuming you are in the US because you mentioned AT&T, you could look at Best Buy. They sometimes have really good deals. They had the Pixel 9a on sale at Best Buy for something like $449.99 CAD ($329.51 USD) not long ago and that seemed like a good deal. The Google Store directly is also a good place. But if you keep your eyes open, you can score deals at Best Buy.

Novalissoide

RavenRandomzz

Twelve devices are currently recommended;
https://grapheneos.org/faq#recommended-devices

but as many as twenty are supported;
https://grapheneos.org/faq#supported-devices
While the 6, and 7 series still have support, their hardware is getting rather old.

Vincent96

RavenRandomzz Pixel 9a is very reasonably priced on eBay and is a great phone.

schweizer

Novalissoide While the 6, and 7 series still have support, their hardware is getting rather old.

True. But they still work well. I had a 6 until a few months ago and I do not feel a big difference over the 9 I currently run. Used Pixel 6 cost ~ 100 USD on ebay.

RavenRandomzz

How do I make sure that a phone I buy online that is used isn't one of the carrier phones with the snapdragon hardware bootloader lock?

Vincent96

RavenRandomzz as @de0u said :

I have had good luck buying a used device on eBay, as long as it is listed as "factory unlocked" and comes from a high-volume seller with a good reputation and a hassle-free return policy.

Novalissoide

schweizer Mine is a P6a 720 cycles old. Still got by far the best battery life over all my previous devices. It goes EOL 2027, but the downside of recommending the 6, 7s, are mostly about the risk for failing components, internal memory gets old, ram gets old. Still love the device.😌

mmobder

RavenRandomzz Am I mistaken in this? What other options do I have?

Yes, completely mistaken.
There are a lot of used devices fo sale for a great price, starting from A's and ending with Folds. Prices for 8a are ridiculously low, and that's the "recommended".

If you're open to all supported devices, you can go to dirt-cheap 7th and below.

So you talk nonsense from all perspectives.

de0u

mmobder So you talk nonsense from all perspectives.

I'm afraid the evidence for this claim is not clear to me. For example, I don't see where the original poster has made unsubstantiated claims about firmware backdoors, evil AI spirits in Pixel hardware, etc.

mmobder

mmobder "Finding a compatible, affordable Google Pixel seems difficult" that's nonsense, have no idea where you've found the rest in the 1st post.

Eumenia

RavenRandomzz Recently, I saw a video on privacy fatigue. I'm starting to feel it. The most recent google pixels are pretty expensive and I feel like you should be able to afford a private mobile phone without having to spend too much money.

How much money do you consider spending at most?

RavenRandomzz To be honest, I am very pissed at the fact that despite me having paid it off this year, I have no control over the bootloader. It is insane.

Maybe if Linux had adopted the GPLv3 then we didn't had this problem