TL;DR

• Google has made it harder to build custom Android ROMs for Pixel phones by omitting their device trees and driver binaries from the latest AOSP release.

• The company says this is because it’s shifting its AOSP reference target from Pixel hardware to a virtual device called “Cuttlefish” to be more neutral.

• While Google insists AOSP isn’t going away, developers must now reverse-engineer changes, making the process for supporting Pixel devices more difficult.

one less reason to buy a Pixel, well done Google!

Would fairphone be a good choice?

I want a phone with only cellular data, no calling, no sms, just an open source browser capable of webasm and webrtc

Sounds like a tablet, and that very well could be easier for someone to build than a phone.

That was bound to happen at some point. Buying a Google device to then "degoogle" it never sit quite right with me.

More like A-no-SP

Yes, but that shouldn't explicitly opt in, and they shouldn't marry that product to Gmail and Google Drive if they are going to push it to enable by default.

Again, it's really insidious. They push it so aggressively I had to disable it on my personal device twice, and I can't just not use Google Photos app because it's tied to the camera itself on pixel phones.

TL;DR

• Google has made it harder to build custom Android ROMs for Pixel phones by omitting their device trees and driver binaries from the latest AOSP release.

• The company says this is because it’s shifting its AOSP reference target from Pixel hardware to a virtual device called “Cuttlefish” to be more neutral.

• While Google insists AOSP isn’t going away, developers must now reverse-engineer changes, making the process for supporting Pixel devices more difficult.

Like, I understand the more the merrier, and so I don't hate on the whole Pixel, ROM development thingy, but I just don't understand the appeal of Pixel phones. If you want to be a photographer, get a camera. Other than that, you really don't need that great of a camera on your phone. Given the condition of America and the police state and corporate surveillance, I don't know why anybody with a damn look of sense would put their information on these major platforms, let alone even on the outskirts. Some people make money on social media, but a lot don't. I stick to my guns and I'm on the internet and computers to learn to educate myself, not to dick around with stupid shit. We need something other than Android. And we have to be weary of open source, especially when it's sponsored by Google. Google is a terrorist organization.

That was bound to happen at some point. Buying a Google device to then "degoogle" it never sit quite right with me.

TL;DR

• Google has made it harder to build custom Android ROMs for Pixel phones by omitting their device trees and driver binaries from the latest AOSP release.

• The company says this is because it’s shifting its AOSP reference target from Pixel hardware to a virtual device called “Cuttlefish” to be more neutral.

• While Google insists AOSP isn’t going away, developers must now reverse-engineer changes, making the process for supporting Pixel devices more difficult.

TL;DR

• Google has made it harder to build custom Android ROMs for Pixel phones by omitting their device trees and driver binaries from the latest AOSP release.

• The company says this is because it’s shifting its AOSP reference target from Pixel hardware to a virtual device called “Cuttlefish” to be more neutral.

• While Google insists AOSP isn’t going away, developers must now reverse-engineer changes, making the process for supporting Pixel devices more difficult.

Like, I understand the more the merrier, and so I don't hate on the whole Pixel, ROM development thingy, but I just don't understand the appeal of Pixel phones. If you want to be a photographer, get a camera. Other than that, you really don't need that great of a camera on your phone. Given the condition of America and the police state and corporate surveillance, I don't know why anybody with a damn look of sense would put their information on these major platforms, let alone even on the outskirts. Some people make money on social media, but a lot don't. I stick to my guns and I'm on the internet and computers to learn to educate myself, not to dick around with stupid shit. We need something other than Android. And we have to be weary of open source, especially when it's sponsored by Google. Google is a terrorist organization.

This would be sad if Pixel phones were worth buying, instead of being far inferior to midrange Motorola devices in battery life and performance while costing well over twice as much.

You must be ignoring the Motorola bloat that makes it's performance beyond subpar somehow

Can we have one of those that fit in my pocket, like 6.5" max ?

I mean, you're getting a lot of downvotes, but I've gone Motorola -> Motorola -> Motorola -> Pixel -> Pixel -> Motorola.

Both my Pixels died in less than a year. Each had battery life which, while it did improve over a few weeks as Pixel's optimization stuff took hold, never reached an entire day. Both were unacceptably fragile. Both failed randomly, just out of warranty.

And the Motorola I'm using now has none of those problems, was cheaper, is faster, has a better battery, has a better screen, and in some ways is more customizable (fuck that unmovable search bar).

Like, really. Motorola is a sleeper brand. Not perfect, but damn good.

This fucking sucks. Cyberpunk dystopia

Do you think it may be related to the monopoly issues they are currently facing?