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Sailfish OS vs. LineageOS

asked 2019-02-28 12:49:02 +0300

supermonkey gravatar image

updated 2019-03-05 15:41:13 +0300

jiit gravatar image

As I mentioned in another question, I am currently thinking about getting a Sony Xperia XA2 to become a Sailfish user. I recently had a discussion with a friend who said that LineageOS is as Google free as Sailfish. Is this correct?

The only thing I found out when doing some research is that LineageOS does a connectivity check everytime you connect to a WiFi. However, it seems that this can be disabled. Another issue is Android's System Webview but afaik Firefox is planning on switching to its own WebView called GeckoView.

Furthermore, I would like to ask you if it is possible to install Sailfish on LineageOS and vice versa? (to test both OS on a Sony XA2)

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4

I've been bouncing back between the two on my XA2 for the last three weeks. I am about to re-install Sailfish because I like the UI better. I'm hopeful the mobile data issue is resolved soon then it will be exactly what I want it to be.

Kastegir ( 2019-02-28 21:21:05 +0300 )edit

Have a glance at this post to find out what really rocks on SailfishOS :) https://together.jolla.com/question/140645/what-i-really-love-about-my-jolla-phones/

lakutalo ( 2019-03-22 10:14:17 +0300 )edit

@Kastegir: Did you use LineageOS16 or LineageOS15? As Sailfish cannot be installed over Android 9 this is the major question.

seehas ( 2019-10-01 22:35:46 +0300 )edit

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15

answered 2019-02-28 15:19:01 +0300

Mario gravatar image

If you just think about the status-quo, both are (more or less) equally Google-free. If you think about where the journey is going, and which difference your support might make, this might be different.

If Google decides to drop AOSP (Android Open Source Project) or change it into a direction you don't like, than Linage OS is basically dead (at least for you). Yes, it is open source, someone could fork it; but I would doubt that this happens. Therefore, in a certain way, Google has lots of (hypothetical) power over Linage OS users.

If Google decides [whatsoever], it does not affect Sailfish OS that much (of course one could argue about that). This means in the long run, supporting Sailfish OS is supporting a real independent alternative. This feels, in a way, more "Google-free" to me.

However, if Jolla decides to drop Sailfish OS or change it into a direction you don't like, it can not be forked. This is a disadvantage. But in the question of Google-freeness, this is of no concern.

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answered 2019-02-28 13:14:21 +0300

nthn gravatar image
  1. No. Lineage OS is based on AOSP, which, for all intents and purposes, is made by Google. Sailfish OS isn't. However, neither of them includes any proprietary Google stuff by default. Sailfish OS contains several pieces of proprietary software by Jolla, Lineage OS to my knowledge doesn't include any proprietary software.

  2. Every mobile operating system has a connectivity check, nearly always these ping Google servers. Sailfish is no different. You could disable the check or make it ping different servers if you really want to.

  3. What's wrong with Android's System Webview?

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@nthn How can disable this check in Sailfish? I am liking Sailfish less and less as days are passing. Even default search engine is Google, could be DDG.

addydon ( 2019-02-28 14:24:41 +0300 )edit
1

@addydon I believe the solution is here, if you don't want to switch your browser anyways, otherwise you're right, the choice of google, bing, yahoo and yandex is a bit questionable. http://talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=92129

Juna ( 2019-03-01 08:49:28 +0300 )edit

@Marti Masa K: did you mean to reply to someone else?

nthn ( 2019-03-06 12:13:17 +0300 )edit

@nthn yes, indeed - sorry for this! It's sometimes hard to comment using mobile device ;-)

Marti Masa K ( 2019-03-06 15:29:24 +0300 )edit

BTW, I use both, LineageOS on Sony Xperia XZ premium just for the great camera and SailfishOS on XA2+, X, Intex (Jolla) and Jolla1 phone since user experience is way much nicer and thus I got used to SailfishOS now over the years.

Marti Masa K ( 2019-03-06 15:34:06 +0300 )edit
9

answered 2019-03-05 13:48:46 +0300

femtopeta gravatar image

Please note that Sailfish is not a 'free' flavor of Android like LineageOS. Sailfish is a Linux-based commercial product and has nothing to do with Android/AOSP and does not run Android Apps[1]. According to Jolla, their "focus is in licensing the OS to be used in governmental and corporate environments, ... to be based on open source software, maintain focus on privacy and security."

Sailfish and LineageOS can both be rendered completely Google-free. Taking into account the plethora of tools and tutorials available for Android it should be easier doing this with LineageOS. This is espcially true if you plan to use Android apps support on Sailfish.

1 In the paid version of Sailfish you are able to install a commercial Android runtime environment which makes it possible to run some Android Apps. This "Android apps support" however does not (and will never) include the Google part (Google Play Services). So, if using certain Android Apps is important to you, better install LineageOS in the first place.

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you can add Google Play Services. And they work. I get you wrong or your stated fact is untrue. Apps for which GPS are necesssry, work if you install it, despite, it crashed on older version. But true is, the Android support by Jolla does not include it.

Robberey ( 2019-03-24 00:30:49 +0300 )edit
6

answered 2019-02-28 18:02:50 +0300

Levone1 gravatar image

Lineage / AOSP, (etc), are boring, UX-wise. This might be a worthwhile sacrifice if you had some reason to believe it was actually better in more important ways, (like privacy, security, etc.), but I'm skeptical - a monster like Google would never give anything away these days, but they're pretty good at presenting the appearance of it. Really, if you're going to go Android, just go oem, and apply mods and tweaks to deal with security issues and bloat, etc. Oems like Sony provide a much more interesting rom with lots of functions and features built-in.

Sailfish is a completely different animal, and is a better choice overall. Some people just can't live without the big boys...

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Asked: 2019-02-28 12:49:02 +0300

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Last updated: Mar 22 '19