Welcome, I also use GOS and I will say its amazing. If you want support or just to chat with other GOS users I reccomend the GOS matrix chat or Discord chat (note due to recent events the bridge is no longer online)

Will digital ID’s and banking and stuff work? Or do you need to root it?

I’m using GrapheneOS to type this and have been using it (periodically) for weeks. I just noticed today that it doesn’t have visual voicemail, and I haven’t the foggiest idea what my vmail PW is. But all in all, it’s solid (knock on wood).

Made the jump a couple of weeks ago, and couldn’t be happier with it. Everything just worked out of the box. The web installer is literally point and click, zero hassle. Google store installer is bundled by default, and you can install it right away. All the apps I use worked fine for me without any issues.

I bought a Pixel for it (I needed a phone upgrade) and installed GrapheneOS immediately after bringing it home. There was a little bit of friction because a few things weren’t working out of the box for me, like Android Auto and a few apps that use GPS (I tried to Pokemon Go, for example) but all these issues went away eventually. The only thing I miss is tapping my phone to pay for things, but this isn’t a GrapheneOS issue, (bank/card providers in north America and their reliance on Google Wallet/Apple pay are). There are financial institutions from other countries that offer tap to pay using their own app.

I love being able to select what files/contacts each app has access on my phone. I like being able to disable my camera/microphone for all apps with a simple touch.

It is so obscenely easy to install graphene on your phone. I bought a pixel just to try it like a 6 for 60 bucks or something and it took no time whatsoever. Online easy peasy and it is so much better than googles Android

6 months in, and I can’t imagine going back. Use the web installer if possible, it is quick and really easy. Then immediately create a secondary user account for the Google compatibility layer, if you want that shit. I dont but I need my bank app. Keep it seperate. If you wanna use Google apps sometimes, have a separate user for that. You will gain quite a bit of battery without Google calling home every couple minutes. But if you install the compatibility layer in your main profile it becomes a chore to move to another account.

Never going back unless I’m forced to do so.

I’ve been using Graphene for several years and I love it. I could never go back now, Google android feels so incredibly bloated and invasive by comparison.

Double check your backups just to be safe, and then go for it. It’s not hard to revert if you hate it. There is a big of a learning curve, mainly just using the alternative app stores like Accresent, F-Droid, etc.

But once you spend a bit of time getting your apps installed and your system set up the way you like, you’ll love it.

Just go for it. You can always go back to stock if you dont like it.

My advice: dont make it too complicate. GOS has a lot of different securities and you can choose whatever you want to do with your phone. Some examples::

• you can run the whole thing on 1 profile

• 1 main profile and 1 secondary for Google

• 1 main profile for admin and several secondary profiles each with their own private space… .

and so on and on. I like to think of GOS similar to Archlinux. You can choose your way, but if things go south , a extremely complicate setup will make it very difficult to diagnose and maintain.

“Software integrity cannot be guaranteed on a custom os”

Ah yes software integrity like, sorry we no longer support your device beyond its intended lifecycle and please make sure your beloved app has the latest enshitification update installed.

I’m nearing two years into using it as my daily driver and I would 100% not want to go back. Graphene does everything I need.

is it worth it?

I’ll try to be objective.

The Pros:

1. Graphene gives you more “control” over your data “out of the box” than any other custom firmware. Yes, you can patch and mod your favorite firmware to your liking, but graphene “just works”
2. It’s rock solid and reliable. It only supports one hardware family. I’ve never had graphene lock-up, crash, camera stop working, etc
3. The installation and upgrading is amazingly easy (compared to other cfw) and streamlined. After the initial setup, it behaves just like any ofw.
4. You’ll see just how much of an intrusive cancer Google has become (Google play has a “feature” where they’ll dynamically load code and try to run it - graphene blocks this kinda crap).
5. Going back to stock Google (with locked bootloader) is rather easy. So you don’t have much to lose (other than a few hours) in trying.

The Cons:

1. Some apps will crash. Graphene hardens how applications behave (in terms of accessing memory, for example) some apps are buggy and will not work. Not many apps (may 1 or 2 out of 30+) but it does happen and you can fittle with the app settings to try to fix it, but it’s tedious through trial-and-error
2. Some apps won’t work, like maybe your bank because it will never pass the “Google integrity” checks. The fear and concern is that more and more apps will start to block cfw. So expect that you might need a second device.
3. Any apps/processes that deal with money (tap-to-pay, Google wallet) probably will not work (again, it fails the “Google integrity” checks).
4. (personal preference) I don’t like the graphene launcher nor their store nor their (boring) default icons. However, graphene empowers you to change/replace all this.

Been running GrapheneOS for almost two years. Ran it before long ago too. It’s a PITA to use, but it does limit tracking. So, pick your poison: ease of use in exchange for your personal data, or additional work in exchange for your privacy. I chose privacy.

I’ve been on it for a bit over a year now and honestly, it’s just the new normal. Can’t really say I miss anything, and things like the separate profiles are pretty neat.

Although, I have bricked myself once by enabling developer settings and accidentally changing my language to a dev-only language that made the os crash on boot. But the Graphene Devs fixed it and unbricked my phone within a week after I posted the problem to the forum.