First off, I loathe at&t. Never use them. Verizon was far superior. Anyway, I'm now having an issue where if I send any web links they get blocked over SMS, especially to iPhone users. Very very annoying. Not to mention group SMS/MMS being garbage now. I am not sure if it has to do with me using an esim for at&t or what. They wanted to force me into a new phone and I said no because I'll be going with a pixel and graphene after this contract is up. Anyone else have these issues? Also their WiFi calling is garbage, not that I need it anyway.

If this can happen, is it possible that once mandatory developer verification comes into effect, all 3rd party apps will be uninstalled at first and require a re-install? Concerning this specific case, [NFCGate](https://github.com/nfcgate/nfcgate) is a tool on which [malware (family) titled NGate by ESET is based](https://www.eset.com/us/about/newsroom/research/eset-research-discovers-ngate-android-malware-which-relays-nfc-traffic-to-steal-victims-cash-from-atms-1/), thus likely causing a false positive. Oh, and no bypass is available anymore (aside from disabling play protect): 

I had a time-related work issue tonight and am seeking a way to guarantee it never recurs. Thanks in advance for any ideas! I have MacroDroid but I'm not sure of how to go about setting this up (namely the DND-overriding)...

cross-posted from: https://programming.dev/post/48972893 > Please share any knowledge or experience that you have on packet inspection using smartphones. I would like to sniff at my switch, which is switching between my (two LANs)^[I put "two LANs" within parentheses to denote that the two LANs are *not* being switched between.] and my ISP. For this, I have mirrored all ports that are in use to a port that is currently not in use. Can I simply buy one of those USB-C to Ethernet dongles and use `tcpdump` in Termux? Will Android recognize the dongle as a sniffable network interface? The phone is rooted.

I'm looking for an Android app that strips EXIF from photos before I upload them somewhere. I really care mostly about removing geolocation. I searched on F-Droid, I didn't find much. Has anybody used [Scrambled Exif](https://f-droid.org/pl/packages/com.jarsilio.android.scrambledeggsif/) ?

Is there an explanation as to why exatcly update downloads are so slow from the game client in pretty much every game on Android i ever played that had such a thing. Screenshot is from magic arena but i also had this happen in fantasy war tactics and some other games ( cant really remember the games as they were more try and forget they ever existed type of thing ) By comparison the downloads from play store ale blazingly fast . Is that some Android limitation or was i just unlucky and those particular games had shitty servers. Also why are they not keeping the whole game in play store and doing this weird in game updates ( Probably it costs more but i would love confirmation ). 

I'm using GrapheneOS, the default Vanadium browser works great but it doesnt block ads. I want to install a 2nd browser just for youtube and my specific Google account for youtube. I also tried Newpipe and similar apps, but they cant use my Google's playlist and comments. I need them, that is why I think to use a 2nd browser. Is there a way to set Youtube links (youtube.com, m.youtube.com...etc) to be opened in a non default browser, say Brave or Firefox?

The alternative app store Aptoide filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google in the USA over alleged monopolization. Aptoide, provider of an alternative Android app store, accuses Google of excluding competing app stores from the market by monopolizing app distribution and billing, thus violating US antitrust law.

I live in Canada. My girlfriend is Chinese (also living in Canada), and while we are able to communicate via SMS, her mobile carrier isn't the best, and so there have often been issues for us with regular texting. She expressed a strong preference to use WeChat, at least as a backup option for when texting fails us. While I have some pretty significant reservations, it's not the hill I want to die on. So my question is: what can be done to use WeChat without compromising my whole phone? I'm okay with it if our conversations aren't private, but I'd like to know that I'm not giving unfettered access to all of my phone's systems and data to the CCP. What can be done to limit the reach of this ubiquitous app on my device?

Hey! I would like to hear from you if you have a successful method to block the various cookie banners like: * small banners * full page banners with complicated structure * full page banners which say 'pay or accept' * bonus points for newsletter popups I do use uBlock and PiHole. But when I used extensive lists which handled cookies, my experience was that most websites broke some kind or another. So please share your successful ways with me :)

Link to the app: <https://f-droid.org/packages/com.jksalcedo.librefind/>

Minor gripe: I had find it better if the article elaborated if phones had a SD card slot or not. This phone ships with 128 GB base storage which is a problem if there is no SD card slot but not a big thingy if expandable options are present. As for 3.5mm Jack, Samsung only has them in their cheapest lineup now I think.

Cross-posted from ["Release 2026.01.24 is out"](https://sopuli.xyz/post/40180848) by @[email protected] in [email protected] --- Release 2026.01.24 is now out on all distribution channels! Beyond fresh OpenStreetMap data, it includes adding road outlines for better readability, renaming of the "Bookmarks & Tracks" to the clearer "Favorites" and many more updates: https://codeberg.org/comaps/comaps/releases/tag/v2026.01.24-5

Apparently Android apps (even in current Android versions) can check for the presence of other Android apps by listing the apps they want to check for in their manifest file. Nothing stops them from listing dozens or hundreds of other apps, and some do exactly that. Up til Android 11 they didn't even have to list the other apps in the manifest. Then Google "tightened" things to be almost as bad. Dumb move, Android.

Interesting comparison of the AI eraser functions on the Pixel versus the Galaxy.

cross-posted from: https://lemm.ee/post/58870060 > I've been using Samsung Internet for a very long time, knowing it isn't the best one for privacy. However, the user experience with it is, for me, unmatched by any other browser, including Vivaldi, Brave, and any Firefox forks. > > So here's what I'm looking for in a browser: > > - preferably FOSS > > - some control on privacy setting, less trackers/fingerprinting, etc. Doesn't have to be the most hardened. > > - decent dark mode for web pages (Dark Reader is OK) > > - bottom search bar > > - bottom tabs bar rather than tab switcher > > - a quit button I don't have to tap and scroll 2 times to find. Ideally it'd be placed on the main bottom bar > > - the quit button must clear cache and close all tabs, so I think it should be native and not an extension, but maybe I'm wrong? > > Is there any browser that can give me that? > > I'd love using Fennec as my main - and God knows I've tried multiple times to - but missing some of those feature made it hard for me to leave Samsung Internet behind. ATM I'm using both browsers BTW. > > Any suggestion is appreciated!

I am surprised that Google spends so much time tackling custom ROMs via it's *Play Integrity API*. If only they paid that much attention to say, curating the Play Store more, it had be much better for everyone

Dave2D - [Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2aRr1jYSU3U&pp=ygUWYXN1cyB6ZW5mb25lIDEwIHJldmlldw%3D%3D) The Tech Chap - [Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fce7wuRQoQ&pp=ygUWYXN1cyB6ZW5mb25lIDEwIHJldmlldw%3D%3D) MrWhosetheboss - [Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yKe1H5cIVDk&pp=ygUWYXN1cyB6ZW5mb25lIDEwIHJldmlldw%3D%3D) SuperSaf - [Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97F9Q_HhqhA&pp=ygUWYXN1cyB6ZW5mb25lIDEwIHJldmlldw%3D%3D) Ben's Gadget reviews - [Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v7UV7uHrivI&pp=ygUWYXN1cyB6ZW5mb25lIDEwIHJldmlldw%3D%3D) XDA Developers - [Written](https://www.xda-developers.com/asus-zenfone-10-review/), [Video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKiLBAwJNsQ&pp=ygUWYXN1cyB6ZW5mb25lIDEwIHJldmlldw%3D%3D) Android Police - [Written](https://www.androidpolice.com/asus-zenfone-10-review/) CNET - [Written](https://www.cnet.com/tech/mobile/asus-zenfone-10-review-a-rare-small-phone-that-comes-with-compromises/) PhoneArena - [Written](https://www.phonearena.com/reviews/asus-zenfone-10-review_id5866) Tom's Guide - [Written](https://www.tomsguide.com/reviews/asus-zenfone-10) Laptop Mag - [Written](https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/asus-zenfone-10) Digital Trends - [Written](https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/asus-zenfone-10-review/) Stuff - [Written](https://www.stuff.tv/review/asus-zenfone-10-review-one-handed-wonder/) Pocket-lint - [Written](https://www.pocket-lint.com/asus-zenfone-10-review/) Android Authority - [Written](https://www.androidauthority.com/asus-zenfone-10-review-3334171/) T3 - [Written](https://www.t3.com/reviews/asus-zenfone-10-review-a-true-flagship-android-phone-but-smaller) Tech Advisor - [Written](https://www.techadvisor.com/article/1973287/asus-zenfone-10-review.html) Digital Camera World - [Written](https://www.digitalcameraworld.com/reviews/asus-zenfone-10-review-a-gimble-toting-compact-superphone)

The first Android 15 beta has busted my tap and pay. Anyone else lose NFC?

If anyone could point me to some information or guide about this I'd really appreciate that. I think the official com.android.gsm and friends need to be uninstalled first. I've tried that with adb, console reports "success", Google Play Services is no longer listed in Settings > Apps. But... if I try to install MicroG via Fdroid or Droid-ify it goes through the install process, there's no error, but MicroG Core is not shown as "installed". If I try to install the apk with adb it says the currently installed version is newer than the one I'm trying to install? microg.org seems to just assume you know how to install. I read something about signature spoofing but I thought that was only for older devices. Any insights / suggestions will be greatly appreciated. Edit: I think this is the answer: https://xdaforums.com/t/guide-degoogle-any-device-and-install-microg.4058743/

cross-posted from: https://lemdro.id/post/22683886 > [Play Store 3D Pinball Space Cadet Download](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=io.itch.ksylvestre.spacecadet) > > From the article: > > If you grew up in the Windows XP era, than you probably spent hours playing its iconic free game, “3D Pinball Space Cadet.” Now, “Space Cadet” pinball has been ported to Android, and it’s completely free. > > One of the many things that Windows XP will be remembered for is the pinball game that essentially everyone who ever used the operating system played at some point or another. The game has been immortalized many times, and now it’s available on Android. > > Developer Kyle Sylvertre [used ](https://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/1kql66u/space_cadet_pinball/)a decompiled version of Space Cadet Pinball from [k4zmu2a on GitHub](https://github.com/k4zmu2a/SpaceCadetPinball) to bring the game to the Google Play Store for Android users. The game is optimized for touchscreens with the left and right sides of the display acting as the triggers, and you can also tap the far right side to use the ball launcher. The game runs in portrait mode, supports 18 languages, integrates with Google Play Games for a leaderboard, and is less than 5MB in size. > > And it’s all completely free too. > > There are no ads or in-app purchases here, as the developer “[just wanted](https://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/1kql66u/comment/mt7tkx0/?context=3%5C) to see it on Android with a Google Play leaderboard.” On that note, cheats are disabled to keep the integrity of that leaderboard, but the developer [hints ](https://www.reddit.com/r/Android/comments/1kql66u/comment/mt6y8ar/?context=3%5C)that cheats might come back with an option to turn off the leaderboard. > > In any case, it’s a nice hit of nostalgia. Drop your high score in the comments below.

I've posted on here a long time ago about [RTranslator](https://github.com/niedev/RTranslator), which is a phenomenal, real-time translation app for conversations. It's a beautifully designed app that allows for on-device transcription and translation. RTranslator has a few different modes that make it great for bilingual conversations. It can do simple text translations very well, like a handful of other apps. I actually use [this one](https://github.com/DavidVentura/offline-translator) for that purpose because it has system context menus and OCR for image translation. Where RTranslator really shines is in translating live conversations. When it first came out a couple years ago, it felt like sci-fi. You can set it up to walkie-talkie mode, and the phone will automatically detect multiple speakers, identify the language they're speaking, and translate to the other language. If you have TTS enabled on your phone, you can even hear the other half of the conversation (more on that in a moment). The really amazing feature is if you have translator installed on two separate devices, then you can communicate with each other over Bluetooth. Even with your phone in your pocket, you can easily have a complete conversation with another person. Did I mention that it does all of this without *any* internet? When you first set up the app, you'll have to access the internet to download language models, but after that, it never goes online. The file size and processing power might be heavy on older or cheaper phones, but runs smoothly and easily on modern phones (I have a Pixel 7, which is hardly bleeding edge). I like things that happen on-device for privacy purposes, but it's also immediately practical for something like this. If you need on the spot translation, there's a good chance you're traveling and may not have access to reliable (or free) internet. Most Android devices have built-in text-to-speech (TTS). So after you've installed RTranslator and selected your languages to download, then you're good to go. If you're using an alternative OS (like graphene, which I use), then you'll have to select one yourself. Note: I think that Google's TTS also works on device without an internet connection, but I'm not 100% sure. That's where [SherpaTTS](https://github.com/woheller69/ttsEngine) comes in. Like the translator, Sherpa will need some space on your device and uses some processing power (although, the footprint is much smaller). It takes a little bit of time to set up, but most of that time is choosing your selected voice. There are literally hundreds of models to choose from.  You can set it up as your system default TTS, and then select it through the menu or during setup in RTranslator. Now you have modern, offline, live translation almost instantaneously. Both apps are easy to set up and walk you through the process pretty quickly. *All software here mentioned is open source. Some of the models used by this software might be derived from proprietary sources, but the models themselves are considered open source. Nobody asked me to do this, but I like sharing great open source software. Projects like these don't have an advertising budget, and rely on word of mouth.* [RTranslator On GitHub](https://github.com/niedev/RTranslator) [SherpaTTS on F-Droid](https://f-droid.org/de/packages/org.woheller69.ttsengine/) [SherpaTTS on OpenApk](https://www.openapk.net/ttsengine/org.woheller69.ttsengine/) [SherpaTTS on GitHub](https://github.com/woheller69/ttsEngine)

I've been having an issue with my ringtone volume randomly lowering itself. It doesn't matter if my master volume is at 100%; most calls will come in silent or extremely low volume. The only way I know how to lower the ringtone volume specifically is through the settings menu, and every time I go into those settings, it is set to low or 0%. Does anyone know of any fix for this issue? I found a few forum posts on this topic on Samsung's website, but I didn't see anyone reply with a fix. Thank you in advance!

It frequently marks the text as red in my native language but never in English (unless there is a real error in the text). Anybody know why? See image below... 

Hopefully this becomes the app that ends this nonsensical "blue bubble" supremacy by iSheep.

I remeber **Moto E 1st Gen** with Snapdragon 200, 1GB RAM ,4 GB (2.1 GB usable) Storage. I have played games on it in 2017 it was some COD AW clone. I could install alot of Apps on just 2.1GB storage. No hang and good multi tasking on 1GB RAM. Again I got a SD 625 + 4GB RAM and it is awesome. I remeber thinking 4GB in phone will be max forever as 8GB in PC/Laptop was good enough for gaming and 16GB in PC for browsing ain't enough. Now in 2026 6GB in Android is considered low-end and Apps crash. Again I got a Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 + 8GB RAM. Devs please stop making apps big, CPU/RAM heavy. Apps like Facebook/Instagram should be shamed they are 1GB each. Android OS has no limit on cache. Android OS has no native user-frienly option to control which apps can run in background. Phone/SoC reviews are a scam, they say SD 363 is 50% better than SD 625. I don't think it is a very big leak from SD625 to 7s Gen 2. Reviewers are stuck in 2013, "casual games run OK and COD runs at 60 FPS", it always did for every phone! I think I am going to boycott high tier phones.

I've had a Pixel 4a for ~3 years at this point. I had to replace it some time last year because I had lost my original in a lake. T-Mobile gave me whichever lower-end Pixel there was at the time and I immediately gave it back because of the offputting amount of warmth it produced doing very little. When the time does come to properly upgrade, how would I go about searching for phones that run cool? I've been thinking about my next choice to be a jump-ship from the Pixel series given my, uh, experience (there was a bit more that I didn't like about it)

If any of you is having trouble pairing the newest versions of the firmware (Fossil Hybrid HR, in my case, Charter model) with Gadgetbridge because the device keeps getting bricked (the watchface stops working, never going back 'home'), here's the solution: - Make sure there are no apps in your phone that can interfere with the watch connection. - Download an older version of the official app to trigger a firmware downgrade (I went back to DN1.0.2.21r.v1, that corresponds with version 4.6.0 of the official app). It will look like it's upgrading, but it will be doing the opposite. Don't let Google Play succeed in updating the app, or it won't work. Delete the old official app. - Download the patched official app so you can get the password for the device from the Fossil servers, but don't let it upgrade your firmware. You have to be fast, interrupt the process... Honestly, it took me MANY attempts. - Delete the patched app. - Download Gadgetbridge and pair it with your watch, using the password you got on step 3. - Done! - [https://codeberg.org/Freeyourgadget/Gadgetbridge/wiki/Fossil-Hybrid-HR#user-content-known-firmware-versions](Firmware versions) [https://www.apkmirror.com/?post_type=app_release&searchtype=apk&s=fossil](Download firmware, requires APK Mirror from the Play Store) [https://www.reddit.com/r/FossilHybrids/comments/k81kkq/unofficial_enhanced_android_app_based_on_v460/](The patched app) [https://kurotimedesign.blogspot.com/2022/06/how-to-downgrade-your-fossil-hybrid-app.html?m=1](More instructions)

so I finally got the motivation to install lineage os to my phone after thinking about it like year. and now that I finally modified this phone I started thinking about ricing this phone a bit. I'm looking for a launcher that isn't too minimalistic and with a decent amount of customization. kinda like kde bit you know... stable. any suggestions?

I am looking for a cheap android phone with better processing power, good camera and battery life.

I've been looking for something like the old app making 3D wallpapers from GCam lens blur photos, but found nothing. This is not the same, but it is quite good nonetheless.

So I installed this app that wants permissions to my photos and/or files so I can upload a picture. Totally normal. I want to know if it's possible to specify that these permissions are only granted for a *specific* directory/folder, rather than the whole device. It doesn't seem like it, but curious if there's a way to do this. Any suggestions are welcome.

I've tried a lot of the launchers I see talked about frequently- Nova, Niagra, Smart Launcher, Action Launcher, etc. but they all seem to not be worth the hassle of switching away from pixel launcher. Also none of them have the Google News feed that the pixel launcher has. I feel like I'm losing features when I switch. Perhaps I'm just stupid and am not utilizing the features these launchers actually bring to the table. Can you tell me about your favorite launcher and it's features that keep you hooked to it? Thanks.

cross-posted from: https://piefed.europe.pub/post/65174 > cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/38001927 > > > > In this post, I hope to clarify and expand on some of the points and rebut some of the counter-messaging that we have witnessed.

> Google Messages has redesigned the UI for taking and sending pictures that permanently merges a live camera viewfinder with your gallery...