Google introduces Debian Linux terminal app for Android. My phone's a laptop at last!
Qualcomm claims that my Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus’ Snapdragon 8 Elite CPU is faster than the Intel Core Ultra 288V chip. My smartphone also has 12GB of RAM and 512GB of solid-state storage. In short, it’s more powerful than most of my laptops. So why not use it as a laptop?
Why not, indeed, says Google, which has introduced – at long last – a native Linux Terminal application in its March 2025 Pixel Feature Drop.
This doesn’t sound like proper linux to me. I want to be able to plug in a USB (or what ever the storage device would be, microUSB for phones I guess) and boot from that. Where 1 image works for any device of the same architecture. This is the main thing I dislike about ARM currently.
This is just a Linux VM just like th Crostini in ChromeOS, so I’d expect similar 40%+ performance loss compares to for example proot container through Termux running natively.
The only thing this could probably offer would be giving you better OS GUI Integration into Android, like Crostini on a ChromeOS device. But if that is needed you might as well just use an Android port or an Android equivalent of your Linux software anyway, it’s not like you’d ever want to run Matlab, GIMP or OpenFOAM on your Android phone with its tiny screen anyway LMAO
And I’m having issues writing / completing the install to /boot
Files are written to boot by the nixos-infect script, then disappear after sometime… If the VM is shutdown / rebooted I get the previously displayed unrecoverable error screen.
My dream has been to have a phone that works like a phone until I get home and plug in a monitor and kbm then it’s a full fledged PC. Think Dex but not shitty Samsung Android. While I’m dreaming while docked it could also utilize a desktop grade GPU.
IIRC you can do exactly that with the Nintendo Switch (carry it around like a handheld until you plug it into the TV and it becomes a stationary console), though i’ve never had a Switch myself so i don’t know for sure.
I join you on this. The closest I found is a and old surface pro with Linux and waydroid on it. It is nicer than all my previous try but far far from perfect, not even good. Just meh + +.
Spanish BQ manufacturer sold Ubuntu phones a while ago. I had one, and it felt great. Unfortunately the phone itself (the screen in particular) was pretty low quality, and the customer support not qualitative enough. Mine broke just by sitting in the couch with it in my pocket. That was a huge lost opportunity.
I have been running bash linux commands on my android device back in 2016 via Termux. it worked perfectly fine back then already, you could apt install applications and python3 your script.
The problem is with other things. Android is dedicated to being actually usable on touch-screen devices. Installing desktop apps on Android would un-do that effect, so i guess it wouldn’t make a lot of sense.
Google just doesn’t understand that they’re killing off the only people who want to buy their shitting products. How many people use Androids? How many people use Pixels? I would feel most people want these phones because we’re tech savvy people who don’t want the abstracted stuff Apple sells.
Author faces regularly many issues when trying do make a new version of Termux to yet another set of googles demands or restrictions, sometimes unable to update play store version for years. As an (just) example, see this issue: https://github.com/termux/termux-packages/wiki/Termux-and-Android-10
Tested this on my Pixel 8a. Works as you would expect. Personally I have a little hard time coming up with use cases for this but I guess it’s kinda cool.
Nope. But as mentioned in the article, some support for display servers might be coming in Android 16.
Networking does work. I was able to install packages using apt and also ping machines on my local network. Could be useful.
I guess in a pinch it could be used to ssh into other machines. However, I’m sure there are plenty of SSH clients available for Android, which are much more lightweight solution than running a whole VM.
Does it have access to the same filesystem as Android? I’ve been looking for Android apps that can do something like dropbox’s “online only” feature. Most cloud storage providers offer that on desktop but I’ve never found one that works on Android. It’s just photo syncing or nothing usually, and even that doesn’t work like I want.
Also, can it run uninterrupted in the background or is android going to unceremoniously kill it randomly like it does with normal apps?
How does this work? The app doesn’t seem to have any settings related to it yet. Under /mnt in the VM I noticed folder shared that seems to match the downloads folder on my phone, which seems odd
I have a phone that acts as a grid outage resistant p2p webserver. runs stuff like syncthing, briar mailbox, etc. i can see this being useful for that kinda stuff.
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Lil Debbie works on Android phones for quite a few years now, devs didn’t wait on google to chroot the hell out of android.
This doesn’t sound like proper linux to me. I want to be able to plug in a USB (or what ever the storage device would be, microUSB for phones I guess) and boot from that. Where 1 image works for any device of the same architecture. This is the main thing I dislike about ARM currently.
How about multi-booting via Ventoy?
I don’t think anybody expected that. This is just a shitty headline.
This is just a Linux VM just like th Crostini in ChromeOS, so I’d expect similar 40%+ performance loss compares to for example proot container through Termux running natively.
The only thing this could probably offer would be giving you better OS GUI Integration into Android, like Crostini on a ChromeOS device. But if that is needed you might as well just use an Android port or an Android equivalent of your Linux software anyway, it’s not like you’d ever want to run Matlab, GIMP or OpenFOAM on your Android phone with its tiny screen anyway LMAO
Man I feel I’d almost wiped the debian install and added NixOS (nix package manager works fine under debian) using nixos-infect
A clean install and a night’s sleep and I’ll probably forget I was attempting this, but looks promising.
And I’m having issues writing / completing the install to /boot
Files are written to boot by the nixos-infect script, then disappear after sometime… If the VM is shutdown / rebooted I get the previously displayed unrecoverable error screen.
Might be an easier way to achieve this.
Is this termux or what?
It’s a VM
Sorry Google, PostmarketOS will scratch that itch and soon enough eat your lunch: https://postmarketos.org/
My dream has been to have a phone that works like a phone until I get home and plug in a monitor and kbm then it’s a full fledged PC. Think Dex but not shitty Samsung Android. While I’m dreaming while docked it could also utilize a desktop grade GPU.
May I introduce you to what already existed at one time? (Motorola Atrix 4G from 2011 with Ubuntu desktop when docked.)
Oh I remember. Ahead of its time. RIP.
Honestly the steamdeck shows we are getting close. It works like that, just in a slightly bigger form factor and without some of the phone hardware.
A little more tech advancement and I think this won’t be that hard to do.
I do this today with my Librem 5 and a 1 TB uSD
IIRC you can do exactly that with the Nintendo Switch (carry it around like a handheld until you plug it into the TV and it becomes a stationary console), though i’ve never had a Switch myself so i don’t know for sure.
I join you on this. The closest I found is a and old surface pro with Linux and waydroid on it. It is nicer than all my previous try but far far from perfect, not even good. Just meh + +.
That would be the life.
That headline got me really excited before I realized they meant “in an app”.
Spanish BQ manufacturer sold Ubuntu phones a while ago. I had one, and it felt great. Unfortunately the phone itself (the screen in particular) was pretty low quality, and the customer support not qualitative enough. Mine broke just by sitting in the couch with it in my pocket. That was a huge lost opportunity.
It’s just virtualization, the same way you would run a Debian VM under Windows or whatever.
yeah, but being able to replace Android would have been nice.
Why would you want to not use Android? Can’t you just de-google your android if that’s your concern? Android is made for mobile devices.
there’s this thing https://furilabs.com/ but not FOSS; hopefully some of their hacks can make it into mobian or sumsuch
While interesting, that’s not really news.
I have been running
bashlinux commands on my android device back in 2016 via Termux. it worked perfectly fine back then already, you couldapt installapplications andpython3your script.The problem is with other things. Android is dedicated to being actually usable on touch-screen devices. Installing desktop apps on Android would un-do that effect, so i guess it wouldn’t make a lot of sense.
Is there an official source for this?
The article links to this blog post, but I did not see anything relevant in it:
https://blog.google/products/pixel/pixel-drop-march-2025/
Why do we want this when we can already install it via Termux?
This is native while termux is emulated, I think.
Life is full of choices, isn’t it.
Sadly not always good ones…
Isn’t that Termux?
Yes, except google is slowly killing Termux with a thousand cuts, while they will kill this only after a few years.
Google just doesn’t understand that they’re killing off the only people who want to buy their shitting products. How many people use Androids? How many people use Pixels? I would feel most people want these phones because we’re tech savvy people who don’t want the abstracted stuff Apple sells.
I thought Android’s market is people who don’t want to pay for iOS for various reasons, mostly due to cost.
Yes kinda. But if you buy the cheapest iphone and just use it until eol, it’s not too bad. Problem is the cheapest iphone, isn’t too cheap anymore.
They do? Can you elaborate?
Author faces regularly many issues when trying do make a new version of Termux to yet another set of googles demands or restrictions, sometimes unable to update play store version for years. As an (just) example, see this issue: https://github.com/termux/termux-packages/wiki/Termux-and-Android-10
Tested this on my Pixel 8a. Works as you would expect. Personally I have a little hard time coming up with use cases for this but I guess it’s kinda cool.
Looks very similar to termux
Probably hella nerfed in comparison.
It has been called 8 elite so that people think they bought an X elite?
That’s not very nice…
So does it run X? Or GNOME? Can you make a call from it? Can you receive a call? And does the internet work?
Termux can.
You can run a full GUI install of the distro of your choice and even vnc or rtp into it.
A bit tedious to set up, but follow the docs and it is no problem.
Nope. But as mentioned in the article, some support for display servers might be coming in Android 16.
Networking does work. I was able to install packages using apt and also ping machines on my local network. Could be useful.
I guess in a pinch it could be used to ssh into other machines. However, I’m sure there are plenty of SSH clients available for Android, which are much more lightweight solution than running a whole VM.
Does it have access to the same filesystem as Android? I’ve been looking for Android apps that can do something like dropbox’s “online only” feature. Most cloud storage providers offer that on desktop but I’ve never found one that works on Android. It’s just photo syncing or nothing usually, and even that doesn’t work like I want.
Also, can it run uninterrupted in the background or is android going to unceremoniously kill it randomly like it does with normal apps?
It has access to
/sdcardas a shared folder. And yes it can run in the background, though it’ll eat your battery if you keep it running for a while.How does this work? The app doesn’t seem to have any settings related to it yet. Under
/mntin the VM I noticed foldersharedthat seems to match the downloads folder on my phone, which seems odd…shit, I think you’re right, it might be the Downloads folder. Sorry! I’ll check mine next time I boot it up.
I have a phone that acts as a grid outage resistant p2p webserver. runs stuff like syncthing, briar mailbox, etc. i can see this being useful for that kinda stuff.
What’s the catch
Its goog so:
Everything you want, except sudo! That’s freaking dangerous for you!
oh i like this.
too bad its still android with al there tracking and bloatware. Hopefully degoogled roms will follow
I’m pretty sure I saw this is going to work on graphene