In recent discussions, Android users have talked about the openness of the platform as a big benefit.
For Android and ex-Android users here, how have you taken advantage of that openness? and why?
Examples may include sideloading, rooting, custom runs, privacy focused OSes.
Edited for clarity
For me:
Main advantages of Android for me
Less important
Is phone link only on Samsung?
It should work for what's mentioned.
For a full experience, including viewing apps,, a supported device is needed:
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/topic/supported-devices-…
App:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.microsoft.…
The Link to windows app is pretty good too.
Works well on the two phones I have used it with; Motorola G5s and Pixel 6.
Send and receive sms, and access photos are the two i use most.. looks like there is a whole bunch of features that are device dependent though.
I use an iPhone for work and not being able to read/send sms on PC is a huge hit to productivity. The messages app on iPhone is also particularly annoying for not allowing messages to be archived or hidden, only deleted or left to work their way down the list.
It's pretty handy that my phone, tablet, TV, etc all run the same OS, and there is a lot of diversity in hardware choice.
9 years of updates, Nexus 7 on Android 12.
Magisk GPS spoofing to trawl for chicks on happn, and lock in 711 prices without leaving the house.
depends on what you want, if you really want, you can play even at Linux kernel level and run Linux programs/drivers directly
even at Android level you can do many custom things.
For me, it's the simple things - being able to have my home screen icons only in the bottom right corner so I can reach them with one hand (I'm right-handed), being able to adjust the density of my home screen and app drawer (how many icons in grid), heck even having an app drawer so that I can keep my home screen tidy (and control the behaviour of the app drawer, page-by-page scrolling, or vertical scrolling), being able to choose a fingerprint reader because I often leave my phone on my desk to check it where FaceID won't work, having the back button being the bottom right button is very useful for general navigation…etc.
It's not so much the openness for me, but it's that Android is a more humble OS, it just gives me a few options, doesn't pretend to know better than I do about how I wish to use my phone and allows me to make some basic decisions about how it should behave.
Mostly seem like reasons you'd need to have Android, except the App Drawer which has been on iOS for a year or so now, and fingerprint reader which is a hardware feature, not a software feature. Also technically you can have icons only in the bottom right on iOS it's just kludgy to make it happen. Swipe gesture across the screen as a replacement for back button also, not technically the same, but doesn't require you to move your hand at all.
But yeah, iOS doesn't let you have choice over grid size or scroll direction. I can see why people who wanted to change those would be annoyed at iOS, but also can see why other people don't care.
youtube vanced - saved me from annoying ads.
I have an app that has been discontinued for 7 years that I paid for but continually roll forward via side loading to what is now 3 phones later.
That's what a Smartphone should be.
F-droid, an open source package manager for open source apps.
Termux, ssh, emacs, a shader editor.
Open source games and apps without ads
Open source apps seem more widely available for android eg Qfield, OOMapper.
Not sure having to sideload the DJI fly app because the play store one doesn't work counts as an advantage. I guess its a work around that couldn't be applied for i-things if they have a problem, but they probably don't have the problem.
I tried writing my own app once. Didn't do anything very useful.
I use GrapheneOS on a Pixel 6. (custom rom)
I take security & privacy seriously.
Why not current Android users as well?