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I'm not sure I agree on the last part re: LineageOS et al. They've not failed, they don't gain traction as it's more difficult to install them (in the case of a

I'm not sure I agree on the last part re: LineageOS et al. They've not failed, they don't gain traction as it's more difficult to install them (in the case of aftermarket firmwares) due to having to gain root. For Purism or hardware+os combos, then they've not got the same market share or share of mindset. If a big player made a (truely) open Android, I'm sure there would be people all over it. If they went down this path, it may actually open up the Android ecosystem. (then again, the hardware still probably wouldn't be completely open)

mcv 7y ago
How does OnePlus's Oxygen OS fit into this? I believe it's based on Cyanogen, which is an open version of Android which, if I recall correctly, was not allowed to distribute the proprietary parts of Android. So doesn't a big, open version of Android already exist there? Or is it just as tied to Google as stock Android is?
- newaccoutnas 7y ago
  Depends, Oneplus are growing but at 2% of share, whereas Huawei have 10%. Versus previous year of 1% and 8% respectively. (source: https://www.androidcentral.com/oneplus-breaks-top-five-global-brands-premium-category https://www.androidcentral.com/oneplus-breaks-top-five-globa...) Ancedotally I've never seen any Oneplus advertised on any traditional media here in the UK. Huawei, lots.
  - mcv 7y ago
    I had no idea OnePlus was already a top-5 brand. That's bigger than I thought. Obviously Huawei is larger, but not by as much as I thought.
- msadowski 7y ago
  Honestly while using OnePlus Two I didn't feel it being open at all. In fact I have a very strong suspicion that OnePlus is using OS updates as planned obsolescence. One day my OnePlus Two installed the system upgrade causing the battery to fully drain in a span of 30 minutes - 2 hours and the phone getting super hot while idle. I tried doing all the recommended steps of fixing the problem (clearing cache, factory resets etc.) without any improvement. As soon as I installed Lineage OS I started getting a 24+ hr battery life and didn't experience any issues so the issue was not related to hardware.
  - newaccoutnas 7y ago
    There was the instance a couple of years back whereby they were sending lots of data back to base, made me very dubious of them since.
    - SmellyGeekBoy 7y ago
      I've been running LineageOS on my OnePlus 3 ever since this incident and couldn't be happier with it. I'm planning on upgrading to the OP7 once that has good LineageOS support too.
    - mcv 7y ago
      My Fairphone had an issue a couple of month where it managed to use a couple of GB in a matter of minutes and drained my data subscription. I still don't know why, but I think it's a genuine bug, and not anyone trying to steal my data. That said, I would prefer an OS that provably puts my in charge and doesn't allow foreign companies access to everything I've got. Then again, I also like convenience.
  - mcv 7y ago
    A co-worker with a OnePlus has experienced this problem a few times: an update that causes the battery to drain really fast. He claims it's because you're the first to get Android updates, and they may still have a few bugs, which are generally fixed in a few days. I wouldn't mind waiting those few days before I get the update.
    - msadowski 7y ago
      The problematic thing for me back then was that it was the final update to OP2 (and on the forums they said that there will be no updates for the OS in the future). That's why it looked like planned obsolescence to me. I see a lot of people on the internet having an attitude like "geee, it's 3 years old phone, time for an upgrade". All while hardware is still perfectly fine for 100% of the things average person needs the phone for.
      - 7y ago
- mendelmaleh 7y ago
  The Oneplus One came with CyanogeMod, tho after that they made they're own thing, and at a certain point they hired the Paranoid Android team, that did't last long iirc... Long story short , it's not based on CyanogenMod, and it definitely isn't Open Source.
  - mcv 7y ago
    Is it completely different? I assumed it was a fork of Cyanogen, but I guess that could be a bad assumption.
schoen 7y ago
I think the author agrees with you: the installable AOSP-based distributions are currently inconvenient, but they could potentially become more convenient and popular given more support.

mcv 7y ago

How does OnePlus's Oxygen OS fit into this? I believe it's based on Cyanogen, which is an open version of Android which, if I recall correctly, was not allowed to distribute the proprietary parts of Android. So doesn't a big, open version of Android already exist there? Or is it just as tied to Google as stock Android is?

newaccoutnas 7y ago
Depends, Oneplus are growing but at 2% of share, whereas Huawei have 10%. Versus previous year of 1% and 8% respectively. (source: https://www.androidcentral.com/oneplus-breaks-top-five-global-brands-premium-category https://www.androidcentral.com/oneplus-breaks-top-five-globa...) Ancedotally I've never seen any Oneplus advertised on any traditional media here in the UK. Huawei, lots.
- mcv 7y ago
  I had no idea OnePlus was already a top-5 brand. That's bigger than I thought. Obviously Huawei is larger, but not by as much as I thought.
msadowski 7y ago
Honestly while using OnePlus Two I didn't feel it being open at all. In fact I have a very strong suspicion that OnePlus is using OS updates as planned obsolescence. One day my OnePlus Two installed the system upgrade causing the battery to fully drain in a span of 30 minutes - 2 hours and the phone getting super hot while idle. I tried doing all the recommended steps of fixing the problem (clearing cache, factory resets etc.) without any improvement. As soon as I installed Lineage OS I started getting a 24+ hr battery life and didn't experience any issues so the issue was not related to hardware.
- newaccoutnas 7y ago
  There was the instance a couple of years back whereby they were sending lots of data back to base, made me very dubious of them since.
  - SmellyGeekBoy 7y ago
    I've been running LineageOS on my OnePlus 3 ever since this incident and couldn't be happier with it. I'm planning on upgrading to the OP7 once that has good LineageOS support too.
  - mcv 7y ago
    My Fairphone had an issue a couple of month where it managed to use a couple of GB in a matter of minutes and drained my data subscription. I still don't know why, but I think it's a genuine bug, and not anyone trying to steal my data. That said, I would prefer an OS that provably puts my in charge and doesn't allow foreign companies access to everything I've got. Then again, I also like convenience.
- mcv 7y ago
  A co-worker with a OnePlus has experienced this problem a few times: an update that causes the battery to drain really fast. He claims it's because you're the first to get Android updates, and they may still have a few bugs, which are generally fixed in a few days. I wouldn't mind waiting those few days before I get the update.
  - msadowski 7y ago
    The problematic thing for me back then was that it was the final update to OP2 (and on the forums they said that there will be no updates for the OS in the future). That's why it looked like planned obsolescence to me. I see a lot of people on the internet having an attitude like "geee, it's 3 years old phone, time for an upgrade". All while hardware is still perfectly fine for 100% of the things average person needs the phone for.
    - 7y ago
mendelmaleh 7y ago
The Oneplus One came with CyanogeMod, tho after that they made they're own thing, and at a certain point they hired the Paranoid Android team, that did't last long iirc... Long story short , it's not based on CyanogenMod, and it definitely isn't Open Source.
- mcv 7y ago
  Is it completely different? I assumed it was a fork of Cyanogen, but I guess that could be a bad assumption.

schoen 7y ago

I think the author agrees with you: the installable AOSP-based distributions are currently inconvenient, but they could potentially become more convenient and popular given more support.