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> If I have a good reason, I can toggle a setting and install APKs built by anyone. If I have a good reason, I can wipe my phone and unlock the bootloader to li

> If I have a good reason, I can toggle a setting and install APKs built by anyone. If I have a good reason, I can wipe my phone and unlock the bootloader to literally replace and de-Google the entire OS. This is not possible for many (and I suspect the majority of) android phones.

joshmn 7y ago
> This is not possible for many (and I suspect the majority of) android phones. But it is. You can install APKs from anyone on any phone. It's a feature of the OS. > I can wipe my phone and unlock the bootloader to literally replace and de-Google the entire OS. I've never had an Android phone I couldn't unlock and flash. From the original Evo to Pixel 2. I have an iPhone as of two months ago. I just wanted to try something new. The amount of restricted access to things is boggling. I can't even download an mp3 on Safari or Chrome. I thought I was doing something wrong and spent 2 hours trying to figure out what. Then I learned it was just the phone.
- saagarjha 7y ago
  > I've never had an Android phone I couldn't unlock and flash. From the original Evo to Pixel 2. Until you stray away from a handful of manufacturers that are nice enough to let you do this. > I can't even download an mp3 on Safari or Chrome. Safari has a download manager in iOS 13.
- pgcj_poster 7y ago
  I'm sorry, I quoted more than I meant to. I was exclusively talking about unlocking the bootloader. > I've never had an Android phone I couldn't unlock and flash. I've been using Android as long as I've had a smart phone, and I've never had a phone that I could flash. You should remember that most people don't have expensive flagship model phones.
- mmastrac 7y ago
  > From the original Evo to Pixel 2. We spent a good amount of time over a year keeping the Evo unlocked whenever HTC would try to patch things. I'd like to think that helped set the tone for bootloader unlockability going forward. But to be honest, I've been in the Nexus and Pixel ecosystem since then so I haven't really seen how things have shaped up
song 7y ago
This is possible for pretty much all android phones. What's not necessarily possible for all phones is to root the phone but yes most android phones allow you to install apks downloaded via the browser after toggling "allow installation of apps from unknown sources" in the settings.
shaklee3 7y ago
Which ones? I've used 5 different brands, and all of them could.

joshmn 7y ago

> This is not possible for many (and I suspect the majority of) android phones. But it is. You can install APKs from anyone on any phone. It's a feature of the OS. > I can wipe my phone and unlock the bootloader to literally replace and de-Google the entire OS. I've never had an Android phone I couldn't unlock and flash. From the original Evo to Pixel 2. I have an iPhone as of two months ago. I just wanted to try something new. The amount of restricted access to things is boggling. I can't even download an mp3 on Safari or Chrome. I thought I was doing something wrong and spent 2 hours trying to figure out what. Then I learned it was just the phone.

saagarjha 7y ago
> I've never had an Android phone I couldn't unlock and flash. From the original Evo to Pixel 2. Until you stray away from a handful of manufacturers that are nice enough to let you do this. > I can't even download an mp3 on Safari or Chrome. Safari has a download manager in iOS 13.
pgcj_poster 7y ago
I'm sorry, I quoted more than I meant to. I was exclusively talking about unlocking the bootloader. > I've never had an Android phone I couldn't unlock and flash. I've been using Android as long as I've had a smart phone, and I've never had a phone that I could flash. You should remember that most people don't have expensive flagship model phones.
mmastrac 7y ago
> From the original Evo to Pixel 2. We spent a good amount of time over a year keeping the Evo unlocked whenever HTC would try to patch things. I'd like to think that helped set the tone for bootloader unlockability going forward. But to be honest, I've been in the Nexus and Pixel ecosystem since then so I haven't really seen how things have shaped up

song 7y ago

This is possible for pretty much all android phones. What's not necessarily possible for all phones is to root the phone but yes most android phones allow you to install apks downloaded via the browser after toggling "allow installation of apps from unknown sources" in the settings.

shaklee3 7y ago

Which ones? I've used 5 different brands, and all of them could.