It takes more effort, but far less than you're thinking I wager. I protect myself from Google - and a few others - as much as is practical for me through firewa

It takes more effort, but far less than you're thinking I wager. I protect myself from Google - and a few others - as much as is practical for me through firewalling. On both my previous and current device I have never signed into a Google account, all of Google's apps are disabled (except the gallery, as disabling it breaks a key integration), and Rethink DNS manages all outgoing network connections at the app level. I use Aurora to access the Play Store (and also F-Droid and Obtainium), FairMail for email, and a variety of other alternatives. It takes a bit to get it all configured initially, but once done it's sufficiently smooth sailing with occasional tweaks. The only thing that annoys me sometimes is that notifications no longer work properly for many apps, as the majority use Google's notifications service. Accessing OS updates may also become problematic, depending on the device OEM.