GrapheneOS: radical privacy, but only on Google Pixel phones

GrapheneOS, the system that promises total privacy but only runs on Pixel

There is a paradox at the heart of GrapheneOS: the operating system that promises to free you from Google only works on Google's phones. Pixels are the only devices compatible with this privacy-focused ROM, and that alone divides opinion. The question of whether it is the best custom ROM of all time has been peine with concrete data: some defend it for its per-app network control without root, while others dismiss it for its limited compatibility.

What it offers: profiles and network control without root

GrapheneOS's proposal is radical: every app runs in a separate profile. You can set up one profile for banking, another for social media, another for browsing with Tor. Apps are installed with restricted permissions and the network can be cut off per app without needing root. One often-cited experience is that of a Pixel 4a owner: "just being able to cut off network access for apps without having root had already won me over." The screen broke, but the system had already convinced him.

The price: Pixel only, and no administrator

The fine print is harsh. GrapheneOS does not work on 99.9% of phones. Only Pixels, which can be found second-hand for around 150 euros. There is also a deeper criticism: on GrapheneOS you are a user, not an administrator, for security reasons. Just like on Windows, iOS or any Android. Neither the system nor the phone belongs to you. For that, LineageOS is the better route. The question that remains: why do we accept on a phone what we would not accept on a computer?

Meanwhile, the official GrapheneOS website does not even show screenshots of the product. For some, that is a sign the project is serious; for others, that there is nothing to show. Privacy has a price, and not just a financial one: also one of convenience. How many are willing to pay it?