That was a quote from my GCSE English Speaking Language talk, It was about Digital Privacy and how big tech giants harnest our data to understand who we are; I talked about Cambridge Analytica, their affiliations with the Donald Trump campaign and why we should have more regulation on how tech companies use data and secure it. The outcome went well, I got a distinction and my teacher thinks I should get a job in cybersecurity.
And then I looked at my phone, the same phone I carry around everywhere, the same phone that I check my school timetable with, the same phone that sees all my text messages and the same phone that I take embarrasing photos of me and my friends and family with.
So from then on, I decided to break up with Big Tech.
F-Droid is a repository of FOSS (Free and Open Source) software. Itās probably the most needed app if youāre going to start dropping Google Services. Through F-Droid you can find alternatives to apps you currently use; Most of them arenāt connected to a company and are created by developers.
Inside F-Droid, thereās another App Store called the Yalp Store which allows you to download Google Play Store apkās in case you need anything that isnāt already there.
My sisterās boyfriend and the host of this site, Matt Burman, gave me a Raspberry Pi 4 for my birthday. After a bit of tinkering, I started using it as a NextCloud server and I managed to sync all my files, calendar, contacts and notes inside of it.
I use DAVxāµ to sync it all onto my phone and so far I havenāt had any problems, however my instance is still locally hosted so if Iām away from my house Iāll not be able to upload and sync ā Iām currently in the process of making it avaliable through a domain so I can use it.
NextCloud and NextCloud Notes have itās own official applications but for my calendar; I use Etar, itās open source and it has a really nice material UI.
This is better than using Google Services as there is no direct monthly fee and I can expand it without having to pay more in monthly costs, as well, itās all open source and it has a whole range of plugins that can make it a joy to use.
Kiwi Browser is my go to browser. Itās a modified version and open source version of Chromium that supports Chrome Extensions and is really fast. Itās developed by Arnaud Granal and has a huge community behind it.
It also has a dark mode and an AMOLED mode, as well as a in-built ad blocker.
The browser was named Kiwi because Arnaud met a bird which caused him to drop his phone, he bought a cheap Android phone as a replacement and it was so slow, he couldnāt browse the web on it, this was his solution.
If you prefer something thatās on F-Droid, Fennec F-Droid is a another great choice. Itās a version of Firefox stripped of some of itās proprietary code; Like the official Firefox app, you can use add-ons and sync it to your Firefox Account.
K-9?!?!?! š²
To replace the Gmail app on my phone, I started using K-9 Mail. Itās a no-thrills email app that supports IMAP, a dark theme, signatures and mostly everything youād really need.
K-9 doesnāt have many alternatives that are going for it; Other clients Iāve used are either clunky or have missing features. Thatās why I stick with itās pre-lollipop outdated interface, It just works!
For my email hosting provider, I replaced G-Suite with Zoho Mail. It has enterprise quality security, it encrypts emails and itās cheaper.
To replace Google News; I started using Feeder. Itās an open source RSS feed reader that has features like categories and exporting feeds
To replace Google Maps; I use OsmAnd. Itās a Open Street Maps viewer with turn by turn directions, I still use Google Maps as Iām still not quite sure about itās reliablity.
To replace the YouTube app; I use NewPipe. Itās a open source YouTube client that has history, playlists, pop out video and background play. Itās a bit weird to get used to at first but it works really well and it consumes less battery.
Completely De-Googling is impossible at the moment. I still use Google Photos for my photos, I still use Google Pay to pay for my lunch, I still use Android Messages because of RCS, I still use Google Duo with my family and my sister gave me a Google Home so thereās no way Iād be able to let go overnight.
I will one day completely strap free from Googleās shackles, downloading all my data and letting go the accounts I āsign in with Googleā in, but until then, Google will still keep my information in their servers for them to experiment with and sell like a lab rat.
Let's keep in touch š