Friday Poll: What operating system is your phone running on?

Ayespy

Android 7 here, and that's the most recent my favorite phone EVER, will be able to update to.

Interestingly, I may be ultimately forced off this rugged (if you drop it, it doesn't break) phone by obsolescence. One of my banks just informed me the new version of their app will no longer work on anything older than Android 8. My wife's phone is on Android 9, so I can use that for remote deposits in a pinch, and my tablet is on Android 11 - so again, in a pinch, that will work.

If I'm going to upgrade, I should look for a recent Android rugged phone that's 5G compatible and has at least as good a camera as my present phone. So far, I have only been able to find 2 out of 3. Rugged plus 5g, or rugged plus good camera, or modern plus rugged, or modern plus good camera (but if I'm the slightest bit careless with it, it will break - as did both of the phones prior to my rugged one). Ideal would be a Samsung FieldPro with 5G and a better-than-16Mb camera. There's no such thing. So...

Pathduck

@ayespy said in Friday Poll: What operating system is your phone running on?:

One of my banks just informed me the new version of their app will no longer work on anything older than Android 8.

Yeah, that's what inevitably will happen to force an upgrade. Sooner or later app developers will stop supporting older versions of the OS. They say "security", I call "laziness".

Happened to me with my perfectly functional S4 (Android 5.1) - I could no longer buy tickets for public transport or use the most popular direct payment solution here. I'd had it for nearly 10 years, it was otherwise working fine - I just changed battery every 2-3 years.

I finally gave in and got an XCover 5. Definitely rugged, but no 5G, kinda slow, and camera is just basic. But I can swap the battery, which means it can last for another 10 years I hope

And do you really need 5G? Do you watch a lot of streaming video on your phone, lots of video calls maybe?

Ayespy

@pathduck I'm not sure that I really DO need 5G yet, as I do very little media-wise with my phone. I'm not what you'd call a real data consumer. I'm kind of leaning toward the XCover Pro. It's everything but 5G and newer/better than the XCover5 or the XCover FieldPro. and it will handle up through Android 10 at least, so tho not futureproof, it's at least present-capable...

I still have my S4, but it's just sitting in a box with all my older S-series...

Ayespy

@pathduck So now, I'm on Android 11. Turns out the XCover Pro arrives with the 11 update on board.

VAPG1974

@semenov-sherin a mobile version of KDE Plasma.

Marko Indaco

crDroid 7.5 (Android 11) - Magisk 24.1 - Blokada - XPrivacyLUA (not yet activated)

Well, that KaiOS is very interesting

jamesbeardmore

@ayespy said in Friday Poll: What operating system is your phone running on?:

@pathduck So now, I'm on Android 11. Turns out the XCover Pro arrives with the 11 update on board.

Now you have a new phone, this is a bit of a moot point, but you could just use your bank's regular online-banking in a web browser instead.

My bank's app doesn't work on my tab or my phone, because it depends on Goggle mobile services (which aren't installed) and a handful of "analytics" and advertising libraries (which are blocked by a hosts file). So I just do all my online banking in a web browser. It's actually a lot better sitting at a computer, and the web interface has more functionality. If I was really desperate to use it on the go, it still works in the phone's web browser too.

Similarly, if you want a decent camera, one option you could try, is to just buy an actual camera. So if you find a phone you like that's rugged and 5g but has a rubbish camera, you'd still be fine. When you use a dedicated device, it's much more pleasant, you're more mindful of it, and you tend to be more careful and choosy about what you snap, rather than endless images of food. So if you get a rugged phone with a rubbish camera, you still have the phone camera as a backup for any urgent pic, happy-snaps or emergencies... but you could take the proper camera with you when you know you're going to want to take some spectacular photos. You don't need 48 megapixels to capture an artistic bagel or a drunk friend at a nightclub, so I bet you wouldn't miss it. And if you go trekking, you'd know to take the dedicated camera to get the best shots of the wildlife and fjords.

Ayespy

@jamesbeardmore said in Friday Poll: What operating system is your phone running on?:

@ayespy said in Friday Poll: What operating system is your phone running on?:

@pathduck So now, I'm on Android 11. Turns out the XCover Pro arrives with the 11 update on board.

Now you have a new phone, this is a bit of a moot point, but you could just use your bank's regular online-banking in a web browser instead.

I have to do more than my fair share of mobile deposits for personal accounts, multiple businesses and a national non-profit. This essentially requires a mobile app on a phone or tablet with a camera. I do not otherwise do banking on a phone.

Similarly, if you want a decent camera, one option you could try, is to just buy an actual camera. So if you find a phone you like that's rugged and 5g but has a rubbish camera, you'd still be fine.

I have been buying actual cameras and using them for my work for over 40 years. I started before there were digital cameras. I have several hundred dollars in two pretty good cameras as we speak, and I use them all the time. That said, for my business, it is handy to discover one needs a pic of something, know that one has a camera in hand already, and not have to have remembered to bring expensive hardware from the office or have to run to the car to get it. I started doing photography for business with a mechanical SLR with no automatic settings (none), a hot shoe flash and a light meter. I'm aware of dedicated devices.

You don't need 48 megapixels to capture an artistic bagel or a drunk friend at a nightclub, so I bet you wouldn't miss it.

Yeah. I don't get paid to capture pictures of drunk friends or food (which I don't take pix of anyway). No phone cam? I would have to lug my Canon and/or Nikon and/or Panasonic Lumix around with me everywhere.

Obiwan2208

Recently, one month ago, I switched from Android 8.1 Stock to LineageOS 18.1 (equiv. Android 11) on my Primary phone. I'm now dealing with the big jump from Android 8.1 to 11, the changes, apps' settings, etc, that kinda stuff.

But on my secondary phone (for testings and games) I have already flashed LineageOS (equiv. Android 8.1) a lot time ago.

My prefer OS is Android, but as you can already figured out I'm trying to stay away from Google, who has changed ~~Don't be evil~~ I'm the Devil .

About dumbphones I still have several, some of them still works. I miss how tough they were and how long the batteries keep charged, but today has very few situations that a dumbphone will be helpful, also will requires make a duplicate of card to the 'original' SIM size...whose lived the dumdphone's era know what I mean.

AllanPen

Android