Whats the most affordable smartphone that can run a privacy-focused mobile OS?
Important note: im not from the US so any Google devices are out of the picture given they keep threatening/putting on/off tariffs and some countries are bound to retaliate (which is fair), yes i know there are used ones being sold for cheaper but its still a no from me
If you buy a refurbished or used google device, you're not giving money to that company. I'd rather have hardware that allows you to use a custom OS securely, and I don't know if any other vendors let you lock the bootloader with a custom OS on their devices.
GrapheneOS is the most privacy-focused of them all, but since it only supports Google devices, using it would mean directing money to a massive privacy violator and using hardware that they control. So it's not necessarily the best choice for everyone, even if they can afford one.
Depending on your needs (have you thought about your threat model?) LineageOS without Google Play services installed might be good enough. Lots of devices are officially supported, and unofficial ports can often be found for other devices on XDA Forums. I do this, building from source code myself instead of trusting pre-made builds.
If you go that route, keep in mind that non-Pixel devices generally don't allow installing your own keys and re-locking the bootloader, so an adversary that gets their hands on your phone would most likely be able to install malware on it. This is not a big concern for me, because I don't leave my phone anywhere that could happen, and I would consider even a Pixel to be compromised if an invasive agency like the TSA got physical access to it.
You mean CBP. Tsa isn't searching your phone.
I mean anyone. Whether it's TSA, CBP, CBSA, MI6, or TPC is completely irrelevant.
Even with tariffs, you should be able to pick up a used Pixel for a much better price than new.
They can run Graphene (which seems to be the best for privacy) or Lineage (which isn't privacy focused like Graphene, but doesn't have Google crap baked in).
I'm in the US and can get Pixel 5's for about $150. That's way less than any new phone.
Otherwise, take a look at what Lineage currently supports, check those phones out at phonearena.com and gsmarena.com.
Just to confirm @Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe 's comment above, refurbished Pixel 6's start around £106 on ebay etc. Might be even cheaper on somewhere like Vinted. Just make sure you flatten it before putting Graphene on it.
Flatten it?
Wow, the 6 is the new price point. Impressive.
Just get a dumb phone, or a basic feature phone that gets 3G and maybe WhatsApp. They will be 20% of the price of even a cheap smartphone.
If you really want to commit to Graphine, their website lists phones they support. Maybe look on the website to see what you have access to and can afford.
Honestly, how do you expect to install the OS when you can't even search the website to look at the list of supported devices? It's not hidden info.
It only works on Pixels. They said they don't want a Pixel.
I was thinking Lineage and wrote Graphine. That's my bad, but as others have said, Lineage isn't exactly privacy focused, just not Googley.
If you are not running GrapheneOS your phone is not private
That wasn't the question being asked.
Check supported devices for your favourite custom ROM. Whatever is available is the best phone.
a few points to consider for the usual "get a refurb pixel" crowd:
my view is - yeah, get an used phone, unlock bootloader, flash lineageOS. but do it for $50, and not a fucking multiple of that.
e.g. here's one of my sub-$50 acquisitons: Poco F1 - SDM845, 8 GB RAM, 120 GB storage, excellent LineageOS support as well as postmarketOS, mobian, Ubuntu Touch. on top of that, plastic back that's easily removable and the battery swap takes like two minutes.
so, the usual answer to your question was to a get an Xiaomi/Mi/Redmi/Poco Snapdragon phone, unlock it, and flash whatever LineageOS variant you like - you get very competent hardware, very good battery, and they are widely available. plus, they ship with a dogawful skin (MIUI/HyperSomething) that's bloated and shitty and makes the very competent hardware sluggish - a lot of people sell them because they're dissatisfied.
however, they've progressively made unlock process as hostile as possible - waiting periods, windows-only unlock tools, artificial limits on number of phones you can unlock, etc. also, they have been dicks about releasing source code (apparently, the one guy who did that got fired or sumsuch) and this limits the alt ROMs you can get.
so, my advice - go to LineageOS website, and filter for "LineageOS Version" which is 22.2. as of now. that will show you all the devices that are officially supported and based on that you can pick a model that is available for cheap in your region.
happy hunting and let us know what you ended up with.