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I installed /e/ OS on my old Galaxy S7 from 2016:

Really surprised to see that they support this model. Basically I made it functional again. I will try to replace its camera from another S7 that is bricked. I will document everything and it will all merge into a big article about mobile phones ;).

I really like my Pixel 4a with CalyxOS. Control control control. Am excited to start my astrophotography adventure with it :).

in reply to Tio

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Nice! I mainly use a Samsung S7 Active which is just moderately deGoogled / cleaned out with ADB. Though I do also have a standard S7 which I've much more aggressively stripped down to a bare minimum of packages and it boots up so super fast now in just a few seconds 🤓

I have considered trying /e/OS before, but didn't want to lose access to the default camera app.

in reply to BB

Tio
Tio
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I recommend /e/ OS because that updates Android to version 10. Samsung got stuck at 8. Plus if you use OpenCamera then that can be even better than Samsung's camera. Maybe install it beforehand and play with it.
in reply to Tio

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I have played with both Open Camera and A Better Camera before, and found that they both could be good in certain circumstances but not as reliable performing as the default app and maybe missing some feature or other which I forget. But it's been years since then, so maybe I should give Open Camera another look sometime.
in reply to BB

Tio
Tio
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Yes true. For my Pixel 4a too, I much prefer the Pixel Camera than any other camera despite using CalyxOS. Does a much better job....unfortunately there are no better alternatives.
in reply to Tio

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And tbh, Android 7/8 is already new and fancy to me. I've used the S7 Active for some years just for GPS, but only in the past year or so switched it to being my actual phone too. Before that I always used my much more compact S4 mini with its (very cheaply) replaceable battery. But it got to the point where too many apps stopped supporting the Android 4.4 on that, otherwise I would still be using it today. Perfect just as a straightforward and unobtrusive phone.
in reply to Tio

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The newer Android versions are also becoming increasingly locked down with less control available to the user which also makes me less keen to update to them. And in general I'm quite opposed to the modern trend of increasingly frequent forced updates of software systems with no real benefits to the end user. But I still agree that it can be seen as a potential benefit of /e/OS 👍
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