I assume you’re “voting with your wallet” which imo is not an effective or worthwhile endeavor. What manufacturer is so much better than Google that they’re actually worth going with over a Pixel with Graphene? The only one that I can think of is maybe Fairphone, but it only works in Europe and the extra cost would likely be better spent towards a donation to a project like GrapheneOS than a mediocre device that is neither private nor secure nor degoogled.

my primary reasoning for an android alternative is to get out of google’s walled garden

You don’t even need an alternative OS to get out of Google’s walled garden. You can and probably should start doing that before you move to an entirely new OS.

Well that sucks

ALL of the internationally branded phones i’ve had (mostly chinese) had compatability quirks with my aftermarket jvc head unit.

I would suspect GrapheneOS would be more likely to work than these, but you could always ask on the forum if anyone has any experience

there was also something wrong with them and some esoteric policy at the places i purchased them from wouldn’t let me get a refund

Ebay has very good buyer protections - arguably too good, making things hard for small sellers. Virtually impossible to not get a refund within eBay’s 30 day return period.

do you have any information on movement with any oems & graphene?

They’ve confirmed it’s happening but likely not until later this year or 2027

eos looks the most likely to me

Don’t use eos if mobile security matters at all to you. It’s also not nearly as private as GrapheneOS and frequently phones home to Google.

ig, you could just buy used though or wait for their own device to be released via the upcoming OEM partnership. I wouldn’t be surprised if pixels are sold at a loss or break even point anyway, supplemented by surveillance capitalism and google play store revenue.

the kernel in mint 22.2 is from march and fingerprint reader support is still poor

If you have recent hardware mint is not a good choice. Otherwise yes.

Boo insufficient shit

TBH I don’t remember if it was wired or wireless but my understanding is that GrapheneOS’s implementation is essentially the same as what is included on stock android for Pixels, so both wired and wireless work (https://grapheneos.org/usage#android-auto).

I used it with a stock system so not aftermarket. Do you have any specific reason to believe aftermarket systems wouldn’t work? If they support android auto you should be fine.

Banking apps yes

https://privsec.dev/posts/android/banking-applications-compatibility-with-grapheneos/

If I can answer any questions about GrapheneOS lmk. Android auto works, I don’t drive much but I’ve used it before. You can also ask on https://discuss.grapheneos.org/

/e/ OS is not more secure than lineage. It tends to lag behind on security updates by months.

https://eylenburg.github.io/android_comparison.htm

For privacy, security, and usability, GrapheneOS is the best alternative mobile os by far. The only downsides are if you don’t like or can’t afford Pixel phones, and even GrapheneOS won’t have certain features you may need such as mobile device management, google wallet nfc payments, certain apps especially banking apps.

finally made a lemmy account just to downvote you. don’t fucking do whippets they can paralyze you for life. I’ve seen it. And dentists use it because they have years of training and proper equipment and they understand the risks (unlike you clearly).