Four seconds of reading Vs a 16 minute video

Such as? Been thinking of flashing GrapheneOS since I got a Pixel on the way.

Please elaborate and/or [Citation needed].

This is incorrect. It strengthens both privacy and security in a lot of ways for an average user.

The tin can phone inherently provides end-to-end encryption. The acoustic signals, which are essentially longitudinal mechanical vibrations, travel directly through a taut string or wire. This physical medium ensures that the sound waves are converted into mechanical vibrations at the transmitting end and reconverted into sound at the receiving end, effectively eliminating any possibility of electronic eavesdropping or interception.

One of the most significant advantages of the tin can phone is its complete absence of a digital footprint. Unlike modern telecommunication devices that rely on electronic signals and data packets, tin can phone operates purely on mechanical principles. This means there are no digital records, metadata, or logs that can be hacked, traced, or subpoenaed.

The simplicity of the tin can phone renders it immune to a wide array of cyber threats. There are no software vulnerabilities, no firmware to update, and no risk of malware or ransomware attacks. The device's operation is entirely analog, relying on the physical properties of sound waves and mechanical vibrations, making it impervious to digital exploits.

The physical nature of the tin can phone also contributes to its security. The string must be kept taut for effective communication, and any attempt to tap into the line would be immediately noticeable due to the loss of tension and degradation of sound quality. This provides a built-in tamper-evident feature, ensuring that any unauthorized access attempts are easily detected. On top of that, if someone attempts a man in the middle attack, you should be able to see it happening during the call and act accordingly before any sensitive data gets exposed.

The operational simplicity of the string and cans phone is another layer of security. With no complex interfaces or user authentication mechanisms, the risk of user error leading to security breaches is virtually nonexistent.

No google, samsung, or apple services in the background or separate carrier operating system. Plus the audio is always worse on the old phones. Unless law enforcement is out to get ya, the only thing being tracked is what time and number called you, or whom you called and at what time.

Correction, the developers, not the community, are flat out pricks (not "slightly unfriendly"), but this does nothing to remove how amazing the OS is for anyone wanting to remove themselves from all the mainstream garbage in the mobile devices scenario while being able to keep productivity with a few workarounds.

Yep. I'm willing to deal with a prick developer who's taking this on their shoulders. Theyve really produced something incredible with GrapheneOS. I'm not willing to deal with the pricks who sell my data to anyone and everyone. Especially pricks who have had contracts with various intelligence agencies.

Your first comment was right: no phone

Dongles create additional & unnecessary points of failure in your setup (sometimes additional stress on the USB jack too which is usually your only I/O port (which is also making you choose charging or power)). Personal devices that play media need this standard jack that has existed for decades—& I refuse to play ball with these OEMs hurting customers.

Ok but wifi only isn't really a phone?

i didn't, but it is possible, altrough, not straightforward and requires some knowledge. I have an aosp-based custom rom, vanilla InfinityXOS (previously Superior-Extended). I have Poco X3 Pro btw. And because of how bootloader unlocking works, it is not a two-way process on xiaomi devices. Once you unlock it, there is no going back. If you try, it will hard brick and you can get a JTAG or something to reprogram the soc capacitors (doesn't worth trying, there isn't any single known xiaomi phone that didn't brick upon an attempt to relock the bootloader)