77nn's mobile tech stack
This page contains my current tech stack and workflows on Android mobile platform. For Desktop platforms please look for their dedicated page(s).
77nn’s mobile tech stack
iPhone
I do possess an iPhone, but that is provided to me by the Company I work for, and I strictly use it for business purposes only. I did not install any application other than the ones provided to me by my Company’s initial setup. That’s not because I can’t, just that I want to keep it strictly separated from my private life, in order to avoid any issue, hassle, or abuse of my private data.
Android
I really do try, instead, to keep my personal smartphone as much degoogled as possible, without having to wipe it clean and replace the OS image with something that may or may not, work flawlessly.
I need to run my banks’ home banking applications, my personal electronic ID application, digital healthcare applications, insurance applications, my daughters’ school applications, and other things that have impact on my family’s daily life, so I cannot afford some half-assed Google services replacement. And I’m really sorry for that. In the future, however I plan to buy a natively degoogled phone and see if I can run all those applications, but this is not an option to try replacing the OS on a normal stock Android smartphone with no documented support for degoogled OSs. Unless, of course, you are knowledgeable enough and wiling to risk your phone’s warranty or bricking it entirely. I won’t judge.
So what I did is:
- Remove as much as pre-loaded applications as possible
- Replace base applications with open source or trusted alternatives
- Remove all permissions from Google applications I couldn’t remove
- Disable sync/backup with Google account
- Test all remaining applications so that nothing was broken
- Avoid installing any social application
I do guarantee that following these points will at least double your phone’s battery duration. You can forget to recharge it overnight and it will last another day or two. This will also nearly double your efficient battery lifetime.
Application Launcher: Kvæsitso
It’s an open source and search-focused home/launcher application for Android, not based on AOSP. It has its own widgets and can be extended using plugins. Plugins and settings allows a wide range of customizations as for search engines, weather services, calendar and multimedia players. Clean and lightweight.
App store: F-Droid, Obtainium
I use both applications: F-Droid to lookup for new applications to try, Obtainium to download them from GitHub directly. However I cannot completely disregard Play Store, as some applications will still rely on it for updates.
Sync: DAVx⁵
This is a great and must-have app to keep your calendar, contacts and to-do lists in sync if you’re using alternatives to Google services. I sync my contacts and calendar provided by mail provider posteo.de using this app.
Contacts and Dialer: OpenContacts, Emerald Dialer
https://gitlab.com/sultanahamer/OpenContacts
https://github.com/HenriDellal/emerald-dialer
This app creates and maintains its own internal contact database, so that other apps are unable to access it. It may be used as a dialer (that leverages however your phone app… I couldn’t find a way to make it the phone default app). It can sync contacts using CardDAV with your favorites service. Does not leverage DAVx⁵ yet. I feel this app is still immature, but it is worth a try. I use it alternating with Emerald Dialer, which is simpler but more stable and leverages DAVx⁵.
Calendar: Etar
https://github.com/Etar-Group/Etar-Calendar
Great calendar replacement based on AOSP. It automatically links to the DAVx⁵ provider and does not get in touch with Google if you care to disable it.
Browser: Fennec, URLCheck
https://f-droid.org/en/packages/org.mozilla.fennec_fdroid/
https://github.com/TrianguloY/URLCheck
I learned today that my preferred Android browser’s project was just shut down. I used to browse using Mull, but I had to switch back to Fennec: both are (were actually) based on Firefox for Android, but more privacy oriented and with Mozilla custom code and bits removed. However, Fennec is not my default browser. There’s a trick to this, since I use URLCheck as default. This helps a lot because it will disclose any link opened by apps other that the web browser. So, if on my social app i tap on a link, it will be analyzed by URLCheck and I’m able to see the full web address and eventually remove tracking parameters.
Notes: ImapNotes 3
https://github.com/niendo1/ImapNotes3
Ok, this is a rather ugly app, I recognize it. That’s why I also decided to help the community with translation (I’m not good a coding in Java!). There are tons of better apps for notes out there, but this is the only one (after trying an insane amount of apps for the same feature) that allows me to leverage my email provider’s imap notes service (posteo.de) without using another third party service. Full stop. Yes, I have NextCloud but the notes service is not active on my instance without paid subscription.
Podcast: AntennaPod
It’s a lightweight and privacy oriented player. Ad free (except if it is added by the podcaster) and lightweight. Lets you download the episodes for offline listening or stream them online. It allows searching for podcasts on multiple sources. The best experience so far
Camera: OpenCamera
Simple camera app, fully customizable. It does not use bullshit filters or AI, it just takes pictures and does not send any information about it to anyone.
Email: FairEmail
The best email app, for me, so far. Really focused on Privacy and Security, fully customizable with multiple providers, rules and models. I’ve got the lifetime subscription with PRO features.
Password Manager: KeePassDX
I switched back to Keepass after two years with Bitwarden. It was great, but at the same time disturbing, to have all of my passwords on a dedicated platform together with other millions. It’s a honeypot that cannot be ignored by criminals and control agents. I want to keep my passwords where I have control over them, with the encryption methods I feel comfortable with, with keys I own and only I have access to: probably no criminal will find them “valuable”, but my life is inevitably tied with numerous accounts and passwords, that I can’t trust anyone to keep them safe or accessible in my stead.
Cloud Storage: NextCloud
There are a lot of NextCloud instances to choose from. I had my way with a small instance providing a few GB of space, but I set it up so that I will keep only a small set of files on it, enough to cover important matters while I’m out of home (IDs, insurance, car registration, contracts, and a few more). Also I use it as a buffer where I upload things (pictures, files) that get passed to a local drive and removed from cloud by a job running on my home PC, while another job updates the folders marked as important on the cloud from a local storage.
Weather app: Breezy Weather
https://github.com/breezy-weather/breezy-weather
So far the best weather app I ever had. No ads, no tracking. It uses customizable weather sources, but I signed for OpenWeatherMap (that offers an API free subscription for frequent weather updates) to show accurate forecasts. It integrates with Kvæsitso launcher weatehr widget. It also provides a nice animated background that mimicks the weather outside. Gorgeous!