MAGA-Branded 'Freedom Phone' Is a Black Box That Should Be Avoided at All Costs [View all]
Note: I am guessing 0.00% of the regulars who frequent DU and CHaS will buy one of these phones. Maybe a few lurkers will. I am posting this because, undoubtedly, you will hear about these from your MAGA-loving relatives and friends.
https://gizmodo.com/maga-branded-freedom-phone-is-a-black-box-that-should-b-1847299215
Be it Parler, Gab, or GETTR, recent times have seen no shortage of dollar-sign-eyed entrepreneurs looking to capitalize on conservative Americas disdain for liberal Silicon Valley. It was only a matter of time before someone tried to invent the MAGA phone.
Er, make that...the Freedom Phone. The device, which launched Thursday, is the product of Erik Finman, a 22-year-old crypto-millionaire who says that he wants Americas patriots to take back control of their lives from the tech oligarchy. Finmans phone, which costs $499, claims to offer conservatives a way to be free of Big Techs spying and censorshipthough it is radically vague on the details. Like a random handgun, the phone should be treated as if it were loaded and dangerous because we simply dont know whats in the chamber.
Freedom Phone claims that it can protect users from the data collection that comes with an iOS or Android operating system (it has something called a FreedomOSwhich, ironically, just appears to be a modified version go Googles Android OS). The phone is also meant to liberate users from Big Techs alleged ideological preferences: it has an uncensorable app store (called the PatriApp, lol), where it is apparently impossible for apps to get booted no matter how unsafe or horrendous they are.
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The funny thing is, if Trump voters are looking for a way to get off the Big Tech grid, theres no need for them to buy this sketchy shit. There are actually entire subcultures within the phone industry dedicated to escaping the Android/iOS paradigm. You can wade into the de-Googled phone sector, for instancewhere Android phones are sold that have ostensibly been refurbished to rid the devices of code that will send your personal data back to the tech giant. Theres also the Linux-based Pinephone, which sells at a fraction of the Freedom Phones cost (between $150 and $200), and is a favorite of those in the privacy community. All of these come with caveats, obviously, but the point is that there are much more transparent and affordable options than the Freedom Phone.
Bottom line, the MAGA crowd is being scammed. I know we're all upset about that /sarcasm off.
See this review for another opinion (basically the same):
https://thenextweb.com/news/freedom-phone-anatomy-maga-scam