Android without Google apps: the best alternatives!

Another ROM

First thing waiting for you is to choose another ROM. Without this step, you cannot do the necessary cleaning afterwards. Install TRWP on your smartphone and install what you need. The web is full of great options depending on what you like in terms of possibilities. We can especially recommend Lineage, Dirty Unicorns, SlimROMS, Paranoid Android and even MIUI.

Be careful, you’ll be able to install the Open GApps package later, do nothing about it, it might detract a bit from your experiment.

• 6 reasons to install a custom ROM on Android
• Custom Android ROM: what is it and what is it for?

F-Droid will replace Google Play Store

The first thing to do is to find a new source for your apps. Since you don’t have Google apps, it means you don’t have Play Store either. So we’ll have to look on the side of open source solutions.

Here are a few alternatives for you. The easiest way is probably to start by installing it. a familiar keyboard, a launcher,… in short, small accessories that are indispensable for you. If they’re on the Play Store, you should at least be able to find some great alternatives here.

If you haven’t found everything you need yet, have a look aroundAmazon App Store, Uptodown or Aptoide. With these different options you should find what you need. It is not yet clear whether you will have access to the latest updates. Also, some situations can still be problematic, as we’ll explain below.

Alternatives to Google Maps

Google Maps is undoubtedly one of the apps we use the most in the package, with Gmail or Drive for example. While much depends on the use of our generals, the need to find an address or which way to go are constants that are constantly renewed.

The good news is there are alternatives and they are quite successful. Whether you want offline access, advanced route management, 3D vision is up to you… Among the options you should look at right away, we highly recommend OpenStreetMap and OsmAnd.

• Going further: The best GPS to replace Google Maps

The difficulty of changing Gmail

If you’re getting your emails from your Android phone, there’s a good chance your core app is Gmail. And there’s a lot to tell you right away that the competition, if any, is still a long way from truly adapting. whether it is on multi-account management, ergonomics or interaction with other applicationsyour life must get really complicated.

• Gmail: 10 best alternatives on Android

Google calendar, impossible equation

Perhaps that’s what the least troublesome person would think. But in the end, this is where things get really tough. Probably the simplest would be to use a service based on a website and run it via a shortcut system on your smartphone. Be careful if you have several emails then things become impossible. And if it’s time to return to the paper diary?

And if you’re really short of it, then the easiest way is probably to buck up and turn to MicroG to save your good old Google calendar. However, its relevance will be limited due to the lack of synchronization with your other apps.

The main limits of this migration

If we review the races, if we often criticize Apple for offering a closed ecosystem to its users, The same observation can be made for Google products today.. In connection with most of our services, the absence of Google apps prevents them.

Beyond simple practices, you will find yourself blocked in other aspects that you didn’t necessarily anticipate. thus, integrated GSM and automatic location service, cannot be activated without the rest of the apps. The GPS function can be used, but other services may be blocked.

Finally, as more and more move towards home automation and connected homes, certain services are also becoming inaccessible. deprive yourself of the Google ecosystem. For example, you won’t be able to use Hue-connected bulbs. If you plan to gradually connect most of your home, this can seriously complicate your life.