I like to buy a Fairphone as a birthday present for a friend. However, anything with certain “mobile services” on it is not an option. Fortunately, the date is still some months ahead. Will there be “Fairphone Open” or “Lineage OS” soon? Or, alternatively, is it easy to remove any shady services and (g)apps?
Another alternative would be an FP2, but I’m not sure, whether I still can buy it (new, with full warranty).
Many thanks in advance!
Welcome to the community forum.
Regarding “official” status … Nobody knows right now.
If you are halfway tech-savvy, here’s what you can do already …
I find it interesting how people seem to have more hate for Google than love for the Planet. It seems more important to have a Google-free phone than a phone built without resorting to slavery, conflict-materials, and with sustainability in mind.
I prefer to have a Fairphone with Google, than any Google/Apple/Amazon/Microsoft/Samsung/Huawei-free phone.
Of course Open OS would be better, but in the meantime the FP2 is great, even second-hand, so I’m patiently waiting for an Open OS alternative for the FP3 (that I don’t have, as my FP2 still feels great with Lineage).
(And of course when we say “the Planet”, we really mean “mankind”, the Planet will get over it eventually. We won’t)
Not to go off-topic here but I 2000% agree with this. I’ve heard the “I care for the the planet” argument too many times and honestly people need to get exactly this in their heads. The Moon, Mars or planet Earth are just big rocks. They don’t care if we make it rain sulfuric acid or detonate every nuclear warhead we have. People that ‘care for the environment’ need to start thinking more about ‘care for the people living in it’.
Back on topic, but related to the above, caring for the people incidentally means caring for mass surveillance in a digital age. My prioritiy goes for taking care of the environment first, of course, which is why I’d prefer delaying buying a new phone. This will also send a message to FP (and other companies) to make their devices easily accessible for developers. And hopefully in the distant future even have active efforts made to push for open source OS installed by default.
I really agree to your hopes.
I am just a bit pessimistic, as this is big business and up to now people seem to care more about new features being advertised than they care about their privacy and security; as even just 5% of FP owners chose the FP-Open OS.
And on the off-topic theme:
While you are essentially right of course, I wouldn’t put the focus that much on mankind or humans, as our species - in my opinion - is rather dispensable.
And saying “Save the Planet” obviously does include the everything alive on the surface, in the waters and in the air.
Clearly it is a big effort to fully deploy a free OS and there might be tasks for the Dev team at FP that pay off more these days. But I also think that it would not be needed that everything is done by the team there. Just some details would help the community a lot to progress in a free OS for FP3 and this could even pay out at the end. I for example am willing to order a PF3 on the day where a free OS is available.
So let’s continue to hope and wait!
If “a free OS” means any free OS and “available” means that you could install and use it … this is possible already … just not from Fairphone, and not like e.g. official LineageOS, but anyway … blame your lax definition 
…
Can you also show where the monthly security updates are available? Or do you want to say that the outdated experiment system is meant for continuous use?
I’m also waiting for a privacy friendly way to use an FP3, I won’t buy one before.
Can you actually read what I quoted, and what I answered to the quote?
Else … I share your concern.
You know exactly what he meant with “free OS”, no need always to pointing out inaccuracies in such questions.
I’m glad we agree. 
Same here.
And we owned various FP1 and FP2s in the family, which came for the first one straight with a GAPPs-free OS, then for the second one with a complex option to still install Fairphone’s own version of it (with three months delay).
Now, it’s pretty clear that the privacy-mided of us have become extremely few -even here, of which I deduce we are now the least important in the developers’ agenda.
Alas.
At the very least they don’t announce they renounce preparing it…
I don’t come often here (this time it was triggered by the emailing about voting for the colors… something obviously more important, isn’t it.)
But I’ll continue to come and only buy once FP own open OS will have been made available. Some day…
I feel exactly the same way. Mainly come here looking for news on the software front. Sad that nothing has been released yet and equally sad that there’s no communication on the progress. But the latter one I’m used to with Fairphone - always having felt a bit quiet for such a community-minded developer.
Though I understand your frustration.
The cover-design is hardly conflicting with software development when it comes to importance, as this is surely done by different people.
I even would guess, that such a thing as the protective-cover are a by-product of developing/designing the phone. It just needs some fine-tuning and deciding on the colors.
It took google(alphabet) decades, thousands of people, and huge sums of money to develop the way it is today, and the presence of android is everywhere!
However, there are plenty of resourceful developers willing to work for free for the right cause, all you have to do is organize them in the same way google did once. As you know the secret to building anything is communication.
Google are not that bad if you don’t feel self-important. Maybe we have to work with a monster to make it less monster?
I agree with you but it has been discussed already that the focus of Fairphone is not on the software, but on the hardware. That thread also exploded in activity within hours so it’s clear there’s an interest in having protective cases, and that means another source of income and potentially visibility for the brand. I assume the cases are also manufactured with sustainability in mind, too.
At this point it’s clear that we rely on the community to make the FP3 run a more privacy-friendly OS. It would be great if the company itself got invested but I don’t see that happening any time soon, especially since it’s not an easy task by no means.
So as it’s been said before, let’s tackle things one at the time.
That was just not the case for Fairphones 1 and 2
This is exactly the opposite of what I’m waiting for.
I’m waiting for Fairphone Open to be validated, by Fairphone, on model 3. Not try by myself something nobody will feel responsible of…
Where to check : https://code.fairphone.com/projects/fairphone-2-official-releases.html#fairphone-open-versions
Last update, in a long series, was in December (for Fairphones 2…)
Having attention to the software part does not detract from respect for the mankind.
Having control over the software is not only for privacy but it refers to the control over billions of people (passive and active): I rightly believe that it has, for now in a less bloody way, influence on people’s freedoms.
My Fairphone 2 got damaged… But I only will buy a FP3 when there is Fairphone Open OS because it was one of the major aspects (ofcourse that it is fair too) for me when I bought the FP2 back in the days.
So long I’ll stay on my damaged FP2.
Please, for the love of god, add the FP Open OS!