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Best Phone ~ £150 for Tether / Hotspot?

The Pixel 5 is still supported, so it runs the latest Android version (13). I think support ends this year though.

LineageOS is great. I use it on my phone (OnePlus 8 Pro) but with Google Apps and Magisk as I need banking apps to work. I only tested it once without GApps and the standby drain dropped in half or something like that... it surprised me. But it's not for everyone.
 
But it's not for everyone.
Indeed, you need to be able and willing to fiddle around.
I am currently using the MicroG version of LineageOS (for the push notification to work mainly) on my smartphone and vanilla LineageOS on the "tethering" smartphones.

Ah, one important thing to add. Even if you keep the regular Android OS from Google, try to root it (install Magisk that is) and install AccA - it's an app that limits battery charging, very important for battery health especially if it's going to be plugged in all the time.
(or use a Chargie device, but this one costs ££).
 
ACCA is this app. Needs root, as mentioned by Lucian:

- https://f-droid.org/en/packages/mattecarra.accapp/

I had some issues with it (crashes), so I use a Magisk module instead. Needs to be set up via terminal (I use Termux), but works well:

- Advanced Charging Controller (ACC): https://github.com/VR-25/acc

- Termux: https://f-droid.org/en/packages/com.termux/

For LineageOS users, they're releasing a setting that allows you to restrict charging based on schedule, alarms, and a % limit without any of these 3rd party tools. On my OnePlus 8 Pro:

ZQFkYqG.png


I can't use it on my Poco F4 (which I use as hotspot) because there's no official LineageOS builds though. I still use the Magisk module on that device.
 
For LineageOS users, they're releasing a setting that allows you to restrict charging based on schedule, alarms, and a % limit without any of these 3rd party tools.
Oh lovely! Do you know in which version this will land?
I just checked and I don't have it. I'm on the microG version of Lineageos: 19-20230419.
 
Oh lovely! Do you know in which version this will land?
I just checked and I don't have it. I'm on the microG version of Lineageos: 19-20230419.

They shipped it last week for my phone (LOS 20, build 20230611):

Screenshot 2023-06-15 at 16.56.41.webp


I don't know if they'll enable this for all phones though. It seems that at least Pixels and phones with the "sm8250" (Snapdragon 865) have the setting.

I think LOS 19 is in maintenance mode, so I'm not sure if they'll add it to that base.
 
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Currently I use a work issued iPhone 11 Pro Max with an O2 sim which performs so badly I’m willing to chuck some of my own dough trying something else, which given the above I will put an EE sim into.

Why not just get an ESIM for your phone and test it out with the 11 Pro Max on 4G only?
 
Why not just get an ESIM for your phone and test it out with the 11 Pro Max on 4G only?
Good question!! To be honest I had thought of it, going so far to look at whether I could get a data only eSIM from EE but silly me only looked at their website which I’m sure gave me the impression not. So I didn’t think it was a go-er - but now I know of Scancom I know it was, doh!

Sooooo…In the interim I’ve ploughed ahead and bought the Xiaomi Mi 10t Lite that arrived today and which I’ll test tomorrow. No buyer’s remorse, my first Android handset EVER so I’m interested to explore the more open nature of the platform. Keen to dive in at the deep end, before I set it to task I’d like to get as much Xiaomi and Google bloat off it, and flash it with the best software appropriate to my limited, for now, MiFI usage.

Ethernet tethering via USB sounds good as I’m my work laptop is managed so USB tethering isn’t possible. Certainly it doesn’t work with my iPhone, and when using WiFi tether the connection drops constantly (seems like a common issue).

Any advice towards what I should do?

Thanks!
 
I'd try to use the phone for a bit as it is (after updates and a reset) to get an idea of what Xiaomi's Android is. Their "ROM" is a bit different from Samsung's, Samsung's is different from what you'll find on a Google Pixel, etc. The level of bloat is also different, which cheap Xiaomi devices coming with more crap than their more expensive devices.

Then I'd try a custom ROM like LineageOS to see if it's better for my use than the stock Xiaomi ROM. There are trade-offs. For example, you won't be able make contactless payments out of the box. If you decide not to use Google Apps, you won't have an app store, many banking apps won't work, you'll break notifications on some apps, etc. LineageOS, while stable, doesn't have a paid team testing every setting of the phone to see if it works.

If you like this custom ROM thing, there are other less "professional" custom ROMs in places like XDA developers with more features. Just keep in mind that they probably won't be as stable as Lineage or the original Xiaomi ROM.

If you prefer to use the stock ROM, but want to remove the bloat, there are tools like this one: https://github.com/0x192/universal-android-debloater

You can "jump" right away, but then you might get the wrong idea about Android. Your opinion about iPhones wouldn't be the same if the first time you used one you tried to jailbreak it, remove all Apple services, etc. Or if you moved to Linux and started tweaking and compiling the kernel yourself instead of just installing Ubuntu. It won't be a smooth experience and there's a lot to learn.

I'm fine with custom ROMs. I've been using LineageOS (or CyanogenMod as it was called back then) for the most of the past 7 years. I'm okay with the trade-offs and can fix almost every issue that arises from time to time, but this is not something my parents or most of my friends would want to use. I like to thinker with my devices while they just want them to work.
 
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