If you are interested in using Android, but do not want everything to be connected with Google, there are ways to completely abandon Google. Thanks to the correct set of tools, you can have a really open Android-interface.

Why do you do it

That's what: For most people, Google is what Android makes good. Google, Google Play and Permanent Synchronization with your Gmail account are one of the most valuable things in Android.

But many people take responsibility for the fact that Google knows how they use their phones, so the idea of \u200b\u200bAndroid device simply does not work for them. If you like the idea of \u200b\u200bAndroid, but do not like to deal with Google, then Android-phone without Google can be a good solution for you.

Of course, it requires some intervention. You can not simply disable Google from any existing phone. You delete Google's operating system that comes on the phone, and replacing it with an alternative, and for some phones is the best solution.

What you need to do

The first thing you need is the right Android phone. This will require phone cleaning and user ROM download. Something with a unlocked loader, like anything from the old Nexus line - or a good bypass route for custom ROMs, is perfect.

Otherwise, you will need a custom ROM. We tested it using LineageOS - it has excellent support for the device and is often updated.

How to use android without google

For testing, we use the Lineage OS installed on the Nexus 6. Right out of the box, the setup experience is quite simple - just click, and you are ready to work. Since there are no Google services on the device, to enter it nothing.

But here also arises the first question: how to get applications? Without a Play Store, this is an empty system without any ecosystem. The good news is that, since Android is open, there are good (and trustworthy) Alternatives to the Play Store. In particular, two are allocated:

• Amazon Underground: Amazon Android-store has the largest application directory outside the Google Play, which allows you to install most of your favorite applications without need to google.
• F-Droid: The F-Droid application store is a less well-known alternative to Google Play, but this is an excellent choice for those who want only open source software. All that is in the F-Droid store is available with open source and is available for use, which makes it the best choice for those who prefer this ecosystem.

There is also a third option, although this is not a real AppStore: apkmirror. This is a website APK (Android Package Kit), which displays free apps you will find on Google Play Store. This APK user-loaded is checked and approved by APKMirror employees manually, so you can believe that they are always legal copies pulled out on Google Play devices - they never piate and have no spyware.

Regardless of which direction you go, you will need "unknown sources" to even install the AppStore itself, as well as any applications from the specified store. If you do not know how to do it, we have a guide to download applications.

You simply use the phone browser to download the appropriate APK file - either the AppStore, or the autonomous APK, and then set it up in normal mode.

Things you miss without google

As we said, Google's services add great value to Android, and you will obviously lose by moving on Android without Google.

You will skip the synchronization of contacts, which is very important for most people. Of course, you can export your contacts and reserve them before decide to leave Google, which is a good idea.

Otherwise, you skip things like chrome synchronization and passwords Chrome, Gmail, Google Cards, Google Pay ... Almost all Google Apps. This is one thing to remember when downloading anything (especially from apkmirror): If this requires Google Play Services, it will simply not work on your new phone without Google.

There is an alternative: microg

There is an alternative to Google Play Services: a project called Microg. It is intended to simulate all Google Play services, but has a fully open source code.

It consists of five key components designed to replace the main tools available in Play Services. This theoretically should allow applications that usually require Play Services - such as maps or Gmail. But here's what: Microg is compatible with ROM, which support the signature fake ... and Lineage OS is not one of them. As a result, Microg has its own Lineage branch called LineageOS for Microg.

Of course, it also breaks the whole goal of the Android project without Google, but this is an alternative if you want to live free from Google, but still rely on access to one or two specific applications.

So, use Android without Google? Probably no. But if you want to exit the Google ecosystem, you are not a big fan of Apple, and not against, downloading a custom ROM, it is definitely possible. If you do not need any Google services, it's even better.

Get used to good quickly. Ecosystems from Microsoft, Apple and Google tightly settled on mobile devices, enveloped them with their unsuccessful and deeply integrated services. You can imagine iPhone without iTunes music, ICloud clouds, IWork office package or any lumi without xbox Music, OneDrive, MS Office? Agree - this is a pitiful spectacle. But how interesting is the Android-smartphone without signs of Google's intervention? Read more about it.

Why delete Google Services?

As it turns out, it turned out, it was in the evening, there was nothing to do and I was firmly firmware with my gently beloved Sony Xperia Z1 Compact on CyanogenMod latest version - 12.1 (based on Android 5.1 Lollipop). Cyanogen's developers decently broke the firewood during my absence in the world of custom firmware and besides a slaughter in their structure and internal scripts of the installation archive, they also decided to give users their own recovery menu - Cyanogen Recovery. What these "enthusiasts" did not suit the classic and much more functional CWM it is incomprehensible to me, but nothing to do nothing.

As we know, almost all firmware CM / AOSP-based class are supplied without Google services - they need to be installed separately from the archive in ZIP format. Since I'm used to minimalism, I downloaded a third-party application package, but branded recovery refused to sew it, referring to the lack of signature. I did not want to sew signed by Cyans with Cyans and decided to abandon this venture at all and live the week freed from the Probr.

Key reasons that may encourage you to repeat my experiment can be three:

1) become the owner of his smartphone

As we know, a little less than all smartphones that are officially sold in Europe and the CIS, go with pre-installed Google services that cannot be removed (the Chinese allow themselves to abandon them, replacing analogs for local markets). Alas, but these are the licensing conditions of the OS. But what the hell is the smartphone decides for us, that you can delete, and what is not?

Following my way, while ordinary users are perplexed, what is this "Google Assistant", the music on the subscription, the market, "for the programs you need to pay" - you become a full owner and the full ruler of your device. Only you decide what will be preset on your smartphone and how it will work. For this, it is not necessary to sew cm, you can simply get the root of the right to the stock firmware and cut off all the more superfluous through the Root Explorer or Titanium Backup.

2) + 50% autonomy

I do not think that I will reveal to someone America, if I say that Google services eat the battery in about the same way as a table chrome RAM. The main energy consumption fees to actions that are associated with the network access - synchronization of contacts, documents, receiving mail, sending location, use statistics, game achievements in Google Play Games. Even if deliberately disable many unnecessary synchronization dotnikov, the sublightened Gugalvisians manage forever hanging in the background, exhausting the RAM and sending data and the statistics of the use of your gadget.

Getting rid of this nice you get about a hundred megabytes of additionally free RAM and about 50% of autonomous time growth.

3) paranoid comfort

It is quite logical that getting rid of the permanent transmitter of data on your location and annoying applications that require too many access privileges, paranoids will be able to breathe calmly and relax. Now, no one secretly scans the nearby WiFi points, allegedly to increase geolocation accuracy, no one writes the exact history of your movements on the world map, no one collects statistics about you, does not even know in what language you communicate with the outside world.

Back to Symbian.

In the Symbian-smartphone era (fastened, yes?) The applications on the smartphone were installed (unexpectedly) using installation files, by analogy with how you do it on a PC running Windows. So my life without Google services is a great chance to posstalgate and return to that very era. At your service stroke.apk files on developers sites or forums like 4PDA and XDA-DEVELOPERS.

For the most harmful also available alternative markets - Amazon, Yandex, Slideme, Aptoide, 1mobile, as well as a free software repository called F-Droid. These and other markets have a good database of proposals, naturally, inferior to Google Play "file". Alternative markets often also have the latest versions of current applications and are able to automatically update them.

Main problems and deprivation

First of all, I needed my contacts in the amount of 170 pieces. Naturally, the synchronization could be forgotten, so I made exports of contacts from Gmail to the VCard file, which was successfully fed the phone. After restoring the contacts, you needed to connect mail. The standard mailer from the CyanogenMod delivery kit has fully arranged - Push can take how to take it, it looks very similar to Gmail, supports gestures. True, the corporate box had to be sweat, manually prescribing server settings.

Among the applications proposed above, I left 4PDA and F-Droid. From the latter, I installed the Firefox browser and the Telegram messenger, Adaway advertising blocker, as well as some specific programs that will tell further. The rest of the goodness is social clients, read books and the FLEKSY keyboard, I hid in good faith from the forum. It was here that the first serious problem for me got out.

My favorite Fleksy keyboard turned out to be tied to a Google account, respectively, I could not pull the dictionaries and personalize the text set. I killed a good half a year at one time to teach the keyboard with all my matuts and abbreviations, as a result, having received a superval and monstrous fast text set speed on the smartphone, but without Google services, all this turned out to be inaccessible to me.

The calendar has become another stumbling block in my experiment. It cannot create an event without connecting the google account. The solution was found represented by Offline Calendar applications available in the F-Droid repositories, which created a local calendar on the device.

So is it worth the game of the candle?

As usual, solve you, and only you! In general, to live without Google services in fact, with some reservations, more than comfortable, and the lion's share of problems is solved. Popular applications gradually find a replacement, wondering how it was very tied to something alone, you begin to rejoice at the excess day of work from one charge of the batteries, who are clarified by the fact that he became a full-fledged lord over his device and its system. But, I will be frank - existence without Google services is an interesting game for Gicks and enthusiasts and not everyone will come out of it by the winners. The losers await the loss of all data in the event of a serious breakdown of the smartphone or its disappearance. Serious software malfunctions in the operation of the device are not excluded after inept intervention in system files.

If you feel ready for the feats, it seems to me that Google's rejection will give you a lot of impressions and interesting discoveries. Start with a couple of days or weeks, and there, you look, you will like it and do not want to return back. Or want?

So it happened that you get used to good quickly. Ecosystems from Microsoft, Apple and Google tightly settled on mobile devices, enveloped them with their unsuccessful and deeply integrated services. You can imagine iPhone without iTunes music, ICloud clouds, IWork office package or any lumi without xbox Music, OneDrive, MS Office? Agree - this is a pitiful spectacle. But how interesting is the Android-smartphone without signs of Google's intervention? Now I will tell.

Why delete Google Services?

As it turns out, it turned out, it was in the evening, there was nothing to do and I was firmly firmware with my gently beloved Sony Xperia Z1 Compact on CyanogenMod latest version - 12.1 (based on Android 5.1 Lollipop). The developers of Cianogene Mudaki decently broke the firewood during my lack of custom firmware in the world and besides a slaughter in their structure and internal scripts of the installation archive, they also decided to highlight their company recovery menu - Cyanogen Recovery. What these feasible enthusiasts did not suit the classic and much more functional CWM, I do not understand me, but nothing to do nothing.

As we know, almost all firmware CM / AOSP-based class are supplied without Google services - they need to be installed separately from the archive in ZIP format. Since I'm used to minimalism, I downloaded a third-party application package, but branded recovery refused to sew it referring to the lack of signature. I did not want to sew signed by Cyans with Cyans and decided to abandon this venture at all and live the week freed from the Probr.

Key reasons that may encourage you to repeat my experiment can be three:

1) become the owner of his smartphone

As we know, a little less than all smartphones that are officially sold in Europe and the CIS, go with pre-installed Google services that cannot be removed (the Chinese allow themselves to abandon them, replacing analogs for local markets). Alas, but these are the licensing conditions of the OS. But what the hell is the smartphone decides for us, that you can delete, and what is not?

Following my way, while ordinary users are perplexed, what is this "Google Assistant", the music on the subscription, the market, "for the programs you need to pay" - you become a full owner and the full ruler of your device. Only you decide what will be preset on your smartphone and how it will work. For this, it is not necessary to sew cm, you can simply get the root of the right to the stock firmware and cut off all the more superfluous through the Root Explorer or Titanium Backup.

2) + 50% autonomy

I do not think that I will reveal to someone America, if I say that Google services eat the battery in about the same way as a table chrome RAM. The main energy consumption fees to actions that are associated with the network access - synchronization of contacts, documents, receiving mail, sending location, use statistics, game achievements in Google Play Games. Even if deliberately disable many unnecessary synchronization dotnikov, the sublightened Gugalvisians manage forever hanging in the background, exhausting the RAM and sending data and the statistics of the use of your gadget.

Getting rid of this nice you get about a hundred megabytes of additionally free RAM and about 50% of autonomous time growth.

3) paranoid comfort

It is quite logical that getting rid of the permanent transmitter of data on your location and annoying applications that require too many access privileges, paranoids will be able to breathe calmly and relax. Now, no one secretly scans the nearby WiFi points, allegedly to increase geolocation accuracy, no one writes the exact history of your movements on the world map, no one collects statistics about you, does not even know in what language you communicate with the outside world.

Back to Symbian

In the Symbian-smartphone era (fastened, yes?) The applications on the smartphone were installed (unexpectedly) using installation files, by analogy with how you do it on a PC running Windows. So my life without Google services is a great chance to posstalgate and return to that very era. At your service stroke.apk files on developers sites or forums like 4PDA and XDA-DEVELOPERS.

For the most harmful also available alternative players from Amazon and Yandex, as well as a free software repository called F-Droid. All three have a good database of proposals, naturally, in the volume of "File" File "Google Play. Alternative markets often also have the latest versions of current applications and are able to automatically update them.

Main problems and deprivation

First of all, I needed my contacts in the amount of 170 pieces. Naturally, the synchronization could be forgotten, so I made exports of contacts from Gmail to the VCard file, which was successfully fed the phone. After restoring the contacts, you needed to connect mail. The standard mailer from the CyanogenMod delivery kit has fully arranged - Push can take how to take it, it looks very similar to Gmail, supports gestures. True, the corporate box had to be sweat, manually prescribing server settings.

Among the applications proposed above, I left 4PDA and F-Droid. From the latter, I installed the Firefox browser and the Telegram messenger, Adaway advertising blocker, as well as some specific programs that will tell further. The rest of the goodness is social clients, read books and the FLEKSY keyboard, I hid in good faith from the forum. It was here that the first serious problem for me got out.

My favorite Fleksy keyboard turned out to be tied to a Google account, respectively, I could not pull the dictionaries and personalize the text set. At one time, I killed good half a year to teach the keyboard with all my matuts and abbreviations, as a result, having received a superval and monstrous-fast dough set on the smartphone, but without Google services it all turned out to me inaccessible.

The calendar has become another stumbling block in my experiment. It cannot create an event without connecting the google account. The solution was found represented by Offline Calendar applications available in the F-Droid repositories, which created a local calendar on the device.

So is it worth the game of the candle?

As usual, solve you, and only you! In general, to live without Google services in fact, with some reservations, more than comfortable, and the lion's share of problems is solved. Popular applications gradually find a replacement, wondering how it was very tied to something alone, you begin to rejoice at the excess day of work from one charge of the batteries, who are clarified by the fact that he became a full-fledged lord over his device and its system. But, I will be frank - existence without Google services is an interesting game for Gicks and enthusiasts and not everyone will come out of it by the winners. The losers await the loss of all data in the event of a serious breakdown of the smartphone or its disappearance. Serious software malfunctions in the operation of the device are not excluded after inept intervention in system files.

If you feel ready for the feats, it seems to me that Google's rejection will give you a lot of impressions and interesting discoveries. Start with a couple of days or weeks, and there, you look, you will like it and do not want to return back. Or want? Tell me in the comments that you think about such a venture!

Many Internet users associate Google name with the Internet Search Engine. Google's share among search engines reaches 95 percent. A similar advantage was received by Google Maps in the online map sector - those used using a computer.

In the current situation, the question arises whether it is necessary. Given that the Internet, as well as web browsers and search engines have already been long before Google appears, alternative solutions (almost) of all applications and services are available.

In the following material we present ways use of the Internet without Google. With the help of tools from other manufacturers, in the case of which you do not need to worry about Privacy Policy and Terms of service provisionwhich are described in detail on the Google website, which allows you to use user data for development (for example, transmitted when creating Google's account) of the company's services and services.

Without Google - Internet on a computer and smartphone

Although the verb google became synonymous with the search for information on the Internet, there are many alternative search engines. Decent mention, in particular, German service Metager., Dutch Ixquick.American Duckduckgo And french QWant..

Operators of all listed services promise users a greater concern for their confidentiality and anonymity. In addition, they lure the encryption of the transmitted information and prevent tracking during Internet travel.

Such search engines are not stored on a cookie files, and do not identify browsers using a database. In addition, hide IP addresses using their people.

It is worth trying these services. If you are not satisfied with the search results, use the StartPage services provided by the IxQuick search engine operator. StartPage duplicates the search results from Google, but, by performing a proxy server, hides the user's IP address when he opens the target pages by clicking on the link Show using search engine iXQuick.

Abstraught from the search, the question of choosing a web browser remains as an alternative for an efficient and functional Google Chrome browser. The most popular competitors are Internet Explorer, Firefox and Opera, in contrast to the less well-known, for example, Comodo Dragon, they are very often updated.

Without Google - Alternatives to office applications

Functionality, of course, does not apply to the strengths of the Google office package. In this regard, definitely, the leader is Microsoft.

But Google Docs (Google Documents) provides very simple control and connection to the Google Drive virtual disk. After connecting to the Internet, the user has constant access to his documents, in their latest version. Being on the go, you can even use them using a smartphone or tablet.

In addition, Google's service offers the ability to exchange files in the cloud with other users and collaboration on documents.

True, you can use an alternative version of the online office package (for example, Zoho Office or the free version of Microsoft Office Online), however, this solution is burdened with disadvantages.

Microsoft and Google are companies whose headquarters are located in the United States, therefore are regulated in accordance with the USA Patriot ACT law. This means that at the request of the US authorities, the company must provide the resources accumulated on their servers to law enforcement agencies.

If necessary, you can protect only with the help of an office package in the offline version, and therefore the classical software installed in the operating system (for example, Open Office or LibreOffice). However, then you must reckon with the limited availability of documents.

If you take care of having them always at hand, you can purchase a portable version on a portable USB drive. However, even in this case, do not avoid data synchronization with a desktop home computer.

An impressive set of tools in versions for mobile devices provide Lupo Pensuite and PortableApps.com packages. You can download the LibreOffice package to the USB flash drive as a separate application.

Internet without Google - Virtual disk and mail

If you do not want to refuse to access files online and how to edit documents with other people, use them from your private cloud.

Simplicity in the installation and, despite this, high functionality demonstrates the OwnCloud application. The project has emerged as an alternative to commercial file storage services on the Internet, such as Dropbox. The application can be installed as a server not only in Windows and Linux environments, as well as on the network disk (NAS).

Some network discs have special installation packages provided by the manufacturer or community of the OwnCloud project. Detailed installation instructions and answers to frequently asked questions can be found in the project website.

Access to data collected in your own cloud can be obtained using various devices - of course, provided that you have an internet connection. OwnCloud client programs are available for IOS, Linux and Windows operating systems. In addition, there are applications for Android or iOS mobile devices.

It should, however, remember some defect of this solution. When using your own equipment (PC or NAS), the speed of remote data access is limited to the data transfer rate in transmission mode ( upload.). Thus, in practice, it can be very low.

Catching e-mail can be successfully managed without using Google or other email services. You can write and receive messages, provided that you synchronize your email accounts using the IMAP (Internet Message Access Protocol) protocol.

Very little alternative to the Google Fit platform, devices for tracking user activity that do not require cloud use. BEURER AS 60 activity sensor comes with a 30-day memory. Measurement data can be transmitted to a computer via a USB connection without the need to create an account on any website.

Internet without Google - your personal business

Maybe you are worried about what Google knows about your personality, and what information the company collects about its users. On the Location History page, you will learn where you lived lately.

If you want to know which access rights received individual devices, go to the Login and Security page. With this page you can download your data that accumulates in Google.

Mostly all the eminent manufacturers of phones, tablets and other Android devices are installed in their Google Play or as it was previously called Android Market. However, there are manufacturers on the devices of which due to licensing, Google Play is not installed.

Who has no Google Play

It mainly concerns devices of little-known Chinese firms. Buyers such devices benefit in price, which is for them the determining factor when choosing, although often lose as and functionality.

After purchasing such a device after a certain time, when the owner has the need to establish an application, a natural question arises: how to install Play Play Play?.

Where to get Google Play

You can download Play Market from third-party sites and install it. However, it will not work on all devices in view of the Google service, the manufacturer did not receive a license. Install Play Market will be able to install, but it will not work.

Applications from Internet sites

You can search for applications for a computer on various sites, download, and install. You can search for applications on third-party sites directly from the phone and install. This method will not be convenient and in addition when downloading applications from different sites increases the risk of catching the virus.

Applications from other sources

There is another way to install applications without Google Play, it will be the same convenient and security at the same level. It is the use of third-party sources, namely alternative apps, which are Google Play competitors to distribute applications.

In them you will find all popular applications that you need. I advise you to use application stores of only well-known companies, such as Amazon or 1mobile.

Steps for installation

So you decided to establish an alternative to the playing market, the process of installing stores are the same, consider it using the example of 1 Mobile Market. The installation will consist of 3 steps - change settings, loading and installing:

Settings

We go to the settings, select the "Security" item in the menu by looking for the "Unknown Sources" string and mark it to allow the installation of applications from unknown sources, because Google considers only his playmark market to be a famous source, and 1 Mobile Market We will download from the Internet.

Loading

Open any browser, you can embedded either Chrome, Opera and others. In the browser in the address bar, we enter the address of the site 1 Mobile Market - www.1mobile.com.

On the site we click on the word market at the top of the page, either at the bottom of the page on the inscription 1mobile Market, the download page should open.

Select on the download page for which device we want to download the 1Mobile market - the phone or tablet and click the download button below the appropriate device. Chrome can issue a message "File can cause harm to your device", ignore it, press OK and loading will start.

Installation

After the download is complete, it remains only to install the application. To do this, go to download and run the file containing in the name 1 Mobile Market, the installation process will begin.

Click to install in the window that appears, and when the message appears that the application is set to open the Open button and get to the 1mobile Market store