Android sideloading faces new restrictions as Google blocks unverified developers

[mountains]

No, but if the apps I sideload are going to get banned because of this, then what is the functional difference?

Android is a meh OS we put up with because it gives us a degree of freedom that apple refuses to allow. If Google is going to kneecap that freedom, then why would I continue to use an inferior OS with worse support?

There is no reason to do so. Secure apps are sandboxed in android, sideloading an app should not disable them.

This is a play for more control and profit, full stop. It does not benefit the end user nor does it improve the experience.

Yeah, I think I agree here. The main reason I have Android over Apple is to have more of that traditional control of what I can install (and lockdown), whether it is F-Droid or other things. Apple has better privacy as far as OUTSIDE their damn walled garden. If Android wants to go in the direction of Apple, then why not just get Apple?

I will watch to see how this develops, but my next phone may not be in the Android ecosystem. This feels like death-by-a-thousand-cuts. I wish the market would provide more reasonable pro-user alternatives.

 

[GoldenGoat]

You should be able to write your own code and run it on your own phone without any restrictions. it’s a matter of freedom. We don’t live in a free world though.