Ubuntu Touch - questions about apps
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Good morning!
I am very interested in using Ubuntu Touch (I think my name gives that away).
I hope I will get vital informations at this forum. Please, no matter how difficult my questions are - don't be mad at me!I am a regular user, but the reason I started thinking about Ubuntu Touch is because I understood as escape from Google-based Android.
What do I need my phone for? Mostly, for the following:- Uber
- Messaging (WhatsApp/Telegram)
- YouTube player
- Camera
Questions about safety/privacy:
- Is my understanding correct that Ubuntu Touch is "Google-free in terms of its background services etc?
- Does Ubuntu Touch have included phone call recording application OR do developers plan to release such app OR is there any way to record phone calls?
I know that this has been already mentioned e.g. here
https://github.com/ubports/ubuntu-touch/issues/788
is there any way I could help the community in developing such app? Its very, very much needed by me!
Questions about compatibility:
- My phone is not listed here https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/. Can I still install this OS or I must buy one of those phones?
Questions about apps:
I might need to use SOME android-only apps once in a while, so:- Is it possible to run Android apps on Ubuntu Touch?
- Is it possible to install Android OS along Ubuntu Touch and choose the OS in startup menu?
Other questions about apps:
- I see that Uber app is not available at https://open-store.io - is it planned to be developed?
.. help highly appreciated, but I will also accept criticism!
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@ubuntutouchfan said in Ubuntu Touch - questions about apps:
Uber
There is no UT app available for Uber. You can use UT's Morph browser to request a ride from Uber with your UT device by going to a bookmark for https://m.uber.com/looking (info at https://www.uber.com/en-GB/blog/request-uber-online-without-app/ )Messaging (WhatsApp/Telegram)
There is a very good native UT Telegram client available from the Open Store called "TELEports"
For WhatsApp, there is a webapp available for it from the Open Store, but it is somewhat clumsy to use.
For other alternatives, for Matrix there is a very good client called "Fluffy Chat", and for Signal there is a good client in development now called "Axolotl"YouTube player
There is a very good YouTube webapp available in the Open Store at https://open-store.io/app/youtube-web.mateo-salta , and it works well in the Morph web browser as well.Camera
The UT native Camera app is very basic in its features, but performs fine on most of the devices. Some devices have bugs where zooming and/or flash on the camera is not enabled yet - check on the device list to see its status for any of the devices you are considering.
There is a UT native photo enhancing app called "InstantPho" that is worth installing to get the most out of your photos as well.Best regards,
Steve Berson -
@ubuntutouchfan said in Ubuntu Touch - questions about apps:
Questions about safety/privacy:
Is my understanding correct that Ubuntu Touch is "Google-free in terms of its background services etc?
Yes, you are correct. There are options you can enable to link a Google account for syncing of calendar events and to import contacts, and it is possible to add a gmail account into the UT native email client Dekko2, but Google services are not enabled by default, and the default search engine for the UT native Morph browser is DuckDuckGo.
Does Ubuntu Touch have included phone call recording application OR do developers plan to release such app OR is there any way to record phone calls?
There is no included phone call recording app or anyway to do that currently that I am aware of. There is a Recorder app that might be able to pick up a phone call placed to speaker ok though - https://open-store.io/app/audio-recorder.luksus
I know that this has been already mentioned e.g. here
https://github.com/ubports/ubuntu-touch/issues/788
is there any way I could help the community in developing such app? Its very, very much needed by me!There is documentation on how to get started with app development for Ubuntu Touch here - http://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/appdev/
Best regards
Steve Berson -
@ubuntutouchfan said in Ubuntu Touch - questions about apps:
My phone is not listed here https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/. Can I still install this OS or I must buy one of those phones?
Only on devices that are listed can UT be reliably installed. Any other devices would need to be ported first - info on how to do this is at http://docs.halium.org/en/latest/porting/first-steps.html
and
http://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/porting/Intro.html
and
http://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/porting/halium_9/Halium_9_GSI_porting.htmlQuestions about apps:
I might need to use SOME android-only apps once in a while, so:Is it possible to run Android apps on Ubuntu Touch?
Yes, in an Anbox container. Anbox is currently in alpha state on UT though, and development has been slow for this. Currently only a few Android apps work, and battery drain tends to be heavier when it is enabled, and it also unstable or not usable on some devices. But if you want to try it out you can find info at http://docs.ubports.com/en/latest/userguide/dailyuse/anbox.html
Is it possible to install Android OS along Ubuntu Touch and choose the OS in startup menu?
The only device that has some third party options to enable this is the PinePhone - all other devices dual boot and multi-boot is not currently supported.
Other questions about apps:
I see that Uber app is not available at https://open-store.io - is it planned to be developed?
No, there are no plans from any current developers that I am aware of, but if someone was wanting to to take on this task (or for Lyft) I would certainly be willing to contribute a bounty to help compensate them in some small way for their time. The developer would likely need the cooperation of Uber in order to get this going - info towards this is at https://developer.uber.com/ and https://eng.uber.com/uber-api/ - and without cooperation from Uber it would not likely to be able to develop anything beyond an interface to interact with their current desktop ride request functions.
Best regards,
Steve Berson -
All informations will be very useful for others as well!
Althou its a little sad - the lack of big community probably contributes.. -
@ubuntutouchfan If you really want to stay away from google I would use another service than youtube. BitChute, odysee, etc. But if you must use youtube(or any other video platform for that matter) you can avoid signing in and instead add each of your favorite channels to a bookmarks folder for easy access. For example on my browser I have a bookmarks folder named "BitChute Channels" where I add all channels that I like. I try to always avoid signing into sites I do not have to unless it is absolutely necessary.
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The app store in UT is called Open Store is that correct?
Are there Google products in the store and if so why is this?
How does one safeguard himself/herself when considering to install an app that it does not belong to a subsidiary of Google and thereby tracks and mines? -
@ragz Yes open-store.io. There are no google-apps (only webapps).
You can check the source of the apps. Links are at the Info section.
Check Teleports for example: https://open-store.io/app/teleports.ubports
