From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

The only reason Google or Samsung doesn't add a fifty-cent sd slot in any
phone is they make a *lot* of money,which is something we all know.

Unfortunately for me, I broke my Galaxy A32-5G and T-Mobile will give me
lesser phones for free (Revvl, Moto's, A16/A17, etc.) but only the A35/36 & Pixel9A make any sense in terms of an upgrade but the A36 has no sd slot
and costs more than the Pixel 9A which also has no sd slot & is free.

The A35 would be fine, as it has the fifty-cent sd slot, but it's out of
stock & T-Mobile hasn't carried it since Samsung deprecated it to the A36.

The 128GB Pixel 9A is free ($40 tax + $35 Activation Fee) but without the fifty-cent sd slot, I have to pay an extra 100 for the 256GB model (when a
$20 sdcard would have done better because of portable storage power).

Yet, I need a phone, so I ordered the Pixel 256GB for the extra 100 (which
cost Google about $4.50 for the extra 128GB so that transaction hands over
to Google a $95 profit for NOT putting a fifty-cent sd slot in the phone.

With $95 in profit for NOT spending fifty cents in design costs, I can't
really blame Google for screwing the customer by not giving us the sd slot.

Yet, I need a phone, and I can get the $256GB Pixel9A for
$ MSRP = 500 = but free from T-Mobile
$ tax = $50
$ activation fee = $35
No contract but two year lock for as long as T-Mobile owns the phone

Right now I'm hung up in the "electronic signature" garbage (which destroys your privacy because it's 15 pages long with zillions of privacy-robbing agreements), but I'm likely to end up with an Android 15 Pixel 9A once I
sort that out with the T-Mobile store that whom signed the paperwork from.

What do you think of the Pixel 9A?
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Maria Sophia wrote:

I ordered the Pixel 256GB for the extra 100

I considered whether I would likely need more than 128GB within the
lifetime of my Pixel 8a, and decided against. I still own the only
phone that Google ever sold with an SD slot, and it certainly needed it.

I'm likely to end up with an Android 15 Pixel 9A

Why not android 16?

What do you think of the Pixel 9A?

Minimal difference from the 8a, and likely the 10a will be the same, no flagship for sure, just a good phone with long support.
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 03/02/2026 01:00, Maria Sophia wrote:
ort that out with the T-Mobile store that whom signed the paperwork from.

What do you think of the Pixel 9A?

Are you putting GrapheneOS on it?
--
Jeff
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Andy Burns wrote:

I ordered the Pixel 256GB for the extra 100

I considered whether I would likely need more than 128GB within the
lifetime of my Pixel 8a, and decided against. I still own the only
phone that Google ever sold with an SD slot, and it certainly needed it.

Hi Andy,
I knew you were a pixel owner as you had helped me understand the A/B OTA stuff, so I was hoping you'd respond to my plea.

I'm thinking the advantages of the Pixel would be the same as the Samsung
in terms of they're the only brands that everyone has so it's easy to find instructions and hacks for them, but the Pixel, I'm thinking, is a lot
closer to stock Android so there may be more chances for rooting.

Do you think a Pixel is more rootable (given all US Samsungs nowadays come
with a locked bootloader). Being more rootable, after the two years are up, I'll be able to fix more things by being root, I'm thinking, with a Pixel.

As you know, I'm doing fine with a 64GB storage where I have over a
thousand packages on it (at least half of which were added by me), so with
my 128GB sd card, I'm doing just fine on storage also.

But the whole point of an OEM not putting the fifty-cent sdslot is we have
to guess what storage we will need three, four, and five years from now.

So I can get the 128GB Pixel 9A free at the T-Mobile store since that's
what they stock, but I have to order the 256GB (which costs me an extra
$100) because they don't stock it.

Is 128GB enough for a person like me? I think not. I test software.
That takes up storage. Lots of storage.

But, I am doing fine with 64GB + 128GB even now, so I still need to make a decision 'cuz I cancelled the T-Mobile order (due to the privacy
violations).

If I get it, I'll get it at the store where all they ask for is your ID.

I'm likely to end up with an Android 15 Pixel 9A

Why not android 16?

I don't really know what Android version it will come with, as the Android
15 is what I found by googling the Pixel 9A specs, but I'm not worried
since it comes with the standard Google/Galaxy 7 years of updates and
support. Plus, I can test that A/B OTA update stuff you told me about. :)

However... I have found that as Android gets newer, it gets harder to
tweak, so in many ways, I pine for Android 9 which was easier to do stuff
on. :)

What do you think of the Pixel 9A?

Minimal difference from the 8a, and likely the 10a will be the same, no flagship for sure, just a good phone with long support.

Thanks. I am comparing to the Galaxy A32-5G which was fine for me, so I
don't need "flagship" speeds (given I use the phone, um, er, as a phone).

To me, storage matters more than speed, and any camera that is decent, is
good enough for my Vine Amazon reviews and photos of the grandkids.

The Pixel 9a must faster than the Galaxy A32-5G but I can't, for the life
of me, think where that matters in my non-gaming use model. Does it?

Of course, camera quality and display quality are better, but again, do I
care, since the 48MP camera in the Galaxy and display were just fine.

Interestingly, in both those two areas, the A32-5G has a larger screen and higher-megapixel (but lower-quality) cameras. But, as with your assessment,
my current daily drive is just fine (except that I broke the charging
port).

I'll let you know what I get as I canceled the 9A order because of the
onerous electronic signature garbage, but I still need to get a phone.

My biggest need, in all truthfulness, is simple portable storage,
which is why I was asking how people fare when that option is gone.

Also, I might just buy a phone on Amazon, which gives me more freedom
since T-Mobile's free stuff is limited to the A35/A36 or Pixel 9A.
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Jeff Layman wrote:

On 03/02/2026 01:00, Maria Sophia wrote:
ort that out with the T-Mobile store that whom signed the paperwork from.

What do you think of the Pixel 9A?

Are you putting GrapheneOS on it?

That's part of the allure, I think, of a Pixel.
Does the Pixel really allow easy rooting or not?

I don't know.
Do you?
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

On 03/02/2026 19:17, Maria Sophia wrote:

Jeff Layman wrote:

On 03/02/2026 01:00, Maria Sophia wrote:
ort that out with the T-Mobile store that whom signed the paperwork from. >>>

What do you think of the Pixel 9A?

Are you putting GrapheneOS on it?

That's part of the allure, I think, of a Pixel.
Does the Pixel really allow easy rooting or not?

I don't know.
Do you?

No, but Google was my friend (heavy irony!). <https://xdaforums.com/t/install-and-root-grapheneos-with-magisk.4762986/>
From the Pixel 9a forum: "Install and root GrapheneOS with Magisk."
--
Jeff
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Maria Sophia wrote:

Jeff Layman wrote:

Are you putting GrapheneOS on it?

That's part of the allure, I think, of a Pixel. Does the Pixel really
allow easy rooting or not?

Google make it straightforward to unlock the bootloader on Nexus/Pixel devices, you don't have to find any exploits to do it. I can assume you
don't run any apps (such as banking) that care about rooting, but for me
it would be a deal-breaker.
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2

From Newsgroup: comp.mobile.android

Andy Burns wrote:

Maria Sophia wrote:

Jeff Layman wrote:

Are you putting GrapheneOS on it?

That's part of the allure, I think, of a Pixel. Does the Pixel really
allow easy rooting or not?

Google make it straightforward to unlock the bootloader on Nexus/Pixel devices, you don't have to find any exploits to do it. I can assume you don't run any apps (such as banking) that care about rooting, but for me
it would be a deal-breaker.

I looked up how easy it is to unlock the pixel bootloader and it seems to
be trivial.
a, You toggle OEM unlocking in Developer Options.
b. fastboot flashing unlock

But some apps-especially banking, payments, and DRM-heavy apps-will refuse
to run on a device with an unlocked bootloader or root access.

In a billion years, I couldn't imagine any of those on my phone. :)
But it seems GrapheneOS avoids this by not rooting the device at all.

It uses hardened security without requiring root, and it supports relocking
the bootloader after installation, which restores full integrity checks.

Hence, banking apps generally work because the device passes integrity
checks.

BTW, I found a temporary workaround for my broken USB port.
a. It won't charge with a smart USB-C charger, but,
b. It will charge with a dumb USB-A charger.

Go figure.
But I still need a new phone. I just have a bit more time to find it.
--- Synchronet 3.21b-Linux NewsLink 1.2