As someone whose rooted phones for a decade, this is the smart answer. OR a One Plus phone, because they support nearly all their current and old phones back a couple years. I would honestly suggest the Nord N10 5G as their latest cheaper phone of the 2020's or the 8T/Plus/Pro for a flagship. They're all root-able, and XDA supports the latest android OS with nightlies.
I've been hesitant to screw around with my main phone since I need it to earn my paycheck. Maybe I will buy a phone to root and try AOSP.
(I was going to root a Kindle not long ago, but I found Fire Toolbox and I stripped the Kindle down to look like just plain android with the launcher and apps I want.)
This. Hate to say it, but any Pixel, OnePlus or HTC will be perfect when you root, rom, and install LineageOS. All phones are less than 800 and have way better specs for longevity.
Avoid the Pixel 2 XL. Google nerfed the USB connection in an update so the bootloader can't be unlocked. It's a shame because good condition phones are available cheap and parts are easy to come by. Everything else plugged into the USB port works fine except for the ADB mode needed to run commands on the bootloader.
At least test the usb connection in recovery mode before you buy one.
Maybe just put AOSP to Google Pixel 4a then?
As someone whose rooted phones for a decade, this is the smart answer. OR a One Plus phone, because they support nearly all their current and old phones back a couple years. I would honestly suggest the Nord N10 5G as their latest cheaper phone of the 2020's or the 8T/Plus/Pro for a flagship. They're all root-able, and XDA supports the latest android OS with nightlies.
That is a good idea!
I've been hesitant to screw around with my main phone since I need it to earn my paycheck. Maybe I will buy a phone to root and try AOSP.
(I was going to root a Kindle not long ago, but I found Fire Toolbox and I stripped the Kindle down to look like just plain android with the launcher and apps I want.)
$2K for a phone is not an easy decision, especially for a TFT display and 32GB flash.
Try Pinephone. Much cheaper with killswitches and Linux based
This. Hate to say it, but any Pixel, OnePlus or HTC will be perfect when you root, rom, and install LineageOS. All phones are less than 800 and have way better specs for longevity.
Avoid the Pixel 2 XL. Google nerfed the USB connection in an update so the bootloader can't be unlocked. It's a shame because good condition phones are available cheap and parts are easy to come by. Everything else plugged into the USB port works fine except for the ADB mode needed to run commands on the bootloader.
At least test the usb connection in recovery mode before you buy one.