I thought I would post my own journey to de-googling with challenges and wins along the way. I realise that this is a de-google community however I will also be mentioning some other replacements too. Hope this helps anyone but let me know if I can help answer any questions or discuss anything.

Why I de-googled?

Google has strayed away from its own rule of “don’t be evil” particularly in the past few years. To be fair, its not just Google, its all big US companies that dominates the market including Meta, Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia etc. This has happened for many reasons but one of them is because Trump has shown them that it is OK to break any laws/rules/ethical boundaries to dominate. All the “China is evil” talk had nothing major to do with security grounds, it was to eat the competition which ruined the market for consumers (and no I’m not Chinese or Asian). Anyways back to Google…

  • Google products makes 0 sense to me: You pay for a product for example Pixel 10 which costs over $1000 but then they collect EVERY SHRED OF data they can about you and sell that to third parties. So the main money they make from you is actually your data as well as taking the $1000 you paid. Where are the days of paying for a product which becomes yours and does exactly what you want it to do?
  • Monopoly and anti-competition: Constantly trying to kill any competition it can rather than embracing and appreciating a diverse tech ecosystem.
  • Many Google services are “walled gardens”
  • Government Surveillance Concerns
  • Location Tracking Controversies: Even with location history turned off, Google has been found to track user locations
  • Running controversial projects (ex Project Maven)
  • Little innovation: If i ignore all of the above, have you ever noticed that their products have barely changed in years (Google Drive, Keep, Mail, Maps)? This is because they are no longer about technical-innovation but rather chasing money only.

The list goes on and on.

What Products have I replaced?

I think sometimes companies forget that CUSTOMERS are the ones who drive their business, Disney certainly got reminded of that when people started cancelling their memberships after the Kimmel fiasco. Luckily, massive thanks to companies who noticed this early and started creating alternative products and many of them are even open-source (these developers are the true legends that I respect).

Here are some of the products that I have replaced in my life over the past 2 months:

Google Drive > Filen + Ente Photos

Luckily I chose not to tie myself into Google Photos because I didnt like the tie-in from the start, all photos were just in the Drive folder. I chose to go with both Ente Photos and Filen for images/documents etc.

Why Ente photos? In my opinion they are a little overpriced but they seem to have the most complete feature set for photos like great zero knowledge, AI detection, maps, facial recognition etc and best of all it all happens locally. My photos total less than 100GB currently but in the future I will have to be careful about going over my 200GB limit. IMO 1TB option is far too expensive (I would rather switch to Immich self hosted at that point).

Cons:

  • Super annoying not to have 2-way sync in Ente. They try to force you to treat Ente as the source of truth for your photos. I got around this issue though by: Watching folders locally and always editing/deleting/adding new photos locally on PC. I never make edits on Ente. If i take a photo on phone, i upload them into a “Ente upload” folder, pull those down and then copy them manually into the relevant watched folder.

Why Filen? You can easily get around 50GB by referrals which is very likely enough for documents and other files. However all other Filen options are so well priced particularly for zero knowledge encryption. I also LOVE how they did the drive mounting for all operating system with a nice dropdown to select: 2way sync, 1 way backup etc.

I will likely create another post detailing all the providers I compared in this space. I downloaded and tinkered with all of them!

Google Docs + Keep > Notion

Notion wont be my final stop however this is where some of my docs already existed so i just moved more non-private files into it. Eventually I would like to explore Obsidian more and convert doc files into MD files in Filen (particularly the private ones).

Google Maps > Organic Maps + Magic Earth for driving

This is probably going to be my biggest pain future point. This is still early days but when Im making small trips nearby, I am trialling both apps.

Google Youtube> 🥲

This is also a pain point, I have tried PeerTube however it is quite lacking aside from good privacy video guides.

Gmail, Contacts & Google Calendar> Mailbox .org

I tried many different email providers including Proton Mail, Tuta, Posteo but settled on Mailbox. Mailbox has recently updated their UI and it looks fantastic. They are a green provider, allow for very generous aliases number (and custom alias unlike Posteo). Their calendar and contacts are also fantastic and worked VERY well with Thunderbird. I found their instructions excellent to set everything up too.

Why didnt I choose encryption here like Proton/Tuta? It came down to my personal needs. What I care about the most here is that Google is NOT selling my email data. Germany has strict privacy laws, they would have to jump through alot of court hoops to gain access to my data (useless) and this would only be if I was of interest to them. If encryption is important to you, this probably isnt an option.

Again, I can do a detailed comparison of email providers in another post.

Google Gemini > Mistral and Duck AI

To be fair, I never really used Gemini too much so this was an easy choice. I do still find myself still using ChatGPT sometimes too.

Browser and Search Engine > Firefox and DuckDuckGo/Brave Search

I have been a loyal Firefox user since version 3 so this was easy (however I also use Vivaldi and respect their CEO for nice down to earth comments and being anti-AI in certain products). I opted for a combination of DuckGo and Brave because sometimes one is better than the other for results. Using both doesnt bother me. I really havent missed Google search and their AI that they FORCE down my neck…

Google Authentication > 2FAS auth

I chose 2FAS because it has a browser plugin to get the codes.

Google Lens > Flora Incognita

I thought about what I am really using Google Lens for and it turned it it was mostly to identify plants/trees etc so I tried Flora Incognita instead and its really excellent! I have hardly used Google Lens since installing this app.

Google Translate > DeepL

This replacement has been working very well however I do admit that I miss instant translations without having to take the photo.

Google Pass > KeePass> Bitwarden

Bitwarden is solid.

Google Pay > Garmin Watch Pay

When you pay with Google Pay, Google collects transaction details like merchant, amount, time, and payment method, linking you to your account to provide services and refine its advertising profile.

Garmin Pay collects a minimal payment token and transaction details needed to process the purchase, without linking you to a broader advertising/data profile.

Google Play Store > Fdroid + Aurora store

I really love Fdroid - so much love and respect to the open source community! Aurora is also great and keeps downloads anonymous. You dont have to worry too much about moving to a new phone too because you can export.

Facebook, Instagram etc. > 🗑️

I have been using Facebook (more than Instagram) for so long because I found it easy to get my news, keep in touch with friends overseas, interests etc. However their algorithms recently have gone mental, they are pushing more hate/far right propaganda recently and dont get me started on selling data here…

I made a really hard decision to close both accounts. I have been facebook free for 2 weeks though and somehow Im still alive… Instead, Im using Lemmy (WHICH IM LOVING!) and doing a thing called: Going outdoors/travelling more - The graphics outside are amazing.

Windows > Linux Fedora KDE

Im not a complete newbie to Linux but I have been on Windows for over 20 years now. When I was on holiday, I forced myself to use Fedora on a Lenovo Slim 7i (trackpad use - no mouse). Fedora is the one that worked the best perfectly out of the box (Ubuntu was second choice, others like Debian had alot of issues like Audio drivers). KDE vs Gnome, honestly I enjoy both but I chose KDE because I love the customisation.

Main cons: (again needs a seperate post)

  • Maps tracking in the browser just wouldnt work accurately which made planning trips from my current location quite tricky. I had to really mess around with alot of things to finally get it working (some of the time).
  • The window focus drove me nuts - This is a Wayland security addition which prevents window stealing so when you click on a link in VSCode, it wont bring Firefox into focus. You might think this isnt a big deal but you would be suprised how ANNOYING this can be when you end up with 20 links in Firefox that you forgot you clicked on. I did get around this by writing a KDE script.

Android phone

I have recently installed LineageOS with MicroG on my old Samsung S10e which was a headache but it was worth the effort. It’s actually FREEKING AWESOME!!! Im really jelous of it when I have a newer phone… Im going to be trying out more apps but so far its doing absolutely everything I need (including maps working flawlessly).

I would kill for a phone replacement to Google’s ecosystem, there is fairphone 6 (/e/os) however its specs are just too low for the cost and this is because of the greener aspect of the phone. There is a great market space right here for more privacy phones.

VPN > Windscribe

I like Windscribes humour and they gave me a generous amount of data when I signed up in the early days.

Conclusion

Honestly, it is much easier to replace Google products than you think but THERE IS A ROAD to go down to compare products to see what works best for you. I would recommend doing it one at a time so its not overwhelming (with a checklist). The most important thing is that it has not only been an educational experience but also a very fun rewarding one! I am looking forward to doing more in self-hosting in the future too.

  • sarmale@lemmy.zip
    6·
    23 hours ago

    No matter what you use you should contribute to OpenStreetmap. I have an app called Everydoor where you can add and update points of instrests (like shops, restaurants and anything else), it is really rewarding seeing how much you’ve improved your local area over the course of a couple of months (In my city the map is good but the POIs are really out of date)

    Happy Degoogling!

    • ArchEngel@lemmy.ca
      2·
      8 hours ago

      Ahh neat, I’ve been using StreetComplete lately for similar goals, its got achievements!

    • Zombie@feddit.uk
      12·
      2 days ago

      Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.

      • Edward Snowden

      https://en.m.wikiquote.org/wiki/Edward_Snowden

      Edward Joseph Snowden (born June 21, 1983) is an American former technical contractor for the United States National Security Agency (NSA) and a former employee of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) who leaked details of several top-secret U.S. and British government mass surveillance programs to the press.

    • golden_zealot@lemmy.mlEnglish
      13·
      2 days ago

      Indeed.

      “If you have nothing to hide you have nothing to fear” was not first quoted by, but popularized by nazi propagandist joseph goebbels, so it never sits well with me.

      Many people who say such a thing in reference to themselves also never seem to realize that it is only the case until something you have is made illegal or becomes the target of some faction, which could be in years, months, days, or hours.

      • cyberwolfie@lemmy.ml
        6·
        1 day ago

        “Cheery was aware that Commander Vimes didn’t like the phrase ‘The innocent have nothing to fear’, believing the innocent had everything to fear, mostly from the guilty but in the longer term even more from those who say things like ‘The innocent have nothing to fear’.”

        • Terry Pratchett
    • rumba@lemmy.zipEnglish
      1·
      1 day ago

      Your info should belong to you and no one else, email included.

      Trying to make email private between strangers is a fool’s errand.

      Even between colleagues and family, no one ever bought into encryption. It’s been around nearly as long as email. Microsoft even openly supported PGP at one point, as good as 0% adoption.

      The only trustworthy end-to-end encrypted email is one you encrypt yourself.

    • foliumcreations@lemmy.world
      4·
      2 days ago

      You can use pgp encryption with mailbox, there is an option for it in the settings.

      When I was looking for European alternatives to google I came a cross an insightfull comment regarding E2EE mail providers. Basically the person made the point that unless whom ever you are emailing is also using,E2EE then you aren’t really gaining anything from having it on your end.

      In my case I felt I needed a provider, with CALdav and he ability to use an email client like Thunderbird. So I landed on mailbox.org

      • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
        2·
        1 day ago

        “E2EE then you aren’t really gaining anything from having it on your end.” - That’s exactly right and most of my contacts dont use Proton/Tuta, they use Gmail (even though I rarely send an email to my contact anyway). You can though send an email to a non-mailbox user (gmail) and they get a link to the mailbox.org secure reader.

    • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
      32·
      1 day ago

      I respect your opinion and totally can see your point. Mailbox.org is based in Germany which has some of the strongest privacy rules in EU, there is a hell of alot of court hoops that would have to happen just for the government to get access to my data. They wouldnt do this lightly. They would not do this unless they have reason to believe I am doing something unlawful.

      Personally I would argue that de-google and privacy are very closely-related but not entirely opposite. Many people are de-googling for various ranked reasons like not being a product themselves, not letting large corporations take over etc.

      I agree that I would rather have my data belong to me fully (which is why i wouldnt rule out proton mail/tuta in the future) however I value privacy more in my Drive and Photos than i do in emails which is mainly for shopping etc. If the government wants to get a court order to check out the stupid shit I buy online like a Spork (Spoon and fork on each end), feel free to do so!

        • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
          1·
          1 day ago

          You wouldn’t be OK with someone rifling through your physical mail

          I like your analogy here, your comments have given me things to think about too. Questions (not being sarcastic so apologies if it comes across that way):

          • Do you sent letters to family and friends like birthday cards in encrypted text? If not, how do you know the letters arent being read in transit too? Where do you draw the line in privacy without putting on a tin foil hat and living in a bunker?
          • If the German government wants to get access to my emails and has to go through hoops to do so, couldnt they do the same thing for everything in my life like letters, insurance, voting, mortgage etc.

          I guess what im trying to convey is: What is wrong with only going the extra mile for encryption for the things that you deem as truely private to you? If you decide to make everything in your life private, how difficult might your life get? I know that some people like journalists need to go down that road obviously but those are life requirements.

          PS. I have edited the wording slightly in my post so it doesnt seem like i am pushing anyone in the direction of no encryption by default.

          Thank you for the discussion btw, appreciate it!

            • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
              1·
              1 day ago

              The letter point I was trying to make is that most people trust the postal service not to read their letters. We know that the postal service doesnt gain revenue from reading peoples letters so they have no incentive to do so. If the government wants to read your letters, they can intercept them freely. This is the same analogy with Mailbox. I do get medical, dental, insurance emails sent to my inbox however all of those emails contain nothing other than “please visit this link” to view your medical information. If any company sent me any sensitive text by email, I wouldnt want anything to do with them.

              Maybe a person is gay, but isn’t ready to share this with everyone, only a few people… Should that info be used to market “gay” products to them?

              Are you suggesting that Mailbox.org are secretely reading through my emails and doing the marketing anyway? Or are you talking about Google?

                • Zexks@lemmy.world
                  11·
                  8 hours ago

                  Lmao. Because we all lmow the us government is totally going to respect its own laws and never ever violate or ignore them out right. You sound like a sov cit.

  • Zaphod@discuss.tchncs.de
    3·
    1 day ago

    The window focus drove me nuts

    There is a setting in KDE for this. It’s called “Focus stealing prevention” under Window Behavior

        • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
          2·
          1 day ago

          Yes so I started first with it set to None which didn’t work then I created the kde script which fixed the issue. You can test this by opening vscode, clicking on a link and seeing that doesn’t focus Firefox. Apparently this is because some apps need to properly re-implement window focus code after the wayland security updates and push updates through. There have been complaints that discord has the same issue too. Wayland won’t do anything to fix it because they see it as a security fix for window stealing but I have no idea what kde is doing when it’s set to None.

    • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
      20·
      2 days ago

      Wow CoMaps wasnt on my radar at all, thanks for mentioning it! I will be trying it out 💪

      • Broken@lemmy.ml
        1·
        6 hours ago

        I never took to Organic maps. Magic Earth is what I used mostly, but it had issues, and eventually it just broke on me and couldn’t update.

        Comaps has been my replacement and I like it he best as far as the UI and side information (such as businesses). I think it’s weakest point is actually looking up and navigating though, which makes it a chore to use. For instance, when I type in an address it doesn’t give me that building location, it gives me that street block. That’s fine in many ways if I just need to know how to get someplace, but other times I want it to tell me my location is x distance on the right. It also doesn’t have traffic, which is a huge thing where I live. But I still like it the best and am hopeful updates improve it to Google maps level.

    • Mike D@piefed.socialEnglish
      94·
      2 days ago

      CoMaps doesn’t appear to have traffic info.

      Traffic info is required when living in a large metro area.

      • jabberwock@lemmy.dbzer0.com
        8·
        2 days ago

        Been using CoMaps for about a month now and this is the biggest hit for me. It’s great for finding restaurants or general points of interest, and I appreciate that I can add that stuff in-app if it’s not already on there.

        But sometimes it really helps to know if my drive is gonna be 45 minutes or an hour+…

        • berty@feddit.org
          6·
          2 days ago

          I use Gmaps WV (from F-Droid) for that, comes in handy when you need to know traffic time.

    • Cowbee [he/they]@lemmy.ml
      42·
      1 day ago

      I don’t see the problem with using generative AI to fulfill similar roles as stock images, there’s nothing inherently worse than just using clipart to make the same thing in 5 minutes instead of the 30 seconds this likely took. Nobody is appreciating the thumbail for its artistic merit or anything, and OP wasn’t going to hire an artist to make a special thumbnail, they would have left it off entirely otherwise.

  • wanderinglurk@lemmy.world
    6·
    2 days ago

    Not a criticism, but something to consider for other folks. Not everyone is able or willing to de-Google/Apple and seek alternatives.

    In Singapore, the regulators have directed banking apps to “secure” the mobile banking environment. This includes library tampering detection and irregular activity detection. These banking apps also only exist in the Google Play and App Store walled gardens, while the regulators also gave them the key to a duopoly control over the local smartphone market. All in the name of preventing scams and frauds. Their intention meant well, but at the cost of consumer rights. Bear in mind digital payments and physical tokens replaced by the apps are the norm here.

    De-Googling and carrying another phone just for everyday mobile banking is going to be quite a chore.

    • ☂️-@lemmy.ml
      4·
      1 day ago

      just passing by to say it’s very similar in south america too now.

      we have to tackle their oligopoly over smartphone tech, not just the individualistic ways we have of unlocking them.

    • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
      3·
      1 day ago

      True to everything you mentioned about different regions👍, I would say that the aim here isnt to cripple myself, I would argue life is too short to go into extremes too but that my own personal opinion. If I de-googled 80-90% of their products but was left with the remaining 20%, I have already decreased the revenue they get from me by not using their other products…

      Just FYI though, Digital Markets Act in the EU have been trying to push more regulations that mean that Google/Apple arent the only providers for digitial payments online. This is what I was talking about regarding Google monopolising. If regulations like that come through, hopefully it will trickle to the rest of the world too. Curve bank for example has direct access to the NFC “tap-to-pay” system. There is no reason why other banks cant just do the same thing! This way the bank bypasses Google Pay.

    • Alcan@lemmy.world
      2·
      1 day ago

      I have no idea about this but, can’t you access to your banking stuff throw the browser? With pc view or something like that?

      • wanderinglurk@lemmy.world
        4·
        1 day ago

        For better or worse, no.

        The mandatory 2FA used to be either physical tokens (a small dedicated device that generates the codes, not too different from the 2FA apps), or sent through SMS.

        The physical tokens are phased out, while SMS was demonstrably insecure due to interception.

        So everyone is stuck with 2FA through the mobile banking apps, for logging in to the web browser banking platforms.

  • Mose13@lemmy.world
    161·
    2 days ago

    Try Nebula to replace YouTube. It’s $5/month, run by creators, and absolutely no ads. I can gift you a free trial week if you’re interested. Send me a message if you want the free week.

  • DreasNil@feddit.nuEnglish
    42·
    1 day ago

    I’ve made almost the exact same switches as you. I also got the Fairphone 6 with e/OS and I’m loving it.

    I’m using a mix of CoMaps and HereWeGo instead of Google Maps, and I love walking around using StreetComplete to help update the openstreetmaps. It’s way more fun than pokemon go 😜

    My biggest wish would be for CoMaps and Mapy.com to unite to make one, awesome Google Maps alternative, including the possibility of rating places like Mapy.com is doing.

    • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
      2·
      1 day ago

      Wow that’s epic man… What phone did you switch from and is there anything you miss?

      Lol about pokemon go comment. You are being a legend though by updating places and helping others.

      I feel that you’re right we need more people working together as long as we don’t end up with another closed source map competitor that we end up hating again 😅. I think distributed systems is the way forward. So I would love to see the reviews being kept separate from the map so that it doesn’t matter what map you use in the future, reviews are the same…

      • DreasNil@feddit.nuEnglish
        1·
        11 hours ago

        I came from iPhone 11 pro. Honestly, I can’t really come up with anything that I miss right now. The switch to android took a bit of time to get used to but it was surprisingly easy actually. And I started my degoogling journey BEFORE switching phones, which really made it easier for me.

        Hmm, I get your point. But as far as I understand, all the data that these apps are using come from the openstreetmaps database. So the reviews from Mapy ARE separate from the map. I love having them in the same app though, because it’s just so convenient.

    • Joseph_Boom@feddit.it
      2·
      1 day ago

      +1 for HereWeGo. It’s really good for navigation (for my personal experience it’s better than MagicEarth) and it does collect minimum data. Didn’t know about Mapy, why do you choose it?

      • DreasNil@feddit.nuEnglish
        3·
        1 day ago

        Mapy is the only one that I’ve found where you can rate places, like restaurants. That’s one of the features that I’m missing the most with these other alternatives.

  • QuadratureSurfer@piefed.socialEnglish
    7·
    2 days ago

    A lot of users will recommend different services to replace YouTube. In my opinion, the best thing you can do is use GrayJay.

    You’ll be able to use any of the services (PeerTube, Odysee, Nebula, YouTube, Twitch, Kick, Rumble, Dailymotion, Bitchute, etc.).

    Then all you have to do is follow those that you usually do, but you’ll be able to find them on any alternative service (if they use them).

  • Anomnomnomaly@lemmy.org
    9·
    2 days ago

    Have you tried using grayjay for youtube access without the tracking and data harvesting?

    As for office software, libreoffice is something I’ve been using for ages now, I’m stuck on windows 10 for the moment… really need to dive into some form of linux… thinking proton as I do game a fair bit.

    I’ve currently got a pixel 6 pro phone, and a HMD T21 tabelt… would really like to install lineage OS on both if possible… don’t know where to start. I used to have a wileyfox phone 10yrs ago, which used cyanogen OS… which I do believe forked into lineage OS. So I know how good the degoogle aspect was back then, plus the increased security measures built in.

    I block as much as I can across all devices, and do my best to render what they can collect worthless… I use a VPN 24/7, block all scripts, trackers and cookies, sandbox sites in their own containers… quit facebook 13yrs ago… use mastodon, lemmy, signal & telegram only… have to suffer a whatsapp account for family only. Proton mail linked to an @duck.com email… so I never get emails sent to gmail, I use an old outlook email alias for spam signups and only check it if I need to confirm an email addy.

    I’ve turned of everything I can with my phone, from location to anything to do with ai… I refuse to buy ‘smart’ devices that can be bricked or updated remotely from some company servers, or forced to connect to them to simply work… I own what I buy, so never buy digital goods (aside from some games from Steam/GOG) and only pay for Netflix streaming service… maybe I should roam the 7 seas for stuff too.

    I’m thinking about building a pi-hole and setting up home assistant to eliminate the 2 internet connected devices in my home whjich is the thermostat for my heating and the solar/battery system which I use to monitor the data from the house.

    • thethunderwolf@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      3·
      1 day ago

      Proton is not a linux distribution it is a compatibility layer for Windows apps to run on Linux.

      For a linux beginner I’d recommend Linux Mint definitely.

      Your “Games are the only software that it is acceptable to pay for” take is based

      VPNs are not a good option. Use Tor. The problem with VPNs is that you can’t prove that logs aren’t kept, companies are not trustworthy. A “VPN” is a “Virtual Private Network” and the system is intended for accessing a private network, not for accessing the internet. “VPN” companies’s products are not VPNs they are encrypted proxies.

      • Anomnomnomaly@lemmy.org
        3·
        1 day ago

        I started buying games on steam, way, way back in the 2000’s… long before any of the enshitification began… and you’re not allowed to own anything any more… I switched to GOG for buying games, as I do own them and can download and keep them for life… But after being converted away from… erm… acquiring games via alternative methods… I’m looking to acquire them again… even games that I bought and paid for simply for the hassle free experience of not needing to be online 24/7 and having DRM degrade the performance.

    • kwarg@mander.xyz
      3·
      1 day ago

      I understand that having the tablet and the phone running the same OS might be an advantage, but have you checked out GrapheneOS for your Pixel? I’ve been using it for a year now and I’m very pleased. Also it is increadibly easy to install.

      • Anomnomnomaly@lemmy.org
        2·
        1 day ago

        I’ve not looked into anything yet… I’m reaching that age where I’ve just become closer to 50 than 40… and I find myself starting to become reluctant to dive in and learn a whole new OS after decades of trying to learn everything.

    • cedar_rez@lemmy.mlOP
      3·
      2 days ago

      I will check out grayjay thanks for the mention!

      I’m using only office but have a lot of love to libre office too.

      I followed this tutorial (ironically on YouTube) to install lineage os which was very helpful because I had issues with Odin (new version didn’t pick up my phone) https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CuHRh9k7rbk

      I use sandboxing a lot too in Firefox, I have requested that mozilla try to prioritise containers for Firefox mobile though because I really miss it!