I wanted to add a perspective from actual daily use, because a lot of this thread sounds theoretical.
I’ve been using a Murena/Fairphone running /e/OS as my primary phone for a while now, and honestly the experience has been much smoother than I expected. My banking apps work, GPS/navigation works reliably, messaging and everyday apps behave normally — I’m not constantly fighting the device or giving things up. After the initial setup, it just feels like a normal smartphone, except noticeably quieter in terms of tracking and background noise.
What surprised me most is that this isn’t a “privacy experiment” anymore. It’s a usable, stable daily driver. I still get the convenience people worry about losing, but with far fewer ties to Google services by default.
I think a lot of people hesitate because they assume moving away from stock Android means breaking essential apps or living with constant friction. That hasn’t been my experience at all. If you’re curious but unsure, it’s genuinely worth trying — the barrier is much lower than it used to be, and you might find you don’t miss as much as you expect.
I can vouch for your experience as mine has been the same, also on a Fairphone on which I installed /e/OS. I could have literally written the same comment myself — em-dash usage included!
it was supposed to be a temporary name, that i believe was intentionally chosen to be bad to make it easier to replace later. they were under pressure because the original name eelo had a trademark issue.
when they eventually found a new name "murena" it appears they then decided to use it as a brand for the phones that they themselves sell instead, keeping /e/OS as the name for the operating system
My account has more comments than that and I share OC's opinion and experience. I've been daily driving /e/ since its FP3 era and lately the experience has been really well polished. Even things that had been "tricky" in the past, like Android auto integration, now work seamlessly.
My banking app doesn't even work on the last 3 android phones I tried because it wants a very up-to-date OS which basically means non-Pixel phones more than 2 years old need not apply.
I had this problem and it turned out to be an upstream issue with MicroG which was eventually patched. If you have an error message you can search for existing issues on /e/OS' gitlab/forum.
Revolut stopped working for me for a while with the error that the bootloader wasn't recognised and rooted phones aren't supported. After about a month an OS update solved it.
As long as banking works with web browsers, I think the future looks good for this usage, but I could de-bank my phone and still have plenty of useful things to do with it.
the problem in my case is that the authentication for the banks website requires an app, and that app doesn't work. i am locked out of online banking for that bank because of it. (they also have a windows app that i could not yet get to work on linux/wine)
Find a new bank. Mine has another problem, so behind they don't support mfa beyond a symantec program I've not heard of before. I don't use it, but can't use my yubikeys either.
It didn't come installed and the FP3 isn't sold anymore so you'll have to install it. It was dead easy though, not anywhere near the complexity of installing Lineage back in the days (though that's gotten easier too).
/e/ on FP3 has been my daily driver for 1.5 years and my daughters run it on their FP4s with no problems at all.
Tbh I am using /e/OS as my daily driver and I fully agree, it just works.
Bonus points for the Nextcloud integration which I can tie to my self-hosted Nextcloud instance.
I do not understand all the negativity, I think it is a solid alternative in the ecosystem, and choice is a good thing.
Happy owner of an /e/OS phone for the past 3 years here. I'm going to replace it for a Fairphone in the near future because I broke the camera on mine, and I'll take the /e/OS version without question.
It's pretty strange that the only subject you seem to have expertise in is e/os. Over a year and that's the only thing you've felt comfortable in discussing?
and so what? should I ask for permission to discuss something? it's crazy how omniscient people are aggressive on the internet. Is that your normal behaviour IRL??
Good stuff! This feels very human. How do you feel about Murena? I feel like like they're very much a "Next Gen" privacy tech company. I've also heard they're crowd-funding!?
I think this is behavior that should be encouraged online. Staying quiet and letting the experts talk to increase the signal to noise ratio is a GOOD thing. OP has hands on experience with something that is at least for now quite niche.
I used to only really speak about node.js topics because that was what I had real fighting experience with, at a scale beyond what most webdevs had ever seen. Those were also my most upvoted posts by far.
I get what you are saying, and if that's what the OP was doing I'd somewhat agree with you.
However, if you haven't already, I'd encourage you to read over their past comments. They all read almost identical to the start of this thread. Before this post they had something like 3 other comments on HN and they were all about how great /e/OS is. All of them have a blurb about the privacy focus of /e/OS. They all read like copy from marketing.
That is bizarre commenting behavior for a niche OS. And these weren't comments about using /e/OS, but rather comments speaking positively about using it.
Your posts on node.js, I assume, weren't all "Node.js is the greatest programming environment I've ever used. It's so smooth and fast." Instead, I'd wager your highly upvoted comments contained useful information about using node.js.
I'd also say, that there are people that work for various software tech companies who post here. The best comments I see almost always start with "Full disclosure, I work for X". Those are far better received.
You're assuming a lot: That it is astroturf, then that the account must be directed by eOS itself and not some enthusiastic user or third party. Or to be really conspiratorial, an adversary who makes obviously astroturf positive comments in order to sow doubt about the project.
I'm in. They’re working on an open-source operating system (e/OS) that prioritizes privacy and digital freedom, which I know many here are passionate about. It’s based on the Android Open Source Project but without the Google integration.
Murena has some ambitious goals, like hyperscaling active users and selling nearly 20K phones by next year. They’ve also partnered with sustainable phone manufacturers like Fairphone and Teracube, which aligns well with their ethos.
They’re already in overfunding territory, having raised €534K+ against a €400K target, so there’s clearly some momentum here. Given the growing concerns around data privacy and the monopolistic tendencies of Big Tech, Murena’s approach feels timely and necessary.
Just thought I’d share since privacy-respecting tech alternatives don’t come around every day.
I've been using Murena /e/OS for a few months now, and I couldn't be more impressed. As someone deeply concerned about privacy and digital sovereignty, this operating system is a breath of fresh air. The developers have done a fantastic job creating a seamless, privacy-respecting experience without sacrificing functionality or usability.
First off, the user interface is clean and intuitive. It feels just as polished as any mainstream OS, if not more so. The pre-installed apps cover all the essentials, and they respect your privacy by design, which is a massive plus. The App Lounge is surprisingly robust, offering a good selection of apps, including many popular ones that people often worry about missing out on when they switch from Android or iOS.
Performance-wise, /e/OS runs smoothly on my phone, with no noticeable lag or crashes. Battery life is also excellent, which is something I didn't expect but greatly appreciate. The system updates are regular and ensure that the OS stays secure and up-to-date with the latest features.
One of the standout features is the integration of the cloud services. The Murena cloud offers a privacy-focused alternative to Google, and it works seamlessly with the OS. It's reassuring to know that my data is stored securely and not being mined for ad targeting.
Overall, Murena /e/OS is a game-changer for anyone who values their privacy but still wants a fully functional and user-friendly smartphone experience. Kudos to the team for creating such an impressive product! Highly recommended.
I’ve been using a Murena/Fairphone running /e/OS as my primary phone for a while now, and honestly the experience has been much smoother than I expected. My banking apps work, GPS/navigation works reliably, messaging and everyday apps behave normally — I’m not constantly fighting the device or giving things up. After the initial setup, it just feels like a normal smartphone, except noticeably quieter in terms of tracking and background noise.
What surprised me most is that this isn’t a “privacy experiment” anymore. It’s a usable, stable daily driver. I still get the convenience people worry about losing, but with far fewer ties to Google services by default.
I think a lot of people hesitate because they assume moving away from stock Android means breaking essential apps or living with constant friction. That hasn’t been my experience at all. If you’re curious but unsure, it’s genuinely worth trying — the barrier is much lower than it used to be, and you might find you don’t miss as much as you expect.
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