Frequently Asked Questions

The term de-Google can mean a few different things. In our context, it means not having Google’s proprietary, closed-source services embedded and continually running in the background on your phone. microG gives open and anonymized compatibility to the necessary Google infrastructure needed to enable app installations, receive messaging app push notifications, and pass ‘Safety Net’ so our phones can be trusted by things like banking apps.

If you don’t want to use microG and want your phone completely free of any connections to Google, you are free at any time to remove the microG app. You will need to configure other options such as ntfy.sh for push notifications.

Of course! We sell phones with iodéOS preinstalled as a service for those that prefer to have it ready to use out-of-the-box. But the code is open-source! Please visit the iodé website to get started.

We at open[mobile] install and use iodéOS ourselves, and want to promote its further adoption by selling phones with iodéOS preinstalled. But open[mobile] and this website have no formal ties to or affiliation with iodé (legally registered in France as IODE TECHNOLOGIES)

Our overall goal is to be an advocate for you as you navigate a move away from “Big Tech”. To that end, we offer up to 30 minutes of one-on-one video call support with each purchase, and will answer further questions by email.

In addition, we are active contributors to the iodé community forum and will help you there as well. Discussions there have the chance to help many others that may have similar questions.

If you find you just aren’t ready for iodéOS, for a small fee we can re-flash your phone back to stock or to LineageOS + Google Play Services (a middle-ground approach). If, instead, you would like a refund, see below.

Some may feel they don’t want any association with Google, including their hardware. After all, we are all about reducing dependence on ‘Big Tech.’ But as we evaluate the options, Pixels are actually some of the few phone models that allow the bootloader to be unlocked (to install an alternative system such as iodéOS), and re-locked again after iodéOS install (to ensure the highest level security for you as the end consumer). These facts in addition to their top-tier hardware specs, especially their high-quality cameras, make Pixel phones perfect as a base for a de-Googled phone!

We preinstall tempered glass screen protectors on all phones we sell. Often a usb cable will be included, but this depends on if our hardware partners include it, so it isn’t guaranteed.

Phone cases and chargers are subject to a lot of opinion, so we do not include either, but am happy to give some recommendations. You can search on your model name to find a compatible case.

Brax is a privacy-focused community selling the BraX3 phone shipping in mid-2025 with iodéOS preinstalled. Its hardware is quite respectable and the price is great, but isn’t at the level of the premium Pixel phones we offer for sale. Our cheapest option, the Pixel 6a, for example, has a significantly faster CPU. But of course our phones are not new.

There are some additional caveats like the BraX3 isn’t approved for the Verizon network, but they do contribute a % back to iodé with each purchase, so we are happy to share the news about their products. So, if you would like a new BraX3 phone, give them a look!

If, within 30 days, there is any hardware issue that is not your fault, contact us for help in making a free exchange. Please contact us first before shipping the phone back to us.

Any phones marked “quick ship!" will be shipped out within a few business days.

For other devices a standard lead time of 2 weeks is needed before shipping. We are a small company and keeping limited local stock helps us be flexible and keep our prices down.

Shipping is free to the continental US. If you order from outside the continental US we will contact you to confirm shipping costs.

We accept returns initiated within 30 days, as long as the phone is in the original condition you received it in. We will need to charge a 15% restocking fee. Please contact us first before shipping the phone back to us.