Degoogled phone options with Fizz

Salvatos
Salvatos Posts: 5 ✭
in Phones
I am strongly considering moving away from VoIP and getting a smartphone with Fizz instead. However, I want nothing to do with Google or Apple. I spent a few hours researching my options:
* the Librem 5 doesn’t look like it would work with Fizz and its performance isn’t great;
* the Fairphone 5/6 looks like a popular option with Fizz users but I can’t find it degoogled in Canada;
* but Murena’s degoogled Teracube 2s looks like it would be compatible: https://myteracube.com/pages/teracube-2s#tech-spec-secs (VoLTE support and 4G bands B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B7, B12, B17, B20, B66).

Does anyone have a) experience with the Teracube with Fizz, b) advice on getting a degoogled Fairphone in Quebec, or c) other recommendations?

I don’t have the time or patience to try and degoogle a phone myself and risk bricking it at the moment, otherwise I might have tried putting GrapheneOS or some mobile Linux distro on a Fairphone. If there are reputable shops in Quebec that offer that service, I could consider that approach as well.

Thanks in advance!

Answers

  • alexanderluo10890
    alexanderluo10890 Posts: 1,775 ✭✭

    I don't have experience Teracube phone. Is there any reason you don't want Google or Apple phone?

  • junozero
    junozero Posts: 1,284 ✭✭

    Same for me.

  • PotatoStarch
    PotatoStarch Posts: 655 ✭✭

    I don't see a reason why Fizz shouldn't work without Google services, network doesn't require an app or anything like that. However, the list of phones certifoed Fizz VoLTE isn't that big
    https://fizz.ca/en/faq/compatible-devices#3

    That is not to say other phones will not work, but are not officially supported.

  • MobileFizzer_VBMV6
    MobileFizzer_VBMV6 Posts: 632 ✭✭

    Please note, the Teracube is missing B13 and B71, needed in both Vidéotron and Freedom territories.

    In general, you get data service with pretty much any phone, provided it supports the right LTE/5G frequency bands. However, getting voice service will become tricky once the 3G shutdown is complete and you have to rely on VoLTE. Only Fizz-certified devices are guaranteed to work on Fizz VoLTE. Maybe you should hold on to your VoIP service after all. You can reach your VoIP service over Fizz data and then you won't need your phone to be Fizz VoLTE compatible.

  • Salvatos
    Salvatos Posts: 5 ✭
    > @MobileFizzer_VBMV6 said:
    > Please note, the Teracube is missing B13 and B71, needed in both Vidéotron and Freedom territories.

    As far as I can tell from CellMapper, my area is mostly under Telus, Bell and Rogers networks and bands 2, 4, 5, 12, 13 are the most common. Would missing one (B13) be a significant issue? I don’t see any areas where that’s the only one available and I don’t see 71 anywhere.


    > @MobileFizzer_VBMV6 said:
    > Maybe you should hold on to your VoIP service after all. You can reach your VoIP service over Fizz data and then you won't need your phone to be Fizz VoLTE compatible.
    I am getting fed up with having no way to call anywhere when either power or Internet goes down. The last straw being my provider requiring me to call them to troubleshoot my router, and me not being able to call them because the router doesn’t work. I’d rather not pay for mobile data AND VoIP.
  • MobileFizzer_VBMV6
    MobileFizzer_VBMV6 Posts: 632 ✭✭

    As far as I can tell from CellMapper, my area is mostly under Telus, Bell and Rogers networks and bands 2, 4, 5, 12, 13 are the most common. Would missing one (B13) be a significant issue? I don’t see any areas where that’s the only one available.

    Without knowing what "your area" is, it is hard to tell. Towers usually use a combinations of bands, you'd have to check for your area, exactly how. Could either be carrier aggregation to give you better data throughput by combining channels, or different bands for different sectors around the tower. Cellmapper should show all that. In which case you either get less throughput or less coverage / signal quality of both.

    The question, of course, also is, will you only be staying in your area? Given that this is a mobile service.

    and I don’t see 71 anywhere.

    Cell mapper can do that as well. Filter on a single band. Then you can see where it is used.

  • Salvatos
    Salvatos Posts: 5 ✭
    > @MobileFizzer_VBMV6 said:
    > The question, of course, also is, will you only be staying in your area? Given that this is a mobile service.

    I rarely go very far, so I checked all the cities/towns I’m likely to visit at least once a year, mainly around Quebec City and Sherbrooke. Only Bell seems to use B71 in a few places, and never alone. My town has several overlapping bands, so missing B13 shouldn’t be an issue. VoLTE settings would be the biggest unknown. I wish Fizz specified what to look for exactly. I’ll try to have their support look into this phone.

Categories