We’ve known for over a year that privacy-focused GrapheneOS was ditching its Pixel exclusivity and coming to a Snapdragon-powered phone from a major Android OEM. Then in March, we found out that the manufacturer is Motorola. And now we know when we can expect to see the phone (actually phones plural) and a few other details, too.
In a post on Mastodon, GrapheneOS said that initial devices will be available in 2027. While they won’t ship with GrapheneOS, they will receive support from Motorola.
The phones will be flagship devices with higher-end hardware than Pixels and priced accordingly. That would make them quite expensive since the current Pixel lineup is already pricey, with the Pixel 11 starting at $900, the Pixel 11 Pro at $1,000, and the Pixel 11 Pro XL at $1,300.
GrapheneOS said lower-priced phones will follow, though it did not give a timeline.
“Lower end devices will take more time to meet our requirements since the updates and security features aren’t as good,” GrapheneOS wrote. “It’s mostly due to how Qualcomm handles it. The latest Snapdragon flagships have the best security features. We’ll also need Motorola to start paying them for longer updates below flagships.”
Privacy comes first
GrapheneOS is an Android-based, privacy-focused operating system. Its appeal is that privacy is baked into the OS itself, which does away with the need to try to mitigate risks with a whack-a-mole approach that involves apps and adjusted settings.
It allows for app sandboxing, protects against zero-day vulnerabilities, and gives users more control over permissions. Even Google apps get sandboxed with GrapheneOS.
GrapheneOS the organization is a nonprofit that does not manufacture its own devices.