I’m getting two different arguments from you, and I can’t tell which one is your actual argument
Or
To the first argument, its just kinda… Wrong? Grapheneos is very transparent about what it is and is not, and what it is is an excellent security focused os which can be a great basis for you to have a privacy focused experience as long as you don’t install spyware like Instagram and Gmail.
To the second argument, yeah, I get that. People acting like its the only option are either misinformed, falling for bias, or intentionally being disingenuous. Its very good, and almost certainly one of the best ways to have a privacy focused experience, but you’re not delusional if you want to use something else. There’s plenty of talented people building upon the already great basis that AOSP provides. But by the same token, community members being silly or fanatical doesn’t really make the operating system any worse.
“Let others suffer with ads so I can have a cost-free browsing experience”
I’d much rather pay to support platforms that enrich my browsing experience, than continue allowing the ad-fuelled, spyware ridden, clickbait filled internet to continue even one more day.
Ad blockers for all, until we don’t need them anymore!
People fitting the bill:
Windows defender along with a system hardener (like hard_configurator) can actually be quite insanely strong, especially since windows defender starts working and blocking stuff long before non-system apps, which can be a big boon. This approach is also free (if you have windows) which seems to fit your needs!
Always love to see dropout in the wild. I know they’ve been here the whole time but its still nice to see