Pixel with GrapheneOS

All articles

• Which phones run GrapheneOS, and why only Pixel

  GrapheneOS runs on Google Pixel only: every model from the Pixel 6 to the Pixel 10a is supported, the Pixel 8 and later are recommended, and the project’s hardware requirements, from verified boot to a secure element and hardware memory tagging, rule out every other brand. With Google’s support-end date for each model.

  Choose Reference Published 27 September 2026

• Which operating system a Google Pixel runs, and what GrapheneOS replaces

  Every Google Pixel ships with Android: Google’s own build of it. GrapheneOS replaces that build with its own, also based on the Android Open Source Project, on the same hardware. It removes Google’s privileged services from the system.

  Choose Explainer Published 27 September 2026

• GuardDo Pixel: how to verify a secure phone

  In September 2026 every check we could run on GuardDo Pixel gave the same result: its security claims come with no evidence a customer can verify. A claim that cannot be checked has to be taken on trust. Owners of EncroChat, Sky ECC and ANOM phones took the same kind of promise on trust.

  Choose Guide Published 27 September 2026

• The IMEI on a Google Pixel: where it is stored and what changing it takes

  Where the IMEI physically lives on a Tensor Pixel, the three layers that hold it in place, why it is an integrity check inside signed modem firmware rather than a hardware fuse, what IMEI spoofing modules actually change, and why none of it buys anonymity on a cellular network.

  Security and privacy Explainer First published February 2026

• VPN on a GrapheneOS Pixel: why an app on the handset does not cover all traffic

  Enforcement in Android applies to application identifiers, and system identifiers are exempt from it at the level of the networking subsystem. Which categories Google confirms are outside the tunnel, why tethered traffic never enters it, where DNS leaks come from, and the one configuration — cellular off, Wi-Fi only, tunnel on the router — that leaks nothing.

  Security and privacy Explainer First published March 2026

• Banking apps, Diia and Reserv+ on GrapheneOS: what works on a Pixel in Ukraine

  Privat24, monobank, Oschad, Sense SuperApp, MyRaif and KredoBank work with sandboxed Google Play. Reserv+ works even without Google services. Diia works under two conditions. Binance works. The NFC chip works, while tap-to-pay through Google Wallet and Google Pay is unavailable, because Google permits it only on operating systems it has certified itself.

  Everyday use Reference Published 24 September 2026