Alphabet (Google)

I have been a huge fan of Google since the search engine debuted in the late 90s. Google was truly different and special. I admired the corporate ethic of “don’t be evil.” I have been using Android and Pixel smartphones since they came out. I host my vanity domain email on Google. For me, Giving up Google is a process.

Write a Letter

Writing a letter is surprisingly easy and impactful, and it feels good.

Google
1600 Amphitheater Parkway
Mountain View, CA 94043

Alternatives to Google Search

Easy.

Switch your web browser to use DuckDuckGo. It works as well as Google, and also serves ads. Done.

If you want to treat yourself to something nice, try Kagi. I pay $5 for the basic plan, which includes web searches and an AI. The quality is excellent and there are no ads. Using Kagi brings me back to the joys of 1999 when Google was a miracle that did not yet rely on advertising. The other miracle of that time was that you could at last watch TV on your own schedule using a DVR and skip the commercials!

Note: I often have to manually surf back to maps.google.com because it is great. I welcome advice …

Alternatives to Android Phones

This is tough.

The most immediately practical remedy is that if you don’t need a new phone, hold off on buying a new one.

You could switch an iPhone, but that’s just swapping oligarchies. Samsung makes great Android-based phones. They pay a license to Google for each handset, and Google pays them to default their phones to Google search. A Samsung phone feels like a lesser evil, and less evil is better than more evil.

TODO: there are other “free phones” that I can research and write about here.

Alternatives to Gmail

Proton …