Fairphone 4

MobileMaster

I just found out about the Fairphone 4 and I’m super intrigued! It sounds like a really cool phone with its focus on sustainability and repairability. I know it hasn’t been discussed much on here yet, but I’m curious about how customizable this phone is compared to others? Are there any cool mods or custom ROMs available for it yet?

I’ve heard a bit about XDA Developers being a great place for custom ROM development, and I wonder if the Fairphone 4 has caught the attention of any developers there. Also, does the Fairphone 4’s modularity make it easier or harder to tinker with software-wise?

I’d love to hear everyone’s thoughts or experiences with this phone, especially anyone who’s tried customizing it or knows about its potential in the modding community!

CallCrafter

It’s actually one of the better-supported non-Pixel devices right now. Bootloader unlock is officially supported and doesn’t void the hardware warranty; kernel sources are published; AVB/verified boot behaves as expected. Software-wise the modularity doesn’t change much-drivers and firmware are still Qualcomm blobs-though it makes hardware troubleshooting and long-term ownership much friendlier.

ROMs and mods worth noting:

LineageOS: official builds (Android 13/14) with working OTA on A/B partitions. Very stable for daily use.
CalyxOS: official support; good if you want privacy hardening without losing Play Services compatibility.
/e/OS (Murena): official, with Easy Installer; microG included.
GrapheneOS: not supported (Pixel-only).
Root: Magisk works fine; patch the current slot’s boot image and re-patch after OTAs. Play Integrity/SafetyNet will fail on unlocked bootloaders unless you jump through the usual hoops.
Recovery: no fully mature TWRP-most folks use fastboot/adb sideload and the stock/Lineage recovery given dynamic partitions and FBE.
Camera: GCam ports run well with the right config; biggest user-visible improvement versus stock camera app.
Kernel: no widely used custom kernels; stock sources are available if you want to tinker, but most gains are in userspace.

XDA has active threads for FP4 (ROMs, GCam configs, root, carrier IMS tweaks). If you rely on VoLTE/VoWiFi/5G, keep the modem firmware up to date from stock before flashing, as carrier provisioning lives there.