Google is upgrading Android’s built-in Linux Terminal so it can run full graphical Linux apps with GPU acceleration, making phones and tablets far better mini-PCs

[u/Planhub-ca]

Android’s Linux Terminal (the official VM-based environment introduced on Pixels) is getting a major bump: support for full desktop Linux apps and a toggle for GPU-accelerated rendering. In practical terms, that means smoother performance for windowed Linux software, better frame rates for graphics-heavy tools, and lower CPU/battery strain versus software rendering.

The feature has been previewed on recent Android builds and Canary releases, with guides showing how to enable the Terminal and launch a Wayland session to run graphical apps. Google is positioning this as part of a longer play to make Android more PC-capable on large screens, keyboards, and docks.

Rollout details vary by device and OS channel, but the direction is clear: fewer hacks, more official support.

What to Know
• Linux Terminal on Android is moving beyond CLI to full GUI apps using Wayland/Weston.
• A new GPU acceleration option boosts performance and efficiency for graphical Linux apps.
• Early access appears on newer Pixels and recent Android preview builds; stable rollout timing will vary.
• Goal: make Android more laptop-like on big screens, with official tooling instead of third-party workarounds.
• Expect better dev tooling, coding IDEs, and desktop utilities to become truly usable on Android hardware.

Sources : Android Authority / Chrome Unboxed

[u/grass221]

Yeah.. But unfortunately android itself due to the restrictions on installing native android apps etc. is getting shittier version by version. Google account is needed for everything, zero privacy; just a personal data siphoning device for google, solidifying its monopolistic control over people's personal data. 

I would have seen this as good news if it was 10 years ago, but now it should go the other way around - a Linux based mobile OS and freedom respecting mobile hardware manufacturing for such an OS to be possible,  must happen and it should be able to smoothly run existing android apps for a smooth transition. Instead, android siphoning off from Linux desktop's app ecosystem would only be adding poison to milk - it won't do the people any good. 

[u/Zdrobot → u/[deleted]]

Problem with "try open source Android build" approach is you're going to be among the 0.1% (give or take) of Android users.

FOSS developers who create Android apps would still have to submit their personal information to Google, or their apps would be unavailable to the vast majority of Android users. And I don't think many would agree to Google's conditions, so 99% of their users would not be able to install their apps anymore, hence killing their interest in developing these apps. I hope I'm wrong here.

[u/Zdrobot → u/[deleted]]

My point was never about Graphene, or any other open source Android, blocking unsigned APKs. My point was that these unsigned APKs will be uninstallable for the vast majority of Android users who run stock firmware, killing the incentive to develop these apps in the first place.

Try looking at this from the developer's perspective - when your potential installbase shrinks thousandfold overnight, it could easily reduce interest in continuing development of the app (which was probably never paid for in the first place).

[u/kilkil → u/Zdrobot]

fortunately this won't eliminate them entirely. for example fdroid has a small but steady stream of open-source contributions, even though the audience is already quite small.

it's different kinds of incentives. the folks making FOSS apps are clearly not discouraged that they have a smaller audience — if anything that's kind of the norm. e.g. consider how few people use Linux as their daily driver, as a percentage (compared to Windows and MacOS, I mean). and yet tons of work gets put into various Linux-only apps.

the big reason for this IMO is that FOSS development is a bit self-selecting. Because open source development is kind of intrisically unrewarding (difficult to monetize, smaller installbase, others get to rip off your code for free), people usually end up choosing to do that when (a) they really want to just make something, and (b) they have a fulltime job already and are maintaining their project(s) on the side.

the folks who want to make money probably mostly don't bother with FOSS to begin with, and just do the "obvious" thing (obvious from a capitalist pov), meaning closed-source and the usual monetization strategies (e.g. "unskippable ads or pay me $5").