I have an old Galaxy F23 5G (SM-E236B) that I can't sell. It has a replacement screen and a broken mic. Instead of letting it sit in a drawer, I want to use it to learn how getting Linux running on a phone actually works.
What I know: I'm comfortable with regular Linux. I use it daily and run a small homelab with a few servers.
What I don't know: Pretty much anything about phones at a low level. I've never built a kernel for a device or ported anything. I've already unlocked the bootloader, and that's about as far as I've got.
The phone:
Snapdragon 750G (SM7225)
6.6" LCD (aftermarket, so maybe not the original part)
Last official update was Android 14 / One UI 6
From some reading, I understand the Fairphone 4 uses the same chip and already runs postmarketOS. I'm hoping that makes this more doable than it sounds.
My questions:
What should I learn first? Are there concepts or guides I should read before touching the phone?
Is the Fairphone 4 work actually useful to me, and how would I go about using it?
Are there Samsung-specific gotchas a beginner usually runs into?
How long did your first port take, and what do you wish you'd known starting out?
My end goal is a working phone UI someday. I know that's a long way off, and I'm mostly here to learn. The phone is expendable, so I don't mind breaking it. Any pointers are appreciated!