After some delays and frustrations, the “full” version of LineageOS 23 is now available. Does it make sense to flash to the big 2026? Here’s everything you need to know.
We’ve been holding off talking about LineageOS 23 until the 23.2 build drops. To dig deeper, we mention that build in this post and accompanying video.
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No AI? No problem
Some AI haters and AI skeptics simply want to go back to a time when Pandora’s box was never even conceived, let alone opened. LineageOS 23 offers intrepid owners finding a safe haven in their pockets among a ton of rehashed garbage powered by updated models, prompts, tokens, and resource-draining, data-hungry servers.
Gemini is nowhere to be found unless you need to use it. This is one of the biggest reasons why you’ll want to eventually try Lineage on your smartphone. GApp is available as an add-on package. I’ve tested it with and without, with little impact on the overall experience except for increased privacy protection.
Google delays
Sadly, we already live in a post-Android 17 world, so LineageOS 23 is in a state of flux. Google moved to quarterly AOSP releases, which had a ripple effect. For one, Lineage is released on a six-month release cycle.
It’s been several months since all QPR1 features were integrated into LineageOS 23. The changes are primarily visual, but there are some performance enhancements that can breathe new life into older supported handsets.
Material 3 Review of expressiveness
Last year, Google introduced a new visual design language called “Material 3 Expressive” in Android 16 QPR1.
Think of it as a playful interpretation of what a mobile phone operating system should be. It’s just bigger icons, new icons, and more colors, but it doesn’t affect how your phone works. As mentioned earlier, this wasn’t the case when LineageOS 23 was first released. Source code became available a little later, and it took until early 2026 for the late 2025 build to be properly integrated into LineageOS.
Exhibit 3 Expressive power is most evident in Android’s interactive elements. Quick settings and resizable tiles are here, embodying usability in a way that Android 12 forbade long ago. Being able to change the size of your tiles from 2×1 squares to 1×1 squares isn’t just a throwback, it’s also full of practicality thanks to LineageOS 23, which is chock-full of features not available in standard Android builds. It looks good, it will work fine Start.
You’ll probably also notice that the status bar has changed. This is just scratching the surface and building on what has been around for a long time.
Here, dynamic color themes work better with better tonal mapping if you choose a theme based on the wallpaper on your device. Although technically unrelated, the Expanded Dark theme is also here to force apps that don’t support dark theme or dark mode to work when switching. These touches extend to animations, menu structure, and overall, and Lineage has never felt so fluid, even on an older device like the Pixel 7a.
What’s interesting is that LineageOS 23.2 includes a number of features that I expected to be omitted, including notification summaries, referred to here as “Notification Organizer.” In case you weren’t aware, this groups notifications based on their content into preset filters like “Promotions,” “News,” “Social,” and “Recommended.”
You can add widgets to your lock screen as part of “Hub Mode”. This may not be all that useful to everyone, but it’s an old feature that was re-added and reintegrated in LineageOS 23.
Although limited to certain handsets, this build also allows you to enable off-screen fingerprint scanning. This isn’t typically possible on some Pixel phones, and your range may vary, but it’s these points that distinguish LineageOS from the “default” experience on Pixel phones in particular.
LineageOS App Suite
An improved Updater app is coming, but it’s not ready yet. This is a welcome change, though, as it’s pretty easy to update your phone, and it’s great to see the care taken in the ‘features’ area of this ROM. We hope it’s worth the wait.
As with the Updater application, all of the default system apps are not fully updated yet. Some selections have been given a touch of Material 3 Expressive, but more visual tweaks are coming in the coming months.
Twelve Music Player integrates many new elements as part of the Expressive UI. Large button toggles appear instantly, making it easy to tap, adjust, and skip tracks. There are also additional colors following enhanced dynamic color theming. Visually, it’s fresh and looks much fresher and more up-to-date compared to previous redesigns.
Also added a “play random song” feature, playback statistics, and MIDI playback support on startup.
According to the changelog, the Calculator app has been given a bit of paint. I have to admit that I had a hard time deciding what was new. The font becomes thicker and the text becomes larger. There are a few slightly broken UI elements, such as the AC button, but everything else is essentially the same. This is just a bolder twist on the default application.
Similarly, the default Clock app has also been updated. Again, I’m having a hard time seeing the change, even though it’s listed in the official LineageOS 23.2 changelog. Improved animations are mentioned, but the feel is the same. However, I don’t use Lineage every day like I did 10 years ago.
We look forward to various updates and changes to other applications as well. Outside of Google’s first-party app suite, few developers have integrated Material 3’s presentational changes. In fact, too many people rely on liquid glass to guide their design, and that’s a great shame for Android, which has a unique design language to understand and execute. Kudos to the LineageOS team for doing this and for doing so against the default app suite.
The Aperture camera app looks the same, but it has added some cool new tricks. Finally, simultaneous capture of Ultra HDR, RAW, and RAW+JPEG is supported. It’s a limited camera suite, but at least it’s a very solid alternative that offers more options than ever before. This means that for the first time, HDR content is fully supported for both still images and video.
Do I need to install LineageOS 23 on my device?
As it becomes increasingly difficult to avoid AI, it becomes increasingly difficult to find a smartphone that has just the basics, allows you to use the apps you need, and provides a clean, consistent experience. LineageOS 23 provides a life raft for those looking to go back to basics without sacrificing quality.
Of course, that doesn’t apply to everyone. Custom ROMs have always been, and always will be, one of the best ways to ensure the longevity of your technology. It doesn’t need to be said, but it’s just nice to see projects like this continue to provide valuable utility at a time when fatigue surrounding big tech feels like it’s at an all-time high.
I’m glad I waited to try the “full” iteration, but the exciting part is that there’s so much more to come. We can bemoan the recent slowness of Google’s AOSP releases, but on a positive note, perhaps this could put Lineage in an even stronger position going forward. The increased sophistication allows the project to publish ROMs that are easier to recommend for a large number of devices.
Additionally, LineageOS is likely to offer faster and more regular updates than many OEMs. The fact that phones are still being released with only a single system upgrade is a crime in 2026 and beyond. If I was shopping on a budget, I would definitely want to adopt LineageOS right away, and would encourage others to at least consider it.
Click here to start using LineageOS 23 and 23.2 and see all supported devices.
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