The article started out great. I bet it would have been an interesting read.

No, microg works without an account. What you’re thinking of might be an apps performance with microg not logged into an account.

I found that about 3/4 of the apps that require play services operate fine without logging in while the rest actually require data associated with a Google account and won’t operate correctly, either by breaking only parts of the apps or completely refusing to work.

One example is the octopi launcher. It states the play store is required but the only aspect of the app that doesn’t work is the purchase of pro since that part needs a Google account to bind the license to.

Have you considered using MicroG? It’s stated use is exactly what you’re looking for.

https://github.com/microg/GmsCore

Regarding using AI, you will find that the process results in apps/games that initially look like the app they are trying to clone but that falls apart as soon as you start using it. This video gives you a really good idea of what a vibecoded clone brings to the table.

https://youtu.be/I-Es-R7VUwM

As a citizen, I can’t fathom someone wanting to visit.

I’ve used Duolingo for about seven years to learn German and wouldn’t really recommend it for achieving “rantability”, I’m just at the point where I’m able to understand 80% or so of Rammstein lyrics. That’s a fairly abysmal ROI for 7 years of study.

This is because it’s emulating Reddit

That’s not why. It’s because the userbase is human. Humans are sometimes toxic, no matter the platform they happen to be on.

I’m more concerned about the hardware specs on it TBH, as it’s a trivial process to install another ROM on it.