Kicking Google while it’s up has become something of a spectator sport these days. However, while there’s a lot to dislike about the data collection that underpins the business whose slogan used to be “Don’t Be Evil”, it’s a user choice at the end of the day. If you don’t want to be part of such an advertising and data-driven ecosystem, in exchange for the utility it undoubtedly offers, then use any of the myriad alternatives out there.
For instance, DuckDuckGo is a pretty decent and privacy-focused search engine these days. You’re spoilt for choice when it comes to browsers, with Safari on macOS being a good choice for Apple aficionados and Firefox or Brave for Windows.
Email clients are trickier when it comes to the sheer functionality and universality of Gmail, but tricky does not equate to impossible. Apple Mail can be used to read your Gmail like any other client, although I’m not a fan of the interface. Although not free beyond the basic capability version, Proton Mail is the client I recommend these days when asked for a Google alternative. Indeed, with the arrival of Proton Mail for the desktop on macOS, I’m in the process of switching to what
