Device integration

Audio, camera, notifications, calendar, battery and network, bridged from Android into Linux.

Breadstick is not a sealed box running beside Android. Parts of the device are bridged into Linux so applications behave the way you expect on a phone or tablet. Everything here that reads your data or your hardware is off until you turn it on, on the home screen under Device access.

Audio

Sound from Linux applications plays through the device like any other audio, with no setup. Volume keys, headphones and Bluetooth speakers all work, because the audio ends up in Android's normal output path.

Microphone

Grant Microphone and Linux applications can record and take calls. Access is live only while a Linux session is running, so nothing can listen when Breadstick is closed.

Camera

Grant Camera and Breadstick provides a camera application on the Linux desktop that shoots into your Pictures folder, including switching between lenses.

This is a viewer, not a Linux camera device. There is no /dev/video0, so browser video calls and applications that expect a webcam will not find one. If video calling matters, use the Android app for it.

Notifications

Grant Phone notifications and your Android notifications appear in the Linux desktop's notification center, with their actions, so you can reply to a message without leaving a full screen desktop session. This is most useful in Desktop mode, where the Android status bar is not visible.

Notifications from Linux applications go the other way too, appearing in Android's notification shade.

Calendar

Turn on Calendar and this device's agenda appears in the desktop's notification center. Turning it off deletes what was projected.

Printing

Linux apps print to a printer named Breadstick, which opens Android's print dialog: any printer this device can use, or Save as PDF. Printing under Device access starts on; turn it off and Linux has no printer. Printing itself is part of Breadstick Pro. See Printing.

Files from other apps

Android documents open in Linux apps through Open with, and files dragged from Android apps land in Linux windows (both Pro). See Files and clipboard.

Graphics chip

With GPU acceleration, Linux apps can draw with the device's graphics chip instead of the processor. Breadstick tests the chip by itself and turns acceleration on where it is stable and faster than the processor; on Intel graphics it drives the chip directly. Web browsers stay on the processor for now. It is part of Breadstick Pro, and anyone can run the test. See GPU acceleration.

Battery and network

The Linux desktop's status area shows real battery level and network state, read from the device. Applications that check whether they are on battery or on a metered connection get honest answers.

Linux resolves names through the same DNS servers as Android, and follows along when the network changes or a VPN connects. Settings, under Network, can point it at servers of your own instead.

Timezone, locale and dark mode

Linux follows the device: the same timezone, the same language, and dark mode switching with Android's. You are not configuring the same settings twice.

Privacy

Every one of these that reads your data is off until you grant it, each explains what it does, and everything is read on the device and written straight into your Linux system. None of it is uploaded anywhere. The app has no account, no analytics and no server that receives your data.

Some of these features are part of Breadstick Pro: the camera, notifications, calendar, printing and GPU acceleration. The notification and calendar projection is opt-in on top of that.