I've been thinking it might be worthwhile to showcase that you can make GrapheneOS look beautiful or the same as stock Pixel UI. When I was considering switching from iPhone I had this misconception that it would look ugly or wouldn't look the same as Pixel UI, which is not the case at all. When I asked about it I wasn't given this clearcut answer that you can make GrapheneOS UI look the same or better than Pixel UI.
How much flexibility is there in changing appearance?
As an iPhone user, I really like what Oppo is doing with their ColorOS: https://www.oppo.com/nz/coloros16/
Wow that looks nice. I don't think you can get that.
You can change any apps to different apps meaning the keyboard, homescreen/launcher, messaging app. The launcher is a primary UI thing which is different from iOS and is totally customizable by just installing a new app.
So you can change the look of anything that depends on an app, but stuff like the control center, lock screen, volume sliders, connectivity icons, notifications afaict can't be changed.
https://niagaralauncher.com is a cool looking launcher that I used to use.
It's a little confusing but I'll say there's nothing ugly like the stock GOS apps that can't be changed and tha unchangeably UI elements match the Pixel UI.
Here's a comparison which will show both the unchangable stuff like control center, but also the Pixel launcher, which you can swap out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lwNicPJk4lY
I switched from iPhone and once I installed good looking apps I really prefer the look to iOS because it's a lot faster and smoother.
Thanks! I've been contemplating trying out Graphene, but I really enjoy the user experience of iOS. But I feel like I should at least get acquainted with Graphene as the inevitable enshittification of iOS will occur.
Definitely try it out! The key to good UX on Graphene is choosing the right apps.