I don’t think the situation will change for a long time to come. I wonder if Fairphone is more receptive to community feedback, maybe if enough people suggest they work on improving their privacy, security, and freedom they could become a more viable option? At the same time, they’re a relatively small company and their products are not available in many parts of the world.
I think the answer is as follows:
Try to get a supported Google Pixel a*. Used phones will be cheaper but they may also lose support sooner depending on exactly which model you get. If that’s still too expensive, the next best option is to get the cheapest Samsung Galaxy A series phone you can find. They don’t stand out in offering great privacy or security, but they seem to last a lot longer than most other Android phones. Again, you can try to buy used but that also shortens the lifespan security-wise. When finding the best deal, you shouldn’t only compare upfront cost. Instead you should also divide the cost by the amount of months of guaranteed support left to get a more accurate cost comparison.
Failing that, you can use an outdated Android with an up-to-date custom Android distribution. Firmware and drivers will no longer receive updates, but your OS and apps should remain updated. The best option is to use EOL Google Pixels with GrapheneOS, but you might wanna check how much longer your specific device will continue to receive legacy OS support. If you still cannot get a Pixel, then CalyxOS or LineageOS may be your next best options. CalyxOS (despite its issues) is preferred, but it supports very few devices. LineageOS appears to suffer from many additional issues, including greater vulnerability to physical attackers. Some argue madaidan’s article has some inaccuracies or exaggerates some issues that might not apply to all LineageOS-supported devices.
Unless someone finds more options to share, I think this thread is as close to being solved as it could be for the foreseeable future. It’s probably not worth bumping the thread for at least another year or two since the only way we’ll get a better answer is if there’s a promising new device or OS.