Runwaylights
Proton offers the service of downloading most APK’s directly from their website, bypassing the play store. They do this to help people get their apps in countries where it isn’t accessible. Take a look at protonapps.com and they also have a lot of information on how to set up their apps on different operating systems
To be fair, the Fairphone is not the greatest in terms of specs, its more middle of the road but on the expensive side. But its has a way longer life. So I get that you want to think on it, because it’s more of a commitment to justify the cost
I’d say the paid plan is definitely worth it. The VPN is awesome. Very fast and with a lot of servers around the world. The drive is solid and they keep adding more features like automatic backup for you photos and secure file sharing. Lately they added a Docs to the drive, similar to google docs.
I have a family plan with my wife and brother in law and we share the costs, that makes it even more worth it.
I use a Fairphone with e/os, which works fairly well as an os. Regular updates and they listen to user feedback. And e/os has an app lounge where you can download apps from the play store (without a google account) and f-droid, which is very easy. And the fairphone is great with interchangeable parts.
For maps I use a combo of organic maps and Magic earth. Magic Earth isn’t Foss but is privacy focused and has traffic alerts for driving.
YouTube - Newpipe
And for mail, passwordmanager, VPN, calendar, and drive I use Proton.
Murena (the company behind /e/ os) also sell smartphones with /e/ os installed. They’ve also partnered with Fairphone if you’re looking for a more sustainable model. I bought the Fairphone with /e/ os a couple of months ago because I was looking for a phone with replaceable parts and it works well. They also sell some refurbished models I believe.