The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
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The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
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Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#2How could they not mention the most important and groundbreaking one, although it doesnt release in 2018.
https://puri.sm/shop/librem-5/
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#3I have pretty much every Linux handheld ever made, and my original First Batch Open Pandora is still the one I go to for my casual gaming needs. The reason is that the community around this device continues to produce absolute gems for the machine, as can be witnessed in what would have to be one of the most underrated app-store/repo's around:
My next-favourite device is the GPD Pocket. Its simply a great Linux workstation - near-perfect hardware design (unibody: yay! shitty keyboard: boo!) and - since its Intel - pretty much everything you could want to run on a machine this size is just an "apt install" away. Paired with a couple of iControlPads' (lol!), this is pretty much the ideal portable gaming rig.
I can't wait for the Pyra, and if there's a GPDPocket2, I'm definitely in for that. I'd love to have a device that delivers the community and form-factor of the Pyra, with the materials (unibody) and architecture (Intel) of the GPD Pocket some day. In order that we get there, I'm supporting any of these companies that push us closer .. even though, of course, a Switch or an Android tablet would probably be a better investment for gaming needs. ;)
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#4My personal take on Linux handhelds is that they're held back by their user interfaces. None of the options I've seen have the polish of iOS and Android; they just look ugly and painful to use. On desktop this is 1. improving and 2. partially masked by the paradigm that you're supposed to "get work done", but mobile is in a large part still a platform for consumption and issues such as these make it difficult to seriously use them as such.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#5How could they not mention the most important and groundbreaking one, although it doesnt release in 2018. https://puri.sm/shop/librem-5/
Building a phone isn't easy (obviously ;)). Been there myself and it may not even be due to incompetence from Purism's side. Your leverage as a small manufacturer with low quantities is just almost non-existing. Their main problem is probably not going to be on the software or hardware design and I think they can probably get a good working dev-kit out in Jun-2018 as they state. Their main challenge is probably going to be on the mechanical design, if they want to mass produce something that is on par with other phones out there quality wise.
I don't know anything about their team and their experience, but that Jan-2019 release date could shift quite a bit. Especially if they need custom tooling or non standard parts. 6 months will evaporate really really fast, when retooling or changes in material is involved.
I love the project though and I hope they succeed. I have been looking for something like this and I will surely buy one, if they can deliver.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#6My personal take on Linux handhelds is that they're held back by their user interfaces. None of the options I've seen have the polish of iOS and Android; they just look ugly and painful to use. On desktop this is 1. improving and 2. partially masked by the paradigm that you're supposed to "get work done", but mobile is in a large part still a platform for consumption and issues such as these make it difficult to seri…
I use Linux on the desktop and this is my biggest gripe their too (well it’s the same on BSD too, nothing Linux specific). Sometimes I wish the desktop environments were a bit more opinionated like MacOS (but without all the restrictions). I’m keeping a close eye on elementary OS to see where that ends up.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#7Check out Noodle Pi – http://noodlepi.com
It’s the world’s smallest and lightest handheld computer. And unlike most of these devices with tiny built-in keyboards, it features a modular docking system so you can dock it with a range of different keyboards, from a tiny thumb keyboard to a full-sized one, or a gamepad.
Noodle Pi can be assembled, disassembled, repaired and upgraded by users, with no soldering or tools required. Being powered by a Raspberry Pi Zero, it also runs entirely off a MicroSD card, which greatly facilitates physical security for your system. You can just remove the MicroSD card and keep it physically secure, rather than having to secure the whole device.
There are also a number of wearable configurations possible with Noodle Pi, including a wrist dock that enables wearing it as a wrist-watch, a belt holster, and a clip holster. Lanyard holes in all the docks facilitate even more wearable configurations.
Review of Noodle Pi by Bryan Lunduke: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82_bPWyrPFc
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#8I pre-ordered the Pyra and have been following its development ever since. IMO, many companies could learn a lot from them. Despite being such a small team they give out regular updates and are completely transparent. I think as long as you're honest about what's going on people are very understanding about delays and many other issues.
For an example of a massive hardware screw-up, take a look at the Jolla tablet. They barely gave any updates, always pretending everything was great, and suddenly they're out of money and cancelling the whole thing. Springing that up out of nowhere completely killed my trust with them.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#9My personal take on Linux handhelds is that they're held back by their user interfaces. None of the options I've seen have the polish of iOS and Android; they just look ugly and painful to use. On desktop this is 1. improving and 2. partially masked by the paradigm that you're supposed to "get work done", but mobile is in a large part still a platform for consumption and issues such as these make it difficult to seri…
The Pandora "simple mode" is pretty nice .. I haven't seen any problems with usability in this mode. There's even a very nice interface for access to the community repo that is actually easier to use than the App Store on iOS!
So I think you should probably update your experience.
Re: The world of Linux Handhelds in 2018
#10I have pretty much every Linux handheld ever made, and my original First Batch Open Pandora is still the one I go to for my casual gaming needs. The reason is that the community around this device continues to produce absolute gems for the machine, as can be witnessed in what would have to be one of the most underrated app-store/repo's around: http://repo.openpandora.org My next-favourite device is the GPD Pocket. It…
Another Pandora fan here - I think this is really the unsung hero of the Linux handheld world. Such a great community!