Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard • Hacker News Board

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#81

Post by ilovetux » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:25 PM UTC

tifadg1 wrote: post #23

For english language, swipe typing coupled with autocorrect works astonishingly well. So much so that I use it regularly because of lazyness. What segment does the physical keyboard appeal to? Youngins were born and raised touching the screen, so it's archaic to them. Old timers are jaded at this point to either wait for their dream phone or buy any cheap crap. So who's the target for this 900 usd device?

I have been waiting for a phone like this since I had a Samsung Captivate Glide [0] in 2011. The fact that it can come with Linux preinstalled is a huge bonus for me.

I can't really say why I like typing on a physical keyboard, but not losing half of your screen to a virtual keyboard and also having access to modifier keys like shift, ctrl and alt are the top two reasons I prefer having the physical keyboard. Also it slides out so you only need to use it when it will help.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samsung_Captivate_Glide

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#82

Post by reasonabl_human » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:25 PM UTC

IgorPartola wrote: post #71

TedDoesntTalk wrote: post #55

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> If I ever need to use my phone in an emergency outside in the cold with wet, sweaty perhaps bloody hands Man, we have very different lifestyles. Are you a serial killer? :) > Some of them are programming languages You’re the first person I’ve known who programs on phone hardware rather than using a larger computer with emulators. It must be quite painful for you!

I guess someone has never been in a car crash. Or had to fix a problem on the train home after leaving work. Must be nice.

Emergency mode on an iPhone is activated with physical buttons. If I’m on the train leaving work, I have my laptop in my bag...

This device is really interesting, but I agree that the product market fit is slim.

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#83

Post by FlyingSnake » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:25 PM UTC

Looks quite cool, and seeing that the order page is taking a hammering, I'm sure lots of orders are being placed. However the name reminds me of HBOs Silicon Valley show where they end up over-jargoning the product names. I wish they had come up with a more friendlier and catchy name like "Slidey" or something.

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#84

Post by nabakin » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:27 PM UTC

growt wrote: post #61

Am I the only one who thinks that "finger model" on the landingpage is a poor choice? It looks like you couldn't even use the device with those nails.

The promo video barely showed someone actually using the keyboard too. From what they did show, it looked cheap.

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#85

Post by froh42 » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:27 PM UTC

I wonder why such devices have such a "meh" processor. This thing has a worse one than my several year old OnePlus 5.

Don't know if it can do HDMI or DisplayPort output, but assuming that (and using a bluetooth keyboard and mouse) it might be a ultra-portable work machine for me, so I don't need to schlep my laptop around. But not with a meh processor, then it is only a phone with a keyboard.

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#86

Post by andrew_ » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:28 PM UTC

It's astonishing to me that folks are still releasing phones which have no IP rating, let alone devices that are not fully waterproof (IP67). I'm probably in a class of folks who are in and around water more than most, however the flagships have all adopted this.

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#87

Post by dmos62 » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:28 PM UTC

tifadg1 wrote: post #23

For english language, swipe typing coupled with autocorrect works astonishingly well. So much so that I use it regularly because of lazyness. What segment does the physical keyboard appeal to? Youngins were born and raised touching the screen, so it's archaic to them. Old timers are jaded at this point to either wait for their dream phone or buy any cheap crap. So who's the target for this 900 usd device?

> For english language, swipe typing coupled with autocorrect works astonishingly well.

Yes! I love it. But when I'm typing in a morphologically complex language that has poor autocorrect coverage (dictionary too small), swipe typing is unpleasant. I hate swipe-less touch typing. Keyboard is right up my alley (though I'd love to see improvements in non-English autocorrect more).

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#88

Post by bdcravens » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:28 PM UTC

moistbar wrote: post #51

log101 wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hmm, is it possible to touch-type on a keyboard of that size?

I used to do it on a Blackberry, which had an even smaller keyboard.

I think that actually is easier on a smaller keyboard, since you can reach the keys without stretching your thumbs. On this phone, you'll definitely be stretching your thumbs (on my iPhone 12, I can barely touch my 2 thumbs when holding the phone horizontally)

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#89

Post by sheepybloke » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:29 PM UTC

Like the concept, but $800 for a phone with Snapdragon 662[1]? Even with the keyboard and other pluses, that's a hard sell. That processor will be fine for most applications, but I'd hope for something slightly more powerful, like a 730G. I feel like a 662 might be too limiting, and at $800, that's a very crowded market, even if you are targeting a more open device.

[1] https://www.notebookcheck.net/Qualcomm-Snapdragon-662-Proces...

Re: Pro1 X: A Linux smartphone with slideout keyboard

#90

Post by rasjani » Thu, Apr 01, 2021, 1:29 PM UTC

Fnoord wrote: post #25

vasilakisfil wrote: post #6

I would like to see the keyboard layout but I can't find any photo.

See [1], source: FTA. This is the spiritual successor of the Nokia N900, and it isn't a very good keyboard (but a better layout than N900). Its pretty much a rebrand of the same device with the same name from 2019 without the 'X'. Difference is it has better OS support (thanks to XDA, I guess), different SOC (recent SD600 series instead of SD835), and a different colour (blue instead of grey). If you want a very good…

> This is the spiritual successor of the Nokia N900

There was next iteration called N950 which resembles this device even more. Sadly, it never shipped but I think Nokia shipped 100-200 prototypes to app devs before whole burning platform happened.