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I give up on free software phones (2019)

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Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#101

Post by AdamJacobMuller »

maratc wrote: post #58
jancsika wrote: post #33

Someone should do a Linux phone that scales way back: 1. you can dial phone numbers somehow 2. you can talk on the phone 3. you can hear the person on the other line 4. the cell reception on the phone is decent quality 5. antenna is properly placed for very good reception 6. basic SMS works, all the time 7. has been extensively tested to work with a single carrier, any other carrier is no warranty 8. boot time and sh…

The meaning of the word "phone" has shifted in the recent years, and your requirements are a good representation of what that word meant in circa 2007; recently however the requirements 1-8 have so little relevance that it's possible to operate a device without satisfying any of them [0]. The new meaning of the word is an expanded version of #9 whereas it's a connected gadget that runs apps from the well-stocked buil…

Exactly true.

From the original list, I really don't care at all about 1/2/3 (phone calls) and only care vaguely about SMS.

My requirements are for an excellent browser and an app store with support for messaging platforms (telegram/signal/skype/slack/teams/etc) and email support, everything else is either "extra" or an outright distraction I'd probably be better off without (twitter, reddit, etc).

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#102

Post by OldManRyan »

Arnavion wrote: post #99
OldManRyan wrote: post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They shouldn't need to understand it. I don't understand the first thing about how my phone works or mobile development in general. It just works and does what I need it to do.

Yes they do need to understand it. If you believe you don't need or want to understand it, then Linux phones are not for you. It's okay. Really. Not everything has to be for everyone, and evidently Linux phones are not for you. Please don't buy them. Thanks.

You don't need to understand it according to Librem. They are marketing a "user-friendly"(their words) replacement for iPhone and Android. If this was a product sold for the most hardcore Linux users who dream about bash scripts then yeah this isn't a product for me and that's fine. But, that isn't what they are trying to sell and that is the problem.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#103

Post by TurkishPoptart »

the_third_wave wrote: post #66
barbariangrunge wrote: post #3

I expected this to at least mention the pine phone, the librem, or the Ubuntu phone (which was charming). It’s just about de-googled android and how it doesn’t work very well due to how everything depends on google play services

> ...de-googled android and how it doesn’t work very well due to how everything depends on google play services Even that aspect is wildly overblown in my experience of using Google-free Android devices for the last 12 years. Yes, the thing will prompt you to install some Google-thing because it supposedly does not work without it - there are currently two such notifications on one of my devices telling me so. The th…

Does it work for rideshare apps? Lyft/Uber etc.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#104

Post by Arnavion »

OldManRyan wrote: post #102
Arnavion wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes they do need to understand it. If you believe you don't need or want to understand it, then Linux phones are not for you. It's okay. Really. Not everything has to be for everyone, and evidently Linux phones are not for you. Please don't buy them. Thanks.

You don't need to understand it according to Librem. They are marketing a "user-friendly"(their words) replacement for iPhone and Android. If this was a product sold for the most hardcore Linux users who dream about bash scripts then yeah this isn't a product for me and that's fine. But, that isn't what they are trying to sell and that is the problem.

"replacement for iPhone and Android" are your words, not theirs.

And as for the PP the manufacturer has always been very explicit about it:

https://pine64.com/product/pinephone-beta-edition-with-conve...

>Beta Edition PinePhones are aimed solely at early adopters. More specifically, only intend for these units to find their way into the hands of users with extensive Linux experience.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#105

Post by NovaDudely »

AndyKelley wrote: post #75

I got my librem in the mail last week after waiting several years(!!) for shipping. It's complete trash. The software is shit, the battery is shit, it's expensive, low specs, completely unusable. I'm willing to compromise a lot in order to go with the free software approach, but my god, just do better. There's no excuse for how un-functional this thing is. Try harder. I had the same reaction with the pine phone a cou…

The saving grace of the Pinephone is that it is only about 1/8th the cost! They set the expectations realistically. It is a hacker phone for hackers.

It feels like as soon as the community is moving in the right direction, the entire state of technology has moved on to something else and they are constantly trying to realign.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#106

Post by muppetman »

subarctic wrote: post #97
muppetman wrote: post #89

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's a closed source proprietary Google app that relies on Google Play Services to work.

Just like the rest of android

Yup. What's open source now is basically a framework on which you have to build anything useful and, surprise surprise, the only company building that useful is Google.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#108

Post by jstarfish »

fooqux wrote: post #81
chongli wrote: post #78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What do #1-#8 have to do with Linux? As far as I can tell, nothing. A flip phone will cover your use case nicely. Personally, I have no interest in making phone calls. 99% of the time when my phone rings it’s a spam call. The other 1% of the time it’s one of my uncles or aunts, all of whom are in their 80’s or thereabouts. After they pass on, I will have no reason at all to make a phone call, except perhaps to book a…

> Personally, I have no interest in making phone calls. You say that now, but wait until you need to dial 911.

Phones really need a hardware button or key combination for this-- tap out SOS on the power button or something.

It may well be the last phone call one makes in their life, but the ability to do it at all is predicated on the integrity of a piece of glass. It's insane.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#109

Post by Arnavion »

chongli wrote: post #80
BSEdlMMldESB wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

no excuse, merely a conspiracy explanation: it simply cannot be permitted. somebody realized PC market/platform made a huge "mistake", letting anybody make software for them and permitting random hardware. this 'mistake' was avoided on smartphones for very pointed, clear, intentions of social control. there exists NO homebrew smartphone hardware like for PCs.

Your conspiracy explanation doesn’t pass the sniff test. There’s a much much simpler explanation: lack of demand. Heck, you’d think people on hacker news would be all over open source alternatives to proprietary hardware, software, and services. Yet take a brief wander over to one of the many (many) recent Reddit crisis threads and you’ll find countless naysayers talking about how lemmy and the like will never succee…

>Heck, you’d think people on hacker news would be all over open source alternatives to proprietary hardware, software, and services.

Yes, every PinePhone thread has people posting that it's unusable because it's not as good as a flagship iPhone or Android. Or the usual "not ready to be a daily driver" ... because the definition of "daily driver" is apparently a constant of the universe written by God so everyone is expected to have the same one. Meanwhile I've been "daily-driving" my PP for two years at this point because calls, SMS, voicemail, Firefox and the camera work well enough.

Re: I give up on free software phones (2019)

#110

Post by AdamJacobMuller »

pwenzel wrote: post #84
fooqux wrote: post #81

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Personally, I have no interest in making phone calls. You say that now, but wait until you need to dial 911.

[flagged]

Obviously situationally dependent (where you live, why you're calling) and of course you should have the ability to defend yourself if the cops fail to preform, but all that aside, that is not a universal truth. I called my local PD # a few weeks back because someone on a scooter got hit by a car in front of my house and I called the police (local PD directly, not 911, 911 would have been slower) and they had a unit at my house in UNDER TWO MINUTES. It's literally four minutes to drive (sans lights and sirens) from the police station to my house.

I know my experience is anecdotal and not universal, but neither is the "cops won't show up" one.

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