Are all the needed software drivers open source? Or will this phone end up by using blobs, just like all other devices?
> just like all other devices
Except Pinephone and Librem 5, which have all free drivers.
MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
41–50 of 90 posts
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#42I am glad that these sorts of projects exist. Even if the implementation may not be the greatest it at least provides an option which is not under the thumb of Google, Apple and others.. and it can always be improved over time. However, I do wish there were some videos and photos of the completed products
Nothing stops you from buying one of those "granny phones" with big buttons and basic functionality. No traces of Google and Apple on them either.
It's like suggesting to live in cave. A smartphone can do much, much more than a feature phone.
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#43Tbh I would accept anything usable without being bound neither to Google nor Apple. Like a Linux phone but with usable apps which is quite important. For example Samsung gets free MP3 player and more important, background-running voice recorder, which is extremely important for me, but was impossible to find on OnePlus One.
Is Librem 5 not such a device?
And it can run Android apps with Waydroid.
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#44Earlier quoted context omitted.
Isn't that the other way around? I thought voice is usually the most complicated to implement, especially in 4G/5G which uses modified SIP/RTP. Mic and speaker has to work too. Web browsing OTOH at bare minimum require just simulated PPP over AT command interface, touchscreen, and Chromium.
As recently as the Samsung Galaxy S7, Pinephone, etc., voice calls are done with high-level commands too. All you have to do is get the soundcard mixer settings right. Figuring out the correct settings is tricky but once you have them it's plain sailing. Web browsers have a very broad interface with the underlying system. Speaking from experience: getting calls and text working is much easier than getting a browser g…
> Web browsers have a very broad interface with the underlying system.
What do you mean? My Librem 5 just runs desktop Firefox since day one. Calls and texts were a problem initially though.
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#45Earlier quoted context omitted.
As recently as the Samsung Galaxy S7, Pinephone, etc., voice calls are done with high-level commands too. All you have to do is get the soundcard mixer settings right. Figuring out the correct settings is tricky but once you have them it's plain sailing. Web browsers have a very broad interface with the underlying system. Speaking from experience: getting calls and text working is much easier than getting a browser g…
> Web browsers have a very broad interface with the underlying system. What do you mean? My Librem 5 just runs desktop Firefox since day one. Calls and texts were a problem initially though.
Firefox depends on many many parts of the operating system. Calls and texts, not so much. Starting from scratch, a kernel and little else, getting calls and texts working is easy compared to getting Firefox ported.
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#46> Software licensed under the GPLv2
Good for you, you get a cookie. Get back to me when you have a RYF certification and we’ll talk sales.
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#47You traded the Bluesmobile for this?
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#48Only kinda related, but I've been excited to try Genode OS on the PinePhone https://genode.org/documentation/release-notes/22.08 for a very different take on a secure mobile os
It can be runs in a VM on at least x86_64 too, which is useful for people wanting to experiment but who don't have a pinephone handy. :)
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#49It's a bit of an annoyance when products talk a lot about "privacy" and "security", but never once mention what sort of threat model they are private/secure against. Then add in something like a bespoke (unvetted?) communication protocol on top and my eyes really start to roll. The people who really want privacy & security enough to be willing to buy something like this will want a lot more detail than what is offere…
Or _who_ is leading this project.
There’s a gigantic difference between someone who has experience designing and building complex systems to be secure and private… and someone who thinks “how hard can this be? There’s gotta be a market for it!”
I can’t tell which one this is
Re: MikroPhone: A privacy enhanced, simple and featured RISC-V mobile phone
#50It's a bit of an annoyance when products talk a lot about "privacy" and "security", but never once mention what sort of threat model they are private/secure against. Then add in something like a bespoke (unvetted?) communication protocol on top and my eyes really start to roll. The people who really want privacy & security enough to be willing to buy something like this will want a lot more detail than what is offere…
As someone who has worked in cybersecurity for decades, it's remarkable to see how security concerns are finally permeating everyday life. We could always predict that the explosion of connected devices would dramatically expand the threat model, but witnessing it unfold in society is something else entirely.
This extends beyond just technology: it's now embedded in politics, conflicts, and nearly every aspect of life.
It's also important to note that it's not just the sheer number of devices challenging cybersecurity, but the dynamic nature of cloud security. For instance, Apple's recent innovations around hybrid AI computation highlight how cloud security is evolving alongside technological advancements.