- cross-posted to:
- linux@programming.dev
- cross-posted to:
- linux@programming.dev
cross-posted from: https://piefed.social/c/hardware/p/2144337/commodore-announces-linux-based-flip-phone-with-no-social-media-no-browser-the-callback
Linux-based phone still ‘runs 99% of Android apps’ so you can do more with it, if you wish.
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Browser and email is the bare minimum, though.
Even the cheapest clamshells in the 2000s had those two.
Don’t preinstall it by default if you want to look minimal but being forced to sideload (their app store blocks this essential category???) an Android APK in the emulator instead of using native Linux apps for that, is ridiculous
I understand that for a small company like them (it’s being owned by a YouTuber now) creating hardware is extremely expensive and 499 can even considered cheap with all the custom stuff in this device, plastic molds, dedicated assembly lines and so on, but my mind can’t accept paying more than 149 for something like this
The main reason I have a smartphone is to have a browser and email. If those are not available I might as well use a dumb phone.
It’s a dumb phone with Spotify… I used to do just fine with music loaded on the phone memory.
I didn’t even know that the brand Commodore still existed.
Every few years the brand name appears to be sold to some new company
Great initiative but at this price it’s just a scam srlsy…
People pay over $1k for a phone. Now that is a scam.
But those phones are mini computers, some of which people use as an actual desktop.
or you can get an actual desktop – and even laptops – for less money and a better experience.
Better experience in my pocket tho? Or calling emergency services?
why does your pocket need any experience?
My sentiments exactly. They’re charging $499 for $5-100 worth of hardware.
This is the “snakes on a plane” of phones.
I would expect to pay $50 for a modern flip phone with hardware comparable to one from 20y ago. But this is running Sailfish OS, has a decent SoC, camera, DAC, and up to 64GB of RAM. This ain’t your grandma’s flip phone.
Not sure if it’s me or you misreading this, but I believe when it says 4GB/64GB it’s one model, 4GB of RAM and 64GB internal storage. 64GB of RAM at a form factor to fit in a phone that small is currently outwith our technological capacity surely
Ah yeah, I misread that. I agree $500 is high for what it is, but it’s also kind of a novelty device that they’ll surely only make a relatively small number of to guage interest. The industry has shifted all of its manufacturing away from making flip phones cheap.
Jolla phone and that is with much better specs
Nostalgia sells
That is the price if you ship million of units. Realistically, how many units can ship this? 10k? 20k?
Once you consider the price of the plastic shell molds (custom), the custom keypad, the custom motherboard, the custom assembly line, this price is almost cheap.
I wouldn’t even consider a purchase even at a third of the price, but it was a scam if they simply put a sticker on some Alibaba clamshell with stock android, instead here they even partnered with Jolla to have sailfish is as base with the android emulator. That’s much more expensive than just slapping android aosp with a minimal launcher and calling it a day
How does it not have social media or browser if so many apps are compatible? Doesn’t that amount of compatibility mean we can still have social media and browsers?
Based on the article, they have a blocklist of certain apps. You can only install apps they allow. Not sure how extensive the list is, but surely the most popular ones are blocked and they will probably update the list.
Lmao
You can only install apps they allow.
Untrue, the article clearly says that you can sideload anything you want.
Do I misunderstand the article? They state following:
Users are still able to sideload apps outside those that are blocked, using APK installer files
Meaning you can only sideload apps, that are not blocked. So you would not be able to install anything they do not allow to.
You misunderstand, the list of apps they block are “inside” the said list, while sideloading apps “outside” of the said list is possible. So you can only find and install whatever apps they’ve approved within whatever app store they use to serve apps to their customers, but you can install any apk on the phone by sideloading it, given the app supports the phones CPU architecture of course.
“Users are still able to”: Means despite the block list in the operating system, users can still do following…
“sideload apps”: … install applications manually outside the app store…
“those that are not blocked”: … applications not in the known block list from the company.
I don’t know how one can interpret this differently. Where does your “inside” and “outside” interpretation come from?
You can sideload apps, whether they are on the blocklist or not. That’s what the sentence* you quoted says. Well, that’s what I interpret anyways. Maybe I’m wrong.
I broke it down for you and explained each part. And that does not align with your interpretation. That’s why I asked you where your interpretation comes from. “sideload apps those that are not blocked” means “sideload apps that are not on blocklist”. Where does this paragraph states, that it allows to install apps whether they are on the blocklist or not? Could you explain it?
I interpret it as “We do not install bloatware such as Facebook etc. by default”.
The fact that Android vendors do this is annoying.
I want to know the opinion of the person who down voted you. I only buy phones with unlockable bootloaders for this reason.
500 dollars!? What’s the justification for that price?
read recently a tweet: 'in two years we will be paying to NOT have Internet ’
kinda fits this price tag
Trying to imitate apple.
Step 1: turtleneck
Step 2: reality distortion bubble
Step 3: massive profit
My first thought was, this might be about just what’s installed by default. Reading a bit further the article says:
Apparently, the OS has hard blocks to stop the installation of browsers and social media apps.
“Users are still able to sideload apps outside those that are blocked, using APK installer files…”
So I’m not sure why I would want pay 500 Dollars / Euros, just so they have control over what I can install and not. To me this would be a deal breaker. Also this seems to be “basically a custom version of the Jolla Sailfish OS”, so there are probably “better” options using the same OS. And it only has 4GB of RAM? I am not impressed for the price and for the control.
This is a joke or satire, no? Who the F would pay that much for a flip phone. You can get them for free can’t you?
Usually not ones that are still compatible with modern cell tower networks.
You can get them for free can’t you?
Running Linux? Where…
the “official reveal trailer” is done with ai, it looks like a scam
Looking at the channel, dude bought the Commodore IP and are releasing retro things with this IP for absurd amount of money. The C64 ultimate for the price on their site and the shit ass hardware is a fucking joke.
The C64 Ultimate is actually pretty legit, and the price isn’t too outrageous for the base model. It’s essentially combining a bunch of really quite polished community projects for the C64 together to create a finished product.
The new owner of Commodore, Peri Fractic of Retro Recipes fame, is truly a super fan of retro computers, and has made content about them on his YouTube for a decade. However, he stubbornly continues to use AI despite some backlash.
This new phone is massively overpriced, but I have no doubt anyone who buys one will receive it eventually.
How the C64 ultimate is not overpriced? Okay that is using the legit parts of the original commodore and simulating the original hardware but comparing it with any retro handheld is just too overpriced
It’s using an FPGA for hardware accurate emulation which costs more than the ARM chips in retro handheld emulators, and is a bespoke fairly large product made in relatively small batches. For what if is, it’s somewhat reasonably priced compared to its manufacturing costs.
I can’t argue that for most people the value prospect isn’t worth it, since the C64 itself isn’t really a compelling platform except to specific retro PC enthusiasts, but for those who want a proper modern C64 for nostalgia sake, it’s a fairly priced unit for what it is.
It’s using an FPGA for hardware accurate emulation which costs more than the ARM chips in retro handheld emulators, and is a bespoke fairly large product made in relatively small batches. For what if is, it’s somewhat reasonably priced compared to its manufacturing costs.
hmmmm okay that makes sense.
Btw 2 people with Chrono Trigger avatar debating retro stuff is lmao
Tbh I wouldn’t have known your avatar was from that if you hadn’t said anything, as I only played Chronotrigger for maybe an hour or so at a friend’s house when I was a kid and don’t really remember much except for the time traveling machine they had from my friend’s save game, and the girl at the start of the game at the fair :p
I don’t get that “minimalist phone” market I can just get an older phone, remove all social media and use it
The issue. You won’t be able to get old phones when theyre gone. Just like cars.
With the billions of devices lying around without use, there will be enough for a looong lime
You can’t remove lot of apps in most Android phones. I have an older phone S7 Edge which I installed an alternative Android OS called “/e/OS”. Its way more private by default. Besides all the benefits of privacy, I also do not use the Google Play Store and do not have any social media on it installed.
You absolutely can remove every app (including hidden base OS functionality that is packaged as an installed app) through ADB, or through tools like Shizuku that give you effectively “on-device” ADB. There are GUI based apps to do this for both PC and runnable on Android itself.
It’s not easily accessible for the average user, but it’s literally easier than flashing a custom OS, if you’re already looking into that level of things.
Oh okay, I was nor aware this was possible for the regular Android. But it make sense if you get root access. So I learned something new today. :-)
As the owner of a relatively new Android phone, who wanted to disable a software update nag, this is no longer always true.
In my research I built a history of instructions for disabling these nag screens/notifications on phones from this manufacturer. At first, there were things you could do on the phone itself. Then you had to change a setting with ADB. Then you had to disable a system app with ADB. Then you had to get root access to uninstall the app with ADB. And now, for my phone and other recent models, there’s literally nothing you can do, even with root access in ADB, short of flashing custom firmware.
A custom rom is great and the best path for the techie users. For the general public, you can still disable non needed invasive apps. For minimalist usage aimed at reducing overall phone usage, that’s mostly enough. There’s also a launcher called baldphone available on fdroid that turns any android phone in a minimalist phone, aimed at the elderly, but still nice for any minimalism enthusiast. It requires some tech skill to install though.
For the longest time I am using a minimalist desktop too (i mean a launcher or default home app), called Unlauncher.
MediaTek Helio G81 SoC, with 4GB/64GB
Uhhh. For $500? Sorry, no.
I mean its a small company. We have become too used to subsidized costs at the sake of our privacy. Know why TVs are now $200? They are literal spyware in the home. Try buying one without spyware, $999 real fast for the same TV.
Know why phone companies give you a “free” $1000 phone? Youre the product. Constantly tracked and sold. A digital slave.
Pinephone was a fraction of that price. Can’t you run PostmarketOS on a Fair phone too? But that has much better specs.
Uhh the pinephone in general sucks for daily use . its a tinker phone
Really? I thought mine was great
Almost nothing works on it. Can make calls, but not receive, can open the camera, but not take a photo, etc.
Who would I be getting calls from? I use Linux.
Buuutt are you someone who travels and uses airline and banking and hotel apps? Or do you stay home and use arch on a thinkpad ?
/joky
I have done all of those things without apps. Why the fuck would I want an airline and hotel app?
Hotel: check in to room immediately without even going to front desk, even if its 3 am.
Airline: instant update of gate changes. When you need to sprint to make your flight because thr gate changed to one a half mile away, this is something you can’t live without. TVs are getting less and less in airports now. Also, literally no one uses a paper ticket and I suspect they’ll be phased out completely in 5 years. Too easy to fake.
There are people alive today who have never once written a check (I do, often), so you can kiss all of our old analog paper ways goodbye in a few years.
The pinephone was atrocious (As a daily) though. From what I’ve heard from owners it still struggles to this day to run basic mobile Linux OSes.
Fact. It’s amazing that it exists, but it is definitely not a daily driver device. At least for me.
Phone companies dont give you a “free” $1000 phone, you’re actually paying more for it via the monthly bill payments.
That’s on top of you being the product as well.
People don’t know this it seems. You actually have to give up something to gain some privacy. Can be money, can be features.
Most people still use Google while there is Kagi for like 10 dollars… Because they want privacy, but they need it to be free. :)
My daily argument with my friends!
Not free, and on pixels you can install de googled androids like grapheneos and LineageOS
Economies of scale. How many people actually want to buy this?
I think this is the real answer, rather than the other comment about users being monetized. There are plenty of affordable Android phones with decent specs that have no spyware besides Google’s, and Google’s not subsidizing them.
There are also still dumbphones on the market for under $100. I don’t see Android app support as that big a selling point with these specs.
Good luck to them, but I don’t think this is a viable niche.
I can get almost two Punkt MP02 for that.
I get the idea of dumb phones, but $500 (or with taxes in Europe at least 600 EUR) for a phone that cannot even run a browser? This is ridiculous.
I have little hope that the feel of the case and buttons will be anywhere close to what the price would demand.
They didn’t mention battery life once, and it doesn’t even have a torch?
In the FAQs they suggest they don’t know battery life yet because it’s not finished - but indicate “several days” in standby
A torch would be dangerous. A flashlight would be much safer.
But I don’t want a light that flashes, I want one that stays on continuously like a torch
So happy with my 2nd hand Pixel 8. No BS, ecologically acceptable IMHO and yes runs most Android apps thanks to GrapheneOS.
It’s like that era of putting pink ribbons on everything for breast cancer that also signaled you were a supporter of women. Commercialized activism. Be real. This will sell very little. We’ll get some news articles about how it’s trending with Gen z that are rejecting technology and always online culture. It’ll actually only be a small amount of Gen z but you know blogspam going to blogspam.
It’s a crappy product. We need a Linux phone that would actually be a halo product for people to not feel like they’re ripping themselves off to get away from Google and Apple
