Have you tried actually using it? It is an awful experience, the pine phone, despite worse specs, performed significantly better, but neither is ready for use as a reliable daily communication device.
Hardware. Most Linux phones don’t use an SoC intended for a phone, or use outdated/slow hardware. This is a big reason why devices like Librem 5 and PinePhone aren’t viable in the long run.
Software. Currently the software side of things still needs a ton of work.
From what I can see, there seems to be a bit of a bit of a focus (obsession?) on Linux phones only running mainline Linux kernel and as FOSS as possible from the very beginning, rather than building something that works and then improving things over time.
This is why I like the approach that FuriLabs is taking. Yes, they don’t use a mainline kernel (they currently use the MediaTek kernel). And they use Halium and (probably) some proprietary drivers. But they are building something that (mostly) works like an actual phone, which from what I have seen/heard is a lot more than what can be said of other phones. And they have been putting in quite a bit of work improving the UX, which makes up a lot of the software side usability problems. They can try to mainline later.
I should also probably mention I own an FLX1, which may make me slightly biased when discussing this topic. There are some things I don’t like about it though, such as the size and weight. LCD screen instead of OLED is also a bit of a bummer.
Have you tried actually using it? It is an awful experience, the pine phone, despite worse specs, performed significantly better, but neither is ready for use as a reliable daily communication device.
The only blocker for me with the pine phone was battery life. Part of that was the OS,but part of it was the small battery.
Damn you, Voice of Truth! Curse you for ruining my dreams and crushing my hope.
When will I be able to get a daily driver Linux phone that doesn’t suck?
There are 2 main problems with Linux phones.
Hardware. Most Linux phones don’t use an SoC intended for a phone, or use outdated/slow hardware. This is a big reason why devices like Librem 5 and PinePhone aren’t viable in the long run.
Software. Currently the software side of things still needs a ton of work.
From what I can see, there seems to be a bit of a bit of a focus (obsession?) on Linux phones only running mainline Linux kernel and as FOSS as possible from the very beginning, rather than building something that works and then improving things over time.
This is why I like the approach that FuriLabs is taking. Yes, they don’t use a mainline kernel (they currently use the MediaTek kernel). And they use Halium and (probably) some proprietary drivers. But they are building something that (mostly) works like an actual phone, which from what I have seen/heard is a lot more than what can be said of other phones. And they have been putting in quite a bit of work improving the UX, which makes up a lot of the software side usability problems. They can try to mainline later.
I should also probably mention I own an FLX1, which may make me slightly biased when discussing this topic. There are some things I don’t like about it though, such as the size and weight. LCD screen instead of OLED is also a bit of a bummer.
I’ve been looking at the FLX1; it’s disappointing to hear about the size. I still prefer smaller phones.