Finnish company Jolla started out 14 years ago where Nokia left off with MeeGo and developed Sailfish OS as a new Linux smartphone platform. Jolla released their first smartphone in 2013 after crowdfunding but ultimately the Sailfish OS focus the past number of years now has been offering their software stack for use on other smartphone devices. But now it seems they are trying again with a new crowd-funded smartphone.
Sailfish OS has supported a number of Sony Xperia smartphones and a variety of OnePlus / Samsung / Google / Xiaomi devices and more maintained by the community. Last year Jolla also announced an “AI computer” as part of the AI hardware craze. Now though they are apparently trying again at their own in-house smartphone.
Nice. I put in the down payment of 99 €, let’s see what happens.
I want this. I don’t think its available in The US though. Someone please make a good linux phone! I like grapheneOS but its still based on android, which hasn’t had a great track record of late.
That design looks AMAZING.
Is there anything I need to know about the political affiliations of Jolla / past products / sailfish os before I pre-order this thing?
Edit: nvm, no global shipping
I hope they succeed, it’s a very tough market.
They probably need a lot of ducks to line up in a row. But the current privacy wave and the push for digital sovereignty in Europe might help.
Kinda. But also kinda not. The cost of getting a phone made has decreased and there are many, many manufacturers who can make one for you these days. From that perspective, if you have small niche where people are alright with paying a bit of a premium, it may in fact be easier to make a phone for them than say in 2012.
The total device cost will be 499 EUR or 599~699 EUR as the “normal” price with the voucher deducting from the phone’s cost if/when available.
This price for a low volume device would have been completely unachievable in 2012.
I hope they succeed. Given Alphabet/Google’s recent moves to try and lock Android’s app ecosystem down and them just generally becoming more Evil every day, GrapheneOS and LineageOS etc. may be living on borrowed time.
I watched a video reviewing some phones smuggled out of North Korea a few days ago and it’s truly scary what the endgame of locked mobile phones looks like and given the trends worldwide towards authoritarianism, we’re frogs being boiled slowly toward the same situation.
Get me a linux smart phone with a headphone jack and I will buy it in a heartbeat, but I don’t think very many other people will.
It’s so bizarre that all the user-repairable phone startups are refusing to put in a headphone jack. Like, the entire point is to limit e-waste, so why are they expecting me to throw out my wired headphones to buy Bluetooth ones or get an adapter that will stop working in a year?
What makes you think a USB-C to headphone jack adapter stops working after a year? There’s the same circuit in there that does the DAC like in a phone headphone jack.
Maybe I’ve just had bad experiences. After my Blackberry finally gave out, my next phone didn’t have a headphone jack, and I couldn’t find an adapter that was reliable.
And I could care less about a headphone jack (I’m an Android user and I’d say Apple’s USB-C DAC is better than 99% of cheap built-in phone DACs - change my mind) but since we’re making requests I’ll take a phone that’s <5.5" please!
I learned C++ just to write apps for my N95, haven’t used it since it broke.
I would pick it up again in a heartbeat if I had a new Jolla phone in my hands.
Yikes, the AI computer thing gives me the ick; however, it seems that they are being a bit less nonsense with a smartphone. Though, given the market trends, it will be a tough space to break into because there are so many established brands. However, if Jolla can put their whole ass into this and make it privacy focused and consumer friendly Linux smartphone…They might stand a chance. Also, I hope they also make a larger screened device, I am tired of the smaller 6.3 inch screens. I’d love for them to make a 6.7 inch screen phone (also make it international version with a lot of carrier compatibility for maximum adoption potential).
I’ve looked at their Sailfish OS and honestly wished it were chosen by corporations more often…As the overall design seems quite nice, while being approachable. You are allowed to be as hands off or as hands on as you’d like to be with getting into the guts of this OS.
I hope they also make a larger screened device, I am tired of the smaller 6.3 inch screens. I’d love for them to make a 6.7 inch screen phone (also make it international version with a lot of carrier compatibility for maximum adoption potential).
That’s really interesting. I’m kind of over here hoping for a good Linux phone that’s like 4 inches, like the iPod Touch used to be. I hope we get more large and small phones though, as long as they’re not stock Android.
While I would never use a phone any smaller than 6.3 inches, I understand that others have differing needs than myself. Having a variety of devices to suit the needs of potential customers is a sound strategy. In the future, I want to see different OS choices that aren’t just either stock Android; different ROMs of Android as an option to choose from would be nice!
Hmm… Gimme a headphone jack option and I’ll try getting in on that crowdfunding, if they let me do it from the US.
I am really excited. I don’t think it will really have much of a market in the US but I think it could have a chance in Europe.
I really want one. But I’m not buying any tech product until my existing one turns to dust and no amount of solder can put it back together. So maybe in five or six years?
I feel like things in the consumer software space for Linux is getting there like desktop Linux ~10 years ago. Waydroid is solid. Android translation layer is in development. Valve with Steam machines.
Krita and GIMP look to be in good positions. Kdenlive doesn’t crash all the time anymore. Can have good consumer interest synergy between regular Linux/SteamOS/Pop_OS if they ever get big selling hardware and Linux phones
Android apps needed as part of the proposition now. But eventually over many many years there should eventually be a good ecosystem of Linux native phone apps
