First Librem 5 Smartphones Are Shipping | Hacker News Reader

First Librem 5 Smartphones Are Shipping

puri.sm

89 pointskgwxd27 comments

This is incredible, they actually delivered! Given the state of similar projects, often kickstarted, I had my doubts.

It's a Linux phone running GNOME. It's the same deal as the Ubuntu phone that raised 10s of millions out whatever in a crowd funded campaign.

That said, where's a video with a hands on with the device? I wanna see how it handles.

AIUI, Ubuntu Phone was not running anything close to a mainline kernel. They simply relied on patchy kernels meant for running AOSP, which created all sorts of additional issues. By contrast, Librem's work should be essentially 100% compatible with mainstream Linux distributions.

Ubuntu, firefox and others bit off more than they could chew with experimental stuff like scopes in ubuntu, or a complete new UI for firefox. Android did the same but had the benefit of google's backing. I think these guys are successful because they're trying to deliver something much more "boring", a basic phone built with almost entirely with existing software.

I never back kickstarters but I definitely feel comfortable enough to place my order now. What part of the ordering process do you select which bands, chargers, etc?

Apparently they email you and ask you when it is almost ready to ship.

The Cosmo Communicator is supposed to ship in the next two weeks, production was crowdfunded through indigogo and it's supposed to run Debian (as well as Android and Sailfish). https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/cosmo-communicator I dig the backlit keyboard.

> The latest tech for your pocket from Planet Computers - the people that brought you the Gemini PDA. Running Android 9 OS, Sailfish and Linux operating systems

I'd be careful, there's been a few phones like that where it turns out the phone and sms (yes I'm old) functionality was only available on android, I don't know if that's the case here.

I'm tempted to replace my laptop with the gemini PDA, but it looks like the placement of the ';' and ':' keys is a deal breaker. My HJKL keys are already over crowded.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tuLkga0dmY goes through some of the UI on the dev kit (similar specs to the shipping phone but not as compact). There are probably more videos like that.

The actual phone is probably going to take a few days for a decent video. The assembly line is in SF, but I don't think they're using same-day shipping. And they don't seem to have prioritized shipping to people with video cameras.

I'm really excited! BTW I really wish some other phone picks up KDE Plasma mobile [0]. It's probably at least as mature as GNOME, at least judging by the screenshots. BTW I love KDE connect in Android.

[0] https://www.plasma-mobile.org/

There's no reason not to run Plasma Mobile on the Librem 5 ;)

This makes me extremely curious how many they have to ship, and how fast they are shipping. I say this because I backed the Librem 5 the same day it came out (My order was at 5:30 PM EST), and I asked to be a part of the first batch. Despite this, I haven't gotten an email asking what modem I want, where it should be shipped, etc.

While I am not the first in line, I can't imagine I am far from the front.

I was surprised that they're talking in future tense:

> Everyone who pre-ordered the Librem 5 smartphone will be receiving an email letting them know which shipping batch — and what shipping date window — they are scheduled for, before we prepare each batch for shipment.

...even though they said:

> The first Librem 5 smartphones roll off the assembly line and ship to customers.

Sounds like only the first part of that sentence is true? The good news being that you should get that email soon, I guess.

I am hoping so. I emailed them asking about my order.

I mean, I get it, low production runs of hardware and prototyping hardware is hard. Having a hardware bug in the first batch would be terrible.

I would even get if the first batch is going to devs that worked on this, then they can work out hardware bug for the second batch of PCBs.

I just wish I knew when I was getting it.

when did you get your choose-your-batch email? i ordered december 2018 and got my choose-your-batch email about a week ago.

Really liking the look. Todays phones are so thin they just don't feel good until you put a case on them. The librem 5 looks like it has a nice solid boxyness to it.

Curious how Purism handles notifications..can it be as efficient (and hopefully scalable) as GCM/Firebase? Wish I knew more about the details, and would love a non-android phone (already use a KaiOS 1.0 Alcatel Flip) that has real, if even basic, functionality.

Slightly off topic: how does GCM work without an internet connection? Why does it need to send info a server and have the server send info back to the phone? Why can't it do that work without network access? If I have my phone on airplane mode and an app that uses GCM needs to send a notification, how does it get to my phone?

My understanding is that the GCM is for notifications that come in from off the phone (i.e. from a server). Rather than have every program have a background service (and if they are badly made, have it drain the battery) to check notifications, they can all tie into one background service that can be optimized for it.

I would imagine that notifications that are local don't need to go through GCM.

I tend not to buy new phones until my current one is done for. But if the Librem 5 pans out and is well received by the first buyers, there is a high likelihood this will be my next phone.

Congrats!

I really want to see how great a convergent Linux phone can be!

Great milestone and coincident with the release of 'Permanent Record' just re-enforces the need for this device.

Is the hardware open-source?

yes, but i don't think it's posted yet for the final boards. here's the dev kit: https://source.puri.sm/Librem5/dvk-mx8m-bsb

What does it mean for the Librem 5 to be "IP-Native Communication First"?

I assume it means that the structure of the UI emphasizes internet communication (chat, VOIP) over SMS and traditional cell-network calling.

I think its their way of saying the phone is designed to be usable without traditional cellular network access:

"A No-Carrier Phone?

WiFi calling and VoIP calling will be able to be provided in WiFi or data plan modes. We expect to offer call-out, and call-in with phone numbers in all of these plans as well. If you still require a “traditional” phone number through a carrier and want to make unencrypted phone calls or messaging, it will be an option you can choose, but is not required (we recommend avoiding unencrypted phone calls)." [0]

Its still a bit of odd phrasing, as most everything on an LTE connected phone is also IP-native.

[0] https://www.reddit.com/r/Purism/comments/7tf3w4/what_does_ip...

has anyone here received confirmation of which batch they're in? i haven't and i'm just trying to gauge which batches are confirmed.

No I have not. I said it below, but I ordered on their kickstarter the same day it came out, and I got an email today saying I will get an email when my order comes up.

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