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cosmic_cheese 1 hours ago [-]
This is interesting to me for a few different reasons, but one of the bigger ones is that it appears to be a Sailfish device that’s readily available in the US, which to date has been oddly rare. As a dev, Sailfish has caught my eye a few times over the years but no US availability has meant I’ve never had the chance to play with it.
branon 30 minutes ago [-]
It seems that way, marketing page claims broad compatibility incl. VoLTE which bodes well for US compatibility, however I noticed this in the FAQ:
Q: What network bands are supported?
A: Please see the Network Specifications section above this FAQ for supported bands and carrier compatibility.
But there is no "Network Specificiations" section on the page that I can find. It would be really nice to know which specific bands the modem supports.
pimterry 3 hours ago [-]
Some scepticism here I see, but personally I think this is spot-on. I've been keen on a dumber phone for a while, but losing whatsapp & maps makes it a non-starter for any real use. This is an excellent middle ground. The aesthetic is cool, and building this on Sailfish but with Android compatibility is awesome. Big fan of the concept.
pflenker 1 hours ago [-]
Yeah me too. It felt like it was designed exclusively for me, it ticks all the boxes in what a dumb phone should and shouldn't have in terms of functionality.
kamma4434 2 hours ago [-]
For me, Id say that whatsapp is the phone. It’s so much better than pstn…
SirFatty 2 hours ago [-]
maps exist, you must have missed that... as for whatsapp, I have never used it once, and yet my phone provides "real use" (whatever that means).
alexgieg 44 minutes ago [-]
Many countries don't use SMS, they use WhatsApp, for almost everything, from chatting with family and friends, to business contacts, to talking with your bank manager, to medical appointments, to 2FA, and even to transfer money.
That's what prevents most people on those countries from having a dumb phone, and forces even the most illiterate of 90yo great-grandmothers to learn how to navigate around Android or iOS, all the while placing uncountable many calls to their great-grandchildren because they opened up some random app by accident and don't remember how to get back to the only thing that matters: WhatsApp (talking from experience here).
A WhatsApp-capable quasi-dumb-phone would be a godsend for such places, provided it's cheap enough. At $500 this one definitely isn't, not when an ultra-cheap Android smartphone capable of running WhatsApp costs $90. But if this one sells well, cheaper ones may become viable down the line due to economies of scale. I surely hope that happens.
dwb 1 hours ago [-]
You are not a representative user, at least in a country where WhatsApp is dominant.
ubermonkey 1 hours ago [-]
Try to understand that the person you're replying to clearly has different needs than you do.
kakacik 2 hours ago [-]
Phone like this, especially with whatsapp, is something I can imagine giving to my kids once they are older. They would love the design 1000x more than what biggest players bring on the market these days. Maps & whatsapp cover basically 99% of the needs I want them to be covered (contact with optional video & navigation).
Full phone? No thank you, its enough to look around how it ends up.
towledev 2 hours ago [-]
For me, Maps and pods.
If it looked like a RAZR, I'd buy one today
baggachipz 24 minutes ago [-]
I like the idea, but I have major problems with their inclusion of Meta-owned WhatsApp. Any company which cares about privacy should throw WhatsApp into a volcano. That said, I understand why they include it as much of the world uses it as the default for some reason I still can't understand.
Anyway, I love the idea and would use something like this if it allowed me to choose a configuration at order time which could include or not include a set of available apps which are curated by the manufacturer. That way, the apps are immutable and the mission of the phone is preserved. Also, a real keyboard is an absolute must for apps like maps, telegram, and SMS.
raffael_de 10 minutes ago [-]
> inclusion of Meta-owned WhatsApp
just uninstall it then?
> Any company which cares about privacy
I don't think this phone or Commodore has anything to do with privacy beyond what's legally required. It's a lifestyle product.
The phone is running Sailfish OS.
rickdeckard 3 hours ago [-]
Nice, but a little bit too thin on details to read this as more than "we ordered a Commodore-branded Sailfish-OS phone from an ODM".
If it would be more "considerate" from hardware (or even software) perspective it could be compelling, but from the infos on that page it sounds more like a "memberberry" product
(like e.g. a phone from Kodak, Sega, Atari,... built on the business decision of [product-cost] + [branding] = [potential price-premium of xxx USD])
branon 2 hours ago [-]
> we ordered a Commodore-branded Sailfish-OS phone from an ODM
Is this true? I did some research on flip phones the other week and I didn't turn up anything running Sailfish. Options seemed limited to
* Nokia S30+ devices (traditional proprietary feature-phone firmware, somehow Nokia is still producing these)
Are there any other examples of Sailfish phones being vendored similar to how Commodore is doing theirs?
philistine 19 minutes ago [-]
Not in North America, no but that's what people are saying; they simply imported the structure of SailfishOS that's used in other parts of the world.
Gracana 3 hours ago [-]
Retrocomputing Roundtable has talked about the new Commodore company over the course of a couple episodes, and I thought they brought up a good point about “what is it that people actually want from Commodore,” and the best answer they came up with is “to be 12 again.”
A new C64 with modern video output, a disk emulator, a SID chip replacement so you don’t need an original… that’s all good, but beyond that, it’s hard to say. This phone, though? I don’t think anyone saw that coming, and I don’t see how this could possibly be the right move.
jonhohle 3 minutes ago [-]
Not only that, but this is exactly the kind of phone I get for my 12 yo. I love that it doesn’t even have a browser that I’d need to try to disable via ADB or some other hack. If it’s nicer than KaiOS, and compatible with the right networks, it could be a win for the parents and tweens.
Edit: then I saw the price. Holy crap, I’ll stick with a $25 Blu.
gschizas 38 minutes ago [-]
> I don’t think anyone saw that coming
Perifractic (the CEO of Commodore.net, and a prominent YouTuber) has made a few videos that describe his anti-smartphone stance. It's not that big of a surprise.
-0_0- 32 minutes ago [-]
There's definitely a novelty market for dumb/flip phones so it makes sense from a company largely based around novelty and nostalgia hardware, and I guess the transparent plastic form factor also plays into that (Frutiger Aero is trendy right now), but it sure does seem like a missed opportunity to claim the 'cassette futurism' as the company's iconic form factor.
Something like the CMF Flip but beige and Commodore branded would be an interesting piece of tie-in merch.
nkmnz 3 hours ago [-]
I had my first flip phone at the age of ... 12! And I can definitely see myself replacing my iPhone 12 with something like that once its battery has died. I don't need 99% of functionality of a smartphone, because I own (and carry along with me) a computer with a physical keyboard at all times - except those where this phone would do 99.9% of the jobs a smartphone would do.
Edit: just saw the price point. Nevermind, not going to spend more than 50 bucks on that.
Gracana 2 hours ago [-]
I'm at my computer now and I took a second look, and honestly that beige edition is damn good nostalgia bait. I still find it to be an odd direction to go, but it does look very good for what it is.
kamma4434 2 hours ago [-]
At 50/100$ it would be great but for 500$ I’m not sure
mnls 1 hours ago [-]
$120 max and I’m feeling generous.
If it had an option to install a messenger of choice (Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp etc) then maybe $140-150.
The whole "people want their data and privacy and all" is becoming the next premium service and/or product and I don’t like that at all.
pflenker 1 hours ago [-]
> If it had an option to install a messenger of choice (Signal, Telegram, WhatsApp etc)
It has that capability. From TFA:
> A flip phone with the apps you need: WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram. Music, podcasts, maps, rideshare, a great camera for the moments worth keeping.
mnls 45 minutes ago [-]
Oh I've missed that, thanks!
Uncle_Brumpus 52 minutes ago [-]
I saw the "Get $50 off!" and thought "Oh cool, maybe I could get this for $150!" then checked the actual page and saw $499... absolutely not.
Also the whole store page just feels off. The weird mix of "beige" and furtiger-aero-esque imagery is confusing, and my gut hunch is that there's some AI images here. I understand they're trying to appeal to 2 different nostalgias, but it just doesn't mix. And for something allegedly releasing at the end of this month, there's a disappointing lack of images of actual devices.
The "founders edition" being gold plated just seems kinda tone deaf? There was recently a different controversial gold phone that I am immediately thinking about and I don't think that connection should really exist. $140 more for gold plating?
And their feature comparison down at the bottom has the Lightphone 3 with red X's for "swappable battery and back cover" and "blocks social media", which are definitely both features of the LP3? Unless you want to be pedantic and say that the LP3 doesn't block social media because you can modify it in an unauthorized way to allow installing Android apps, but I'd be willing to bet you'll be able to do the same with this Commodore phone) And they add an extra $40 to the MSRP to the other devices to account for the "value" of the headphones included with the commodore phone? And on that note, what's the line "*Earphones sold separately – price includes $40 headset comparable to Light Phone III & Callback" mean? Why's the LP3 in that line? It doesn't include headphones. (I'm just picking on this in particular because I own a LP3 and have direct experience with it)
hellcow 39 minutes ago [-]
Sheesh. $500 is a hard pass from me. Too bad because I was psyched to try this.
st_goliath 3 hours ago [-]
This is really confusing brand/product combination. Who is it trying to appeal to?
I'm pretty sure the people who have fond memories of growing up with a C64 or watching ToS are of an entirely different generation than those with fond memories of flip phones and cyber/color-puke ads for transparent plastic gadgets.
> BASIC Beige Edition
There's a missed opportunity for a better ToS joke here: "Beige... the final frontier"
bilekas 3 hours ago [-]
> A flip phone with the apps you need: WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram. Music, podcasts, maps
Honestly, that sounds appealing to me at least. Those are the only communication channels I have, so it suits. Maps if I get lost somewhere. And some spotify. I pretty much have that now, but just with constant privacy breaches and issues I need to stay on top of.
> There's a missed opportunity for a better ToS joke here: "Beige... the final frontier"
I don't think this product will actually ever launch, but if it does, it absolutely MUST have a beige model.
oneeyedpigeon 3 hours ago [-]
> Honestly, that sounds appealing to me at least.
Absolutely, same here—but it has to look good. I know that's subjective, but this thing looks atrocious.
pjmlp 6 minutes ago [-]
Yeah, it could be a bit more like Razr, and for the youngsters in the audience.
I don't know about "fond" memories of a flip phone, but I grew up with a C64, and my first phone was a flip phone, so in terms of age group I don't think it's too far off.
I'm not looking to go back to a flip phone, though. I'd buy one as another fun thing for my display wall if it was cheaper, but it's a bit too expensive for that.
reedlaw 2 hours ago [-]
What do you mean? I'm Gen X but remember all those things. It seems like a reasonable mashup of nostalgia.
pjmlp 8 minutes ago [-]
Same here, I can really see the appeal of such a product.
Gigachad 2 hours ago [-]
For a while now I’ve been considering using a flip phone but I just can’t go without modern messaging apps because no one uses sms anymore. This seems like exactly what I wanted.
risyachka 2 hours ago [-]
>> Who is it trying to appeal to?
To me. I want to have access to whatsapp/browser but with constraints of T9 so that I am not tempted to jump from website to website or write a lot.
And I want a phone that does not look like the most lazy thing a company could possibly do with 0 design effort put into it.
ectoloph 1 hours ago [-]
I really like the concept, but I think the restrictions are a double-edged sword.
The form factor and Sailfish are a lot more appealing than 'apps blocked at a system level'.
Can it run the usual apps like banking apps which can be particular about Android 'trustworthiness'?
Unfortunately, a smartphone is a near-necessity for various things like that now.
nickserv 55 minutes ago [-]
The restrictions are a good fit for children under 16.
As a parent you want to be able to reach them, and they want to reach their friend.
And as a parent you not want them waste their minds on YouTube garbage.
b3lvedere 5 minutes ago [-]
As a kid you want what all other kids in your group have and do. That will not be apping via a $500 Commodore flip phone.
Hugsbox 2 hours ago [-]
This looks really awesome! It's pretty hard to wrap my head around the price though. $500 USD (so $700(!!!) Canadian) is pretty bizarre for what it is.
jwr 3 hours ago [-]
I am really happy someone is trying something new again. It isn't yet another iOS/Android clone, and I'm here for it!
2 hours ago [-]
AdamN 2 hours ago [-]
Two things need to change and this would be a hit:
1/ Find My support or similar (for parents who would give this to kids)
2/ WhatsApp?????? That is the ultimate social network so it should definitely not be there by default.
moron4hire 2 hours ago [-]
What is the deal with WhatsApp? My family roped me into using it, "because it's better than text messages", we've been using it regularly for over a year, and it's... literally the same thing? I don't get it.
garciasn 2 hours ago [-]
1. If you're not based in a country where SMS was included free, it was/is advantageous to use something delivered over the Internet, rather than carrier.
2. It allowed for sharing multimedia better.
3. It closed the divide between Android and iOS, giving a singular experience across the two systems.
4. Prior to RCS, it allowed for typing notifications, high resolution media, read receipts, etc whereas SMS did not offer these options.
5. There really isn't any additional benefit for most of these now; but, folks are already ingrained into the ecosystem.
a5c11 1 hours ago [-]
But it's Meta, yuck! Better use Signal or Telegram.
Hugsbox 1 hours ago [-]
Right, but if absolutely everybody you know is on WhatsApp and have no desire to move to Signal or Telegram, chances are you're going to end up using WhatsApp regardless of your feelings toward Meta.
vidarh 1 hours ago [-]
Decent support for groups. If you're in a country where WhatsApp is common, like the UK, odds are you'll end up in a dozen WhatsApp groups. Especially if you have kids. Groups for every birthday, playdate, year group in school...
And the result is just penetration, so if you're somewhere it's widespread, odds are it's going to be the preference of a lot of people.
For me, SMS is for spammy notifications. WhatsApp is where all the messages from real people I have the phone number of comes. I never get real people SMS'ing me.
ryukafalz 1 hours ago [-]
I really want to like this, but as someone who's daily driven Sailfish before (albeit not in a while), one of the things you'll likely miss if you're in the US is group MMS support.
Maybe Commodore is paying Jolla enough that they'll be able to add group MMS support by the time this launches? But if not... it's something you might not even think could be missing, and not having it can be a problem if people expect to be able to send you group texts.
grvbck 3 hours ago [-]
I really want to like this, but does it bring anything new to the table? I see the same low-effort buzzwords I've seen on other "dumb" phones.
And the design…it looks like a Motorola.
rob74 3 hours ago [-]
Well yeah, it looks like a Motorola, and the Motorola flip phones looked like the Star Trek TOS communicators (which they acknowledged by calling their first flip phone the "StarTAC"). And the article also references Star Trek. Sure, the kind of nostalgic people that are in the market for a Commodore phone probably also have the same feelings about Star Trek, so why not...
disastronaut 3 hours ago [-]
> but does it bring anything new to the table?
No, but that's the point. It has all of the good parts of a smart phone, none of the bad ones. Do other dumb phones run Signal or Maps?
What about the apps that we need but not everyone needs? Local train apps, bank identification etc.
Can't really escape it
Maakuth 2 hours ago [-]
SailfishOS runs most of Android apps fine. For bank ID, system attestation requirements might block them though.
38 minutes ago [-]
2 hours ago [-]
clbrmbr 2 hours ago [-]
Hmm I imagine using a server to connect to signal/whatsapp or even email, then using a local model to classify and filter and trim messages and forwarding to SMS, and viceversa. I guess the trouble is I’d need many source numbers :thinking:.
andy_ppp 3 hours ago [-]
Damn, I was hoping it would look like an Amiga not a CRT candy iMac
Findecanor 1 hours ago [-]
I had expected it to remind me of a bread-bin C64. A little "cassette futurism". Design language is such a big part of branding.
andy_ppp 19 minutes ago [-]
Would also enjoy this, it could actually look quite cool
fooqux 2 hours ago [-]
I'm torn on the blocking of web browsers. Yeah, they can be used for getting to Facebook or whatever. But they are also used to access 99% of the world's info now. Seems like if you just wanted to block social media, a DNS block or even firewall would be a better option.
JKCalhoun 2 hours ago [-]
As a company (or a brand name I suppose, that markets nostalgia?) they're free of course to pursue any product they like.
The retro vibes I'm getting from this one though involve "the Fonz" getting up on waterskis…
smallerfish 1 hours ago [-]
I don't like the look of "retro camera". A great camera is a must-have also.
Seems a major shift in direction and a major distraction.
I don't think the renewed Commodore will last too long.
If you want a brand new C64 get em before they become .... collectors items.
jhbadger 3 hours ago [-]
I honestly don't think Perryfractic would be that sad if it doesn't last (assuming he, Lady Fractic, and child and dogs don't become homeless in the bankruptcy) He knows perfectly well that the audience for Commodore nostalgia is small and aging and is just enjoying being part of the scene while it lasts.
queeshonda 1 hours ago [-]
"Commodore"
Like "AEG" or "Grundig" or "Marantz" or "Nokia"...
ralferoo 1 hours ago [-]
OMG, hire some designers! It seems they took some ugly phone from early 2000s, applied some 1990s "copy the imac transparent case" aesthetic, slapped a Commodore logo on it and called it done.
I mean, yeah, it sends a visual statement and I'm sure some diehard Commodore fans will buy it, but it looks exactly like the kind of junk you'd have found for $10 in the Shenzhen knock off markets 15 years ago.
functionmouse 2 hours ago [-]
my kneejerk reaction was "plastic crap", but I'm happy to see Jolla getting any kind of OEM support.
bkirkby 2 hours ago [-]
get grok on it and I'm in
thisislife2 2 hours ago [-]
$500??
annagio_ 2 hours ago [-]
what? you made choke.... Where I live, those kind of flip phones used to normal price €€ to 100something€ back then, how we ended at 500?
I must ask if it's going to make coffee too haha.
Findecanor 52 minutes ago [-]
Unlike many flip phones, there is smartphone hardware inside capable of running Android apps — except that it is only a curated selection from Commodore's own app store.
The cost of running the app store is probably included.
Smaller production runs also mean higher price.
BTW, early adopters can get up to $100 off. (pre-order discount + discount code in the newsletter)
ChrisRR 3 hours ago [-]
Meh, I find perryfractic's stuff to be more style over substance. It's interesting that he's releasing products, but not interesting enough for me to buy
sys_64738 58 minutes ago [-]
Just nope.
-0_0- 45 minutes ago [-]
[dead]
vee-kay 2 hours ago [-]
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butchkass 4 hours ago [-]
-> $500
-> Corny nostalgia-bait
-> No web browser
-> No social media
-> System-level DNS blocking
Lmfao. What even is the point of this ? I could see an argument for not allowing to install social media apps, but blocking me arbitrarily from even accessing them through a browser is crazy. The OS is Linux-based too, so there’s no technical constraint, they just went out of their way to add always-on parental control.
For $500 (FIVE HUNDRED) you get a $30 dumb phone with Whatsapp. Wow.
Anonasty 3 hours ago [-]
Then it's not literally for you and people who are dependent on social media. It's almost like there is a growing populace who don't want to be there 24/7. Also most people would access the needed sites or social media via laptop or desktop. Not to mention that you feel that it's "corny nostalgia-bait" gives me vibes that you are younger than the target audience of this device even is.
butchkass 2 hours ago [-]
I use zero social medias and I have a phone that wouldn’t tell me no if I (a grown adult) did want to use them.
In fact I’d believe this is exactly for social media addicts because needing to be blocked from even accessing the domains by your OS to not use them is truly something.
And it is nostalgia bait. Wide sweeping nostalgia bait (C64 and Y2K). Corny nostalgia bait because surfing on pre social media Internet and Y2K aesthetics has been an overdone low-hanging fruit for at least 2 years already.
My main problem is the price. This has barely any more capabilities than a burner AliExpress dumbphone. Their margin is most likely egregious (because you’re paying for nostalgia bait).
jmull 60 minutes ago [-]
I wouldn't worry so much about it. Why spend time even thinking about something you don't want to buy?
wewewedxfgdf 3 hours ago [-]
The new Commodore seems to see itself not as a retro nostalgia vintage computer company, but an anti social media company - which explains this product.
Q: What network bands are supported?
A: Please see the Network Specifications section above this FAQ for supported bands and carrier compatibility.
But there is no "Network Specificiations" section on the page that I can find. It would be really nice to know which specific bands the modem supports.
That's what prevents most people on those countries from having a dumb phone, and forces even the most illiterate of 90yo great-grandmothers to learn how to navigate around Android or iOS, all the while placing uncountable many calls to their great-grandchildren because they opened up some random app by accident and don't remember how to get back to the only thing that matters: WhatsApp (talking from experience here).
A WhatsApp-capable quasi-dumb-phone would be a godsend for such places, provided it's cheap enough. At $500 this one definitely isn't, not when an ultra-cheap Android smartphone capable of running WhatsApp costs $90. But if this one sells well, cheaper ones may become viable down the line due to economies of scale. I surely hope that happens.
Full phone? No thank you, its enough to look around how it ends up.
If it looked like a RAZR, I'd buy one today
Anyway, I love the idea and would use something like this if it allowed me to choose a configuration at order time which could include or not include a set of available apps which are curated by the manufacturer. That way, the apps are immutable and the mission of the phone is preserved. Also, a real keyboard is an absolute must for apps like maps, telegram, and SMS.
just uninstall it then?
> Any company which cares about privacy
I don't think this phone or Commodore has anything to do with privacy beyond what's legally required. It's a lifestyle product.
The phone is running Sailfish OS.
If it would be more "considerate" from hardware (or even software) perspective it could be compelling, but from the infos on that page it sounds more like a "memberberry" product
(like e.g. a phone from Kodak, Sega, Atari,... built on the business decision of [product-cost] + [branding] = [potential price-premium of xxx USD])
Is this true? I did some research on flip phones the other week and I didn't turn up anything running Sailfish. Options seemed limited to
* custom AOSP derivatives (Punkt, Sunbeam, Kyocera, others - most common)
* older KaiOS devices (Nokia 2780 and friends)
* Nokia S30+ devices (traditional proprietary feature-phone firmware, somehow Nokia is still producing these)
Are there any other examples of Sailfish phones being vendored similar to how Commodore is doing theirs?
A new C64 with modern video output, a disk emulator, a SID chip replacement so you don’t need an original… that’s all good, but beyond that, it’s hard to say. This phone, though? I don’t think anyone saw that coming, and I don’t see how this could possibly be the right move.
Edit: then I saw the price. Holy crap, I’ll stick with a $25 Blu.
Perifractic (the CEO of Commodore.net, and a prominent YouTuber) has made a few videos that describe his anti-smartphone stance. It's not that big of a surprise.
Something like the CMF Flip but beige and Commodore branded would be an interesting piece of tie-in merch.
Edit: just saw the price point. Nevermind, not going to spend more than 50 bucks on that.
The whole "people want their data and privacy and all" is becoming the next premium service and/or product and I don’t like that at all.
It has that capability. From TFA: > A flip phone with the apps you need: WhatsApp, Signal, Telegram. Music, podcasts, maps, rideshare, a great camera for the moments worth keeping.
Also the whole store page just feels off. The weird mix of "beige" and furtiger-aero-esque imagery is confusing, and my gut hunch is that there's some AI images here. I understand they're trying to appeal to 2 different nostalgias, but it just doesn't mix. And for something allegedly releasing at the end of this month, there's a disappointing lack of images of actual devices.
The "founders edition" being gold plated just seems kinda tone deaf? There was recently a different controversial gold phone that I am immediately thinking about and I don't think that connection should really exist. $140 more for gold plating?
And their feature comparison down at the bottom has the Lightphone 3 with red X's for "swappable battery and back cover" and "blocks social media", which are definitely both features of the LP3? Unless you want to be pedantic and say that the LP3 doesn't block social media because you can modify it in an unauthorized way to allow installing Android apps, but I'd be willing to bet you'll be able to do the same with this Commodore phone) And they add an extra $40 to the MSRP to the other devices to account for the "value" of the headphones included with the commodore phone? And on that note, what's the line "*Earphones sold separately – price includes $40 headset comparable to Light Phone III & Callback" mean? Why's the LP3 in that line? It doesn't include headphones. (I'm just picking on this in particular because I own a LP3 and have direct experience with it)
I'm pretty sure the people who have fond memories of growing up with a C64 or watching ToS are of an entirely different generation than those with fond memories of flip phones and cyber/color-puke ads for transparent plastic gadgets.
> BASIC Beige Edition
There's a missed opportunity for a better ToS joke here: "Beige... the final frontier"
Honestly, that sounds appealing to me at least. Those are the only communication channels I have, so it suits. Maps if I get lost somewhere. And some spotify. I pretty much have that now, but just with constant privacy breaches and issues I need to stay on top of.
> There's a missed opportunity for a better ToS joke here: "Beige... the final frontier"
I don't think this product will actually ever launch, but if it does, it absolutely MUST have a beige model.
Absolutely, same here—but it has to look good. I know that's subjective, but this thing looks atrocious.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorola_Razr_V3
I'm not looking to go back to a flip phone, though. I'd buy one as another fun thing for my display wall if it was cheaper, but it's a bit too expensive for that.
To me. I want to have access to whatsapp/browser but with constraints of T9 so that I am not tempted to jump from website to website or write a lot.
And I want a phone that does not look like the most lazy thing a company could possibly do with 0 design effort put into it.
The form factor and Sailfish are a lot more appealing than 'apps blocked at a system level'.
Can it run the usual apps like banking apps which can be particular about Android 'trustworthiness'?
Unfortunately, a smartphone is a near-necessity for various things like that now.
As a parent you want to be able to reach them, and they want to reach their friend.
And as a parent you not want them waste their minds on YouTube garbage.
1/ Find My support or similar (for parents who would give this to kids) 2/ WhatsApp?????? That is the ultimate social network so it should definitely not be there by default.
2. It allowed for sharing multimedia better.
3. It closed the divide between Android and iOS, giving a singular experience across the two systems.
4. Prior to RCS, it allowed for typing notifications, high resolution media, read receipts, etc whereas SMS did not offer these options.
5. There really isn't any additional benefit for most of these now; but, folks are already ingrained into the ecosystem.
And the result is just penetration, so if you're somewhere it's widespread, odds are it's going to be the preference of a lot of people.
For me, SMS is for spammy notifications. WhatsApp is where all the messages from real people I have the phone number of comes. I never get real people SMS'ing me.
Maybe Commodore is paying Jolla enough that they'll be able to add group MMS support by the time this launches? But if not... it's something you might not even think could be missing, and not having it can be a problem if people expect to be able to send you group texts.
And the design…it looks like a Motorola.
No, but that's the point. It has all of the good parts of a smart phone, none of the bad ones. Do other dumb phones run Signal or Maps?
Can't really escape it
The retro vibes I'm getting from this one though involve "the Fonz" getting up on waterskis…
And yes $500 is too much.
I don't think the renewed Commodore will last too long.
If you want a brand new C64 get em before they become .... collectors items.
Like "AEG" or "Grundig" or "Marantz" or "Nokia"...
I mean, yeah, it sends a visual statement and I'm sure some diehard Commodore fans will buy it, but it looks exactly like the kind of junk you'd have found for $10 in the Shenzhen knock off markets 15 years ago.
The cost of running the app store is probably included.
Smaller production runs also mean higher price.
BTW, early adopters can get up to $100 off. (pre-order discount + discount code in the newsletter)
For $500 (FIVE HUNDRED) you get a $30 dumb phone with Whatsapp. Wow.
In fact I’d believe this is exactly for social media addicts because needing to be blocked from even accessing the domains by your OS to not use them is truly something.
And it is nostalgia bait. Wide sweeping nostalgia bait (C64 and Y2K). Corny nostalgia bait because surfing on pre social media Internet and Y2K aesthetics has been an overdone low-hanging fruit for at least 2 years already.
My main problem is the price. This has barely any more capabilities than a burner AliExpress dumbphone. Their margin is most likely egregious (because you’re paying for nostalgia bait).