Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
James Tait wrote: Tim Dobson wrote: I have a freerunner which I bought from www.truebox.co.uk So what are your impressions? I certainly take Popey's point about a phone that works and works well, but just how much work/grief can one expect with the Freerunner? The two biggest drawbacks for me are the lack of a built-in camera and the massive start-up time, though I have to admit I don't expect to have to cold boot it that often. I've read numerous reviews, tech articles and so on and I'm still not really sure how close to end-user ready it is -- I've read some somewhat worrying stuff. I quite like it. It's an awesome piece of kit. The hardware is really god in my opinion though I take your point in reference to camera. The startup time shouldn't affect you really. It depends what you are wanting to use it for... if you want to use it as a phone(!) everything works fine. Rumours about stuff crashing on incoming calls etc seem to be a thing of the past, no more command line calls(!), the gui works fine and seems stable. Regarding SMS they are easy to send recieve.. no stability problems etc. Contacts and are automatically imported from your SIM if you have them there and more contacts can be imported in vcard format. I was extremely surprised at how polished the GPS stuff was Tango gps - http://www.tangogps.org is an awesome program a *bit* like the google maps bit of the iphone (i think). Anyway it does stuff like overlays your position on maps and allows you to record your track and stuff. The wifi stack is stable and functional, currently two beta GUIs exist for it, but development is so fast that 5 days ago, neither existed in their current form. By the time anything has been shipped to you, you will be wondering why i am mentioning anything there. GPRS is a bit ugly at the moment (functional but impractical) but I'm going to investigate that in more detail in the next few days with a view to making it awesome. There are 2 webrowsers, (the minifirefox one is best imho) an image gallery and file manager, pidgin IM client, and a media player. I would really recommend it, in places it is rough around the edges, but i can not give comparison at the speed development is going - if you think how the gnu/linux desktop changes in a year then you will probably be able to imagine how much the gnu/linux phone changes in a month... I intend to get round to in depth blog post at some point. I'll remember drop a link to here when i do. Tim -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
how is it network support and price wise though? i dont think the networks in the UK support it. And £200 plus i doubt if anyone wants to buy it specially if free-er versions that do the same thing are available! On 05/08/2008, Tim Dobson [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: James Tait wrote: Tim Dobson wrote: I have a freerunner which I bought from www.truebox.co.uk So what are your impressions? I certainly take Popey's point about a phone that works and works well, but just how much work/grief can one expect with the Freerunner? The two biggest drawbacks for me are the lack of a built-in camera and the massive start-up time, though I have to admit I don't expect to have to cold boot it that often. I've read numerous reviews, tech articles and so on and I'm still not really sure how close to end-user ready it is -- I've read some somewhat worrying stuff. I quite like it. It's an awesome piece of kit. The hardware is really god in my opinion though I take your point in reference to camera. The startup time shouldn't affect you really. It depends what you are wanting to use it for... if you want to use it as a phone(!) everything works fine. Rumours about stuff crashing on incoming calls etc seem to be a thing of the past, no more command line calls(!), the gui works fine and seems stable. Regarding SMS they are easy to send recieve.. no stability problems etc. Contacts and are automatically imported from your SIM if you have them there and more contacts can be imported in vcard format. I was extremely surprised at how polished the GPS stuff was Tango gps - http://www.tangogps.org is an awesome program a *bit* like the google maps bit of the iphone (i think). Anyway it does stuff like overlays your position on maps and allows you to record your track and stuff. The wifi stack is stable and functional, currently two beta GUIs exist for it, but development is so fast that 5 days ago, neither existed in their current form. By the time anything has been shipped to you, you will be wondering why i am mentioning anything there. GPRS is a bit ugly at the moment (functional but impractical) but I'm going to investigate that in more detail in the next few days with a view to making it awesome. There are 2 webrowsers, (the minifirefox one is best imho) an image gallery and file manager, pidgin IM client, and a media player. I would really recommend it, in places it is rough around the edges, but i can not give comparison at the speed development is going - if you think how the gnu/linux desktop changes in a year then you will probably be able to imagine how much the gnu/linux phone changes in a month... I intend to get round to in depth blog post at some point. I'll remember drop a link to here when i do. Tim -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/ -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
Tim, I read this after I posted to the list. I'd _love_ to get the 'moko back up and running. Make sure you remember that blog post link when you write it! andylockran Tim Dobson wrote: James Tait wrote: Tim Dobson wrote: I have a freerunner which I bought from www.truebox.co.uk So what are your impressions? I certainly take Popey's point about a phone that works and works well, but just how much work/grief can one expect with the Freerunner? The two biggest drawbacks for me are the lack of a built-in camera and the massive start-up time, though I have to admit I don't expect to have to cold boot it that often. I've read numerous reviews, tech articles and so on and I'm still not really sure how close to end-user ready it is -- I've read some somewhat worrying stuff. I quite like it. It's an awesome piece of kit. The hardware is really god in my opinion though I take your point in reference to camera. The startup time shouldn't affect you really. It depends what you are wanting to use it for... if you want to use it as a phone(!) everything works fine. Rumours about stuff crashing on incoming calls etc seem to be a thing of the past, no more command line calls(!), the gui works fine and seems stable. Regarding SMS they are easy to send recieve.. no stability problems etc. Contacts and are automatically imported from your SIM if you have them there and more contacts can be imported in vcard format. I was extremely surprised at how polished the GPS stuff was Tango gps - http://www.tangogps.org is an awesome program a *bit* like the google maps bit of the iphone (i think). Anyway it does stuff like overlays your position on maps and allows you to record your track and stuff. The wifi stack is stable and functional, currently two beta GUIs exist for it, but development is so fast that 5 days ago, neither existed in their current form. By the time anything has been shipped to you, you will be wondering why i am mentioning anything there. GPRS is a bit ugly at the moment (functional but impractical) but I'm going to investigate that in more detail in the next few days with a view to making it awesome. There are 2 webrowsers, (the minifirefox one is best imho) an image gallery and file manager, pidgin IM client, and a media player. I would really recommend it, in places it is rough around the edges, but i can not give comparison at the speed development is going - if you think how the gnu/linux desktop changes in a year then you will probably be able to imagine how much the gnu/linux phone changes in a month... I intend to get round to in depth blog post at some point. I'll remember drop a link to here when i do. Tim -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
Javad Ayaz wrote: how is it network support and price wise though? It's completely SIM free. It should work on all UK networks, with the possible exception of 3. If you are on 3 you might need to do some research. (Like putting your SIM in a non-3g unlocked phone and seeing whether it works - I'm not sure how 3 works - whether they have normal gsm coverage) i dont think the networks in the UK support it. I have it working on o2 and my russian MTS sim cards work in it, in addition I have two deactivated prepay vodafone orange sims who seem to work. And £200 plus i doubt if anyone wants to buy it specially if free-er versions that do the same thing are available! https://www.truebox.co.uk/trueboxportal/index.php?wk=Openmoko ~£270 - I think one of great things about the phone is knowing you are part of a community making GNU/Linux on the mobile a reality. Sure manufacturers have based some phone on GNU/Linux for a while, but none have really offered many options about what you can do with it. In my opinion, it is a nice piece of kit (hardware) with massive potential (software) and a great starting point (the version of openmoko i'm currently running) :) Tim -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
how does installing new apps on this work? like synaptic in ubuntu? I think for the uptake of any technology by the masses...the hardware has to be available...cheap-ish! How many people do you know that are willing to fork £200plus for a phone! I know no one who has forked out on a iphone...and thats supposed be the cool thing to have!!! fanboys are an exception to this rule! 2008/8/5 Tim Dobson [EMAIL PROTECTED] Javad Ayaz wrote: how is it network support and price wise though? It's completely SIM free. It should work on all UK networks, with the possible exception of 3. If you are on 3 you might need to do some research. (Like putting your SIM in a non-3g unlocked phone and seeing whether it works - I'm not sure how 3 works - whether they have normal gsm coverage) i dont think the networks in the UK support it. I have it working on o2 and my russian MTS sim cards work in it, in addition I have two deactivated prepay vodafone orange sims who seem to work. And £200 plus i doubt if anyone wants to buy it specially if free-er versions that do the same thing are available! https://www.truebox.co.uk/trueboxportal/index.php?wk=Openmoko ~£270 - I think one of great things about the phone is knowing you are part of a community making GNU/Linux on the mobile a reality. Sure manufacturers have based some phone on GNU/Linux for a while, but none have really offered many options about what you can do with it. In my opinion, it is a nice piece of kit (hardware) with massive potential (software) and a great starting point (the version of openmoko i'm currently running) :) Tim -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/ -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
Robert McWilliam wrote: On Tue, Aug 05, 2008 at 02:19:20PM +0100, Javad Ayaz wrote: how is it network support and price wise though? i dont think the networks in the UK support it. And £200 plus i doubt if anyone wants to buy it specially if free-er versions that do the same thing are available! If you want a freerunner, or any other phone that you're network doesn't offer directly, you can tell the sales people that you don't want a phone from them but would prefer money off your bills instead. The mobile phone market is quite competitive so they tend to be willing to accommodate what you want. I'd doubt you're likely to get enough to cover the total cost of a freerunner unless your on an expansive tariff or are willing to sign a really long contract, but you never know, and if you can get a chunk of it the freedom and features might be worth the extra bit. that's intersting. I'm on the look for a new deal atm, because i'm on an o2 pay and go setup which isn't ideal for data etc and basically would be more more sane on some sort of contract... I'm certain i can get a better deal so i'll see if ican recoup some cost or just get really low prices... etc. Tim -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
Javad Ayaz wrote: how does installing new apps on this work? like synaptic in ubuntu? yep - http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/Om2008.8_Installer it's pretty similar really. I think for the uptake of any technology by the masses...the hardware has to be available...cheap-ish! How many people do you know that are willing to fork £200plus for a phone! Actually a fairly large amount. But this says more about the masses of posing freelancers I know than how much money any one has. Me included. I know no one who has forked out on a iphone...and thats supposed be the cool thing to have!!! Cool... if you want apple to have complete control over your phone -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
On Sun, Aug 03, 2008 at 01:26:14AM +0100, James Tait wrote: Need to be straight to the point, battery running low. Someone (Popey?) mentioned something several months ago about a group of people getting New FreeRunners and a discount being available. I'm looking to jump on that bandwagon -- can anyone remind me of details and whether the initiative is still alive? There are a few initiatives of people grouping together to get a freerunner. http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/GroupSales Personally I'm not getting one any time soon. Having played with a Neo 1973 and been on the openmoko mailing list, it's not for me. Instead I got a Nokia N82 which has a few features the OpenMoko doesn't, and more importantly - works and works reliably - which for me is more important in a phone than Runs Linux. Cheers, Al. -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.org/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
James Tait wrote: Hi all, Need to be straight to the point, battery running low. Someone (Popey?) mentioned something several months ago about a group of people getting New FreeRunners and a discount being available. I'm looking to jump on that bandwagon -- can anyone remind me of details and whether the initiative is still alive? I have a freerunner which I bought from www.truebox.co.uk I believe it was one of the southern LUGs which was running a scheme. I *imagine* it has long since closed. Looking forward to seeing you on #openmoko stuff - the freerunner is one cool piece of kit! -- www.tdobson.net If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still has one object. If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.org/UKTeam/
Re: [ubuntu-uk] New FreeRunner
Tim Dobson wrote: I have a freerunner which I bought from www.truebox.co.uk So what are your impressions? I certainly take Popey's point about a phone that works and works well, but just how much work/grief can one expect with the Freerunner? The two biggest drawbacks for me are the lack of a built-in camera and the massive start-up time, though I have to admit I don't expect to have to cold boot it that often. I've read numerous reviews, tech articles and so on and I'm still not really sure how close to end-user ready it is -- I've read some somewhat worrying stuff. JT -- ---+ James Tait, BSc|xmpp:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Programmer and Free Software advocate | VoIP: +44 (0)870 490 2407 ---+ signature.asc Description: OpenPGP digital signature -- ubuntu-uk@lists.ubuntu.com https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-uk https://wiki.ubuntu.org/UKTeam/
