SoylentNews is people
SoylentNews
The GNU/Linux-based smartphone, PinePhone, has begun shipping. It uses the same Quad-Core ARM Cortex A53 64-Bit System on a Chip (SOC) as the the Pine64 Single Board Computer (SBC) and thus it also runs mainstream GNU/Linux. The goal is to provide a hardware platform for a wider variety of Linux-on-Phone projects. Hardware availability is expected to be five years.
Lilliputing: PinePhone Braveheart Linux smartphone begins shipping January 17th
The PinePhone is an inexpensive smartphone designed to run Linux-based operating systems. Developed by the folks at Pine64, the $150 smartphone was first announced about a year ago — and this week the first units will ship.
Herald Writer: The PinePhone begins delivery—a Linux-powered smartphone for $150
The PinePhone is powered through an Allwinner A64 SoC, which options 4 Cortex A53 CPUs at 1.2GHz, constructed on an attractive historical 40nm procedure. This is similar chip the corporate makes use of at the PINE A64 unmarried board pc, a Raspberry Pi competitor. There are 2GB of RAM, a Mali-400 GPU, 16GB of garage, and a 2750mAh battery. The rear digicam is 5MP, the entrance digicam is 2MP, the show is a 1440×720 IPS LCD, and the battery is detachable. There is a headphone jack, a USB-C port, and strengthen for a MicroSD slot, which you'll if truth be told boot running techniques off of. The mobile modem is a big separate chip this is soldered onto the motherboard: a Quectel EG25-G.
Earlier on SN:
PinePhone Linux Smartphone Priced at $149 to Arrive This Year (2019)
Librem 5 Backers Have Begun Receiving Their Linux Phones (2019)
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday January 17 2020, @04:06PM
The cellular market in the US has a fair amount of choice and competition, at least compared to the landline situation.
Starting around 2013 the two year contract cartel broke down and even the "big boys" like Verizon and AT&T started dropping their rates while improving their offerings. Verizon still has a quasi-monopoly on certain bandwidth and tower space that makes them the most reliable provider, particularly in rural areas, but otherwise there's a lot of choice. My wife has an unlocked Sharp phone, bought from banggood (China) - excellent camera, super cheap service through Mint mobile for something like $15 per month - unlimited talk and text and more data than she ever uses - coverage is O.K. in the city, could be better, but at $15 per month?
🌻🌻 [google.com]