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Nokia Leaks Phone With Full GNU/Linux Distribution
An anonymous reader writes "It is now clear why Nokia has been so slow with S60 updates: the upcoming N900 just left everything else in the dust. Unlike Google's Linux platform, Nokia is not intentionally breaking compatibility with real distros, choosing instead to bring you the unmatchable power of GNU/Linux on your phone. This is the most awesome device I have ever seen: MAP3 CPU/GPU, 3,5" 800x480 touchscreen, keyboard, Wi-Fi, HSPA, GPS; 5-MP camera, CZ lens, 32 GB storage, SD slot; X11, VT100 terminal emulator, APT package manager. Estimated price without credit: $780 (N.5800: $390, iPhone 3GS: $750). Developers should note that even though the current desktop is still GTK+, Qt will be standard across all Nokia platforms in the near future (less powerful phones will use Qt on the Symbian kernel). Users can download flashing software from Nokia, and patches can be submitted at the Maemo site."
The Pre runs a practically normal Linux distribution. Granted, all the applications are written in Javascript and not some compiled language using C, but I look at that as a good thing.
It's not MAP3.. it's OMAP 3
And the VT100 term emulator is based on gnome-terminal (at least it is in older maemo and I see no reason for them to have written a different one)
I searched for the word "phone" throughout that linked article, and nowhere did it mention things like, oh, talking and listening and dialing. No "3G" or "GPRS" mentions either. The N810 and N800 and (N)700 Internet Tablet models look just like this, but WITH NO PHONE GUTS. A few screenshots look like they have phone features, but it really seems odd that a review/preview just doesn't even mention such obvious things. Maybe it's just Skype for all I know.
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How can you justify that cost? For $800, you could buy a netbook, a basic smart phone, plus hookers and blow.
A slashdotter who didn't build his own computer is like a Jedi who didn't build his own lightsaber.
Are the drivers it requires open source ?
Do Nokia playing nice, are they prepared to go out of their way to obey licenses or are they just interested in 0 cost rather than libre software ?
This is the most awesome device I have ever seen
someone is clearly not familiar with the LHC.
I like how there are two rival Slashdot cellphone factions.
There's the "phone should just make phone calls and not have all this shit added on!" faction, which is pre-dominant in a lot of stories.
And then there's the "I can't possibly get by with a phone that doesn't have VT-100 emulation!" faction, who are probably all rushing out to buy this thing right now.
I, uh, don't really have anywhere clever to go with this idea though...
Comment of the year
What I wonder is how long it will be before these phones *are* your computer and you just plug in a fullblown screen and keyboard wherever you want to sit and work. We're essentially there, just nobody does it yet.
[FUCK BETA]
I don't buy an appliance just because it runs Linux or X11 - however I *might* buy one if these features add new functions, or make existing ones easier. So far as what I've already got is concerned, the only thing that comes to mind would be the ability for me (and not anybody else) to log into the phone remotely and use its functions across a network connection.
Other than that, my experience of smart phones is that the keyboard's too small for serious word-work, the screen's too small for almost everything (esp. watching movies) and it's also far too dim to use in daylight. The music player's nice and the camera while limited is good enough for "happy snaps", almost all of which are discarded or ignored as soon as they've been taken. I.e. all features, but few benefits.
So come on Nokia, don't try to impress me with megabytes and gigahertz, tell me what I'll be able to do now, that I couldn't do before. That's where the sales are.
politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons
unmatchable power of GNU/Linux on your phone
Yay!
Estimated price without credit: $780
Crap, I can't afford one. I lose phones too often; I'm on my third phone this year. When I had a Razr a few years ago I got insurance on it, and the insurance company cancelled me when I dropped the third one in the toilet trying to answer it when I was taking a piss. The way I go through phones I'm lucky to be able to afford the $100 one I have now.
Of course, the Razr was expensive at first, at least I'll be able to get one of these in a few years.
Free Martian Whores!
can it make phone calls without dropping signal? I'm still waiting for that.
Yes, Maemo is pretty much a full Linux distribution. You can ssh into the device and ssh out from the device. On the N810 (with a large enough MicroSD card) you can even install a full Debian distribution. It's still ARM, so don't expect it to be as fast as a Desktop, but everything works (mplayer, pidgin, Open Office, VNC client & server, etc).
-- Don't Tase me, bro!
This will likely be my next major phone upgrade.
I own an N800 and an N810 and do some Maemo development work on them. They're IMHO awesome devices. I don't know or care about Nokia in general but they have been steadily improving this line of devices since the N770 and I just cannot begin to tell you how slick they are (again IMHO).
I use skype and gizmo to make VoIP phone calls on them at any Wi-Fi hotspot and they are just fun to play around with. The biggest problem with them, in my experience, is people expect them to be phones and don't get the idea that it's just a handheld PC. Adding cell phone capability with the N900 (and increased horsepower) will, I think, cross this device over from enthusiast toy to a more mainstream "smartphone" even though I think the term does the device a dis-service.
It's just more than a phone. I've never used a cell phone that had a web experience remotely close to the desktop/laptop world. The N800/N810 is 100 times better than any cell phone @ web browsing. The games available (for the most part if it runs on Linux, it'll run on these devices and I've enjoyed playing MAME games on mine), the productivity tools, the multimedia capabilities, etc.
I've never developed apps for the iPhone but I've tinkered with BlackBerry development, Android development and Maemo development. While I think it's not as well-documented perhaps as Android or BlackBerry, and getting set up to do development on it is not as simple, it's easily manageable and *much less locked down* than the other platforms. Developing for Android isn't too bad but I think it still is a bit more locked down, developing for BlackBerry you are also definitely limited by what RIM (and the cell providers) will allow you to do. I hope that with Maemo 5 and the new cell-phone stuff, Nokia doesn't cave to cell providers and start locking shit down on these devices and instead keeps to the spirit of the original open-ness so I can still write apps that do what *I* want them to do, not what T-Mobile wants them to do.
Here's a novel concept: Don't answer the phone while you're taking a piss...
"When the president does it, that means it's not illegal." - Richard M. Nixon
"bring you the unmatchable power of GNU/Linux". Cheesiest. Line. Ever. On /.
Just for the record: is there anything that you can name that can do more than Linux? Ever had an OS run on your wristwatch that was also able to run on the world fastest super computers, space exploration and operation critical medical hardware?
Just curious...
Here be signatures
They bought Trolltech and their Qt Extended phone OS last May, which is completely open-source.
If you want to see what the OS is like, go and see one of the forks: QtMoko, Qt Extended Improved, and probably others. I am using QtMoko on a Freerunner and the interface is sweet even if some parts need more polishing.
You're not old until regret takes the place of your dreams.
How many kinds are there, you sarcastic prickdribble?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
I'm curious why nobody mentioned this subject. For me this is a major PITA when trying to develop on S60. 20$ for the privilege of running my own application on my own phone ??? No, thanks. Does anyone know if this scheme is going to be implemented on this phone ?
"bring you the unmatchable power of GNU/Linux". Cheesiest. Line. Ever. On /.
Just for the record: is there anything that you can name that can do more than Linux? Ever had an OS run on your wristwatch that was also able to run on the world fastest super computers, space exploration and operation critical medical hardware?
Just curious...
Batman can do anything.
Interesting.
I'm going to have to find a way to get one of these. Decent video, open formats, always on cellular wireless. A gorgeous interface. And I can add applications with apt.
I think a lot of projects are going to start putting more priority on compiling to the ARM platform.
Help stamp out iliturcy.
It's in the garage.
If it works in Diablo, and on N770s, n800s and n810s, the n900 has got you covered. The n900 may be a phone, but with its OMAP processor and MID heritage, the nerd angle is already covered.
Imagine not being able to call 911 because your phone got Slashdotted...
is there anything that you can name that can do more than Linux?
Chuck Norris
http://www.engadgetmobile.com/2009/03/05/windows-3-1-on-s60-dude-says-why-stop-there-ups-the-ante-with/
http://thisnthat.ej.am/2009/03/09/windows-98-on-symbian-3rd-edition-phones/
"Impartiality is a pompous name for indifference, which is an elegant name for ignorance." - G.K. Chesterton