Slashdot Mirror
Ask Slashdot: Life After N900?
Rydia writes "Since it first released, I have been in love with my Nokia N900, and it has satisfied all my needs for a mobile with a high degree of control and utility. Sadly, the little guy is showing his age, both in battery life (even with the powersaving kernel options enabled), and performing in general has been left far, far in the dust by phones that are now considered quite old. The time has come to find its successor, but after a thorough search of smartphone options, I can't find any handset that offers everything for the power user that the N900 did (much less a hardware keyboard). I'd like to avoid supporting Google/Android, but there don't seem to be many options. Have any other techies found a replacement for their N900?"
It's a niche project, but looks like getting a good techie phone is niche these days. Uses N900 displays and casing, so resolution is not getting any better, but has lots more processing power.
Jolla might be an option once they get the QWERTY "other half" available.
Oh god yes please. Sometimes I have to do some amount of scripting on my phone, and a hardware keyboard is a complete necessity. On the Android side, I've gone from a Samsung Epic to a Motorola Photon, but I can't find a good next upgrade path. At this point I don't care about Android or iPhone or anything as long as I can get a slide-out keyboard with brackets on the keys.
I got one from preordering and I really like it a lot. If the thing you like in n900 is the community and the hackability, you will like Jolla too. Most importantly, I'm able to use it as my work phone already, so it's not just a plaything. So far there has been a steady stream of updates and apps. If you are in US, getting one is probably not very easy, but maybe you can get one from ebay or something? (Check the frequencies etc. first.)
http://jolla.com/
There's a Neo900 project attempting to make a modernized version of the N900, software and hardware. I don't know if they'll succeed and be able to do it at a price one can afford, but you might check it out if interested. If you don't visit maemo.org forums you might wish to.
I like my N9, but not the way I loved my N900. I especially miss the h/w keyboard.
There's also the Jolla phone, but its availability and network compatibility is limited now (e.g. current version might work in the US but as 2G only, the only modem offered in it is designed for European market, or part thereof, no idea what rest of the world situation would be like). And again, no h/w keyboard.
I am not a crackpot.
This has already been debunked as false, so stop repeating it.
Have any other techies found a replacement for their N900?"
A sledgehammer, but it really is a poor substitute. They aren't as strong as the N900 was. As I understand it, the replacement program for the Space Shuttle suffered a major setback after they were discontinued; they're having to rely on conventional heat shielding now to re-enter the atmosphere.
#fuckbeta #iamslashdot #dicemustdie
It was shit. I didn't really realise quite how shit it was until I upgraded to an iPhone. Never looked back since.
It's not a phone for the general population. The N900 was a phone for hackers, developers, etc.: people who needed a pocket computer with phone functionality. Sort of the "anti-iPhone" in its philosophy. You were clearly not in the (tiny) target demographic, and whoever sold you yours was not your friend, didn't know you very well, or didn't as the right questions. (I just described a salesman, didn't I?)
I am not a crackpot.
Congratulations, you made it far longer than I did. My N900 started to show hardware problems about a year ago, and radio problems/disconnects were the last straw. I loved the versatility and control, but ultimately I needed the damn thing to make calls and browse. I nabbed a Nexus 4 when they got cheap, and have adjusted reasonably well. I had a fair look at the iDevices, but wanted something faster and with a bigger screen. I coveted the Galaxy Note series, and might have been happier that way, but I wanted something closer to the N900 size. Recently got my kid a Moto G -- and currently it seems to be the best deal reminiscent of the size/screen of the N900. But still there is the lack of a hardware keyboard... there's just no substitute for input-intensive apps. Maybe Jolla will solve that.
If you do head in the direction of Android, these might make it easier:
- Have a look at Cyanogenmod, and see if you can find a sweet spot with hardware you like and a recent version.
- Read up on App Ops, the utility that allows one to have granular permissions for applications, and restore a modicum of privacy control.
- Don't be afraid to disable all the default apps/Google+/hangouts/crap. Android works just fine with the processes disabled.
- Have a look at bare android/Samsung's overlays/cyanogenmod before you commit to them, there are significant differences.
- Try getting an older phone and experimenting with it before you jump. I obtained a Galaxy S1/Vibrant, learned all about the boot loaders, firmware, and OS installation, and tried out various roms before settling back on Cyanogenmod. (Then I taught the kids how to do it, and gave the phone to my 10yo -- never too early for mobile hacking.) All of the features aside, the process restored some of the sense of control that I had with the N900. Some of it real, some of it not, but at least I knew were I stood wrt the device I was using most frequently.
I think not...(*poof*)
agreed to an extent. it was first gen phone, that needed a couple more generations to get it all right. However, the basic idea of the n900 was awesome, and still exceeds what I see on the market today.
Easy enough. Get any recent phone that's supported by Cyanogenmod. Install Cyanogenmod. Then install Debian (or similar). This can be accomplished as a dual boot or as a chroot inside Android. I have Debian installed on my phone; it's kind of fun to dabble with and show people.
From Google's Privacy Policy Page
With your consent
We will share personal information with companies, organizations or individuals outside of Google when we have your consent to do so. We require opt-in consent for the sharing of any sensitive personal information..
So Google does "share" data with advertisers as part of their money stream. A very specific subset is opt-in, but everything else is opt-out. If services get updated and you're not careful, you can miss an opt-out. See Privacy and Copyright Protection
I'm not sure how anyone can read that and not understand that they're selling your data. They're just calling it sharing. Everything in the EULA you already agreed to in order for you to use a Google service grants them the permission they need.
It's follow-up, N9 sold millions without ANY marketing whatsoever - Elop specifically forbid any kind of marketing for it, suggesting that you are utterly incorrect in your rather strange assumption.
"You can also get Ubuntu Touch."
Spoken just like someone that has not used Ubuntu Touch.
If you dont like to make or receive phone calls, Use ubuntu touch.
If you dont like internet connectivity Use ubuntu touch.
If you LIKE your phone locking up, Use ubuntu touch.
Also when you actually look at ubuntu touch, it's just Android with a UI stapled on top but with no apps, and no functionality.
What he is after is a Nexus 5 that has a pure android on it.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Agreed. A rooted Android phone with a decent mod on it is as close as you can get to a Unix box in your pocket. The lack of a physical keyboard is a drag, but with a decent stock keyboard replacement like SwiftKey, it is not the end of the world.
I recently put Cyanogenmod on my droid razr and actually got geeked out on my phone again. Everything just works like it should. The ROMs that come from the phone companies are bloated and inefficient. Do not make the mistake of judging the Android ecosystem by what you see in the stores.
There are even some useful utilities for Android. (http://ultimatepeter.com/freakin-cool-hacking-apps-for-android/)
I'd like to avoid supporting Google/Android
Why? Is there something technical you're opposed to or is this simply a case of "I hate Big Corp X"? I'm not trolling, but frankly speaking I can't think of any reason to hate Google that doesn't lead one to also hate Apple or Microsoft, and that pretty much rules out your options for smartphones. If you simply dislike them then fine, but without telling us WHAT it is you dislike or WHY you're avoiding that company, we really can't make any adequate suggestions as to an alternative.
Easy enough. Get any recent phone that's supported by Cyanogenmod. Install Cyanogenmod. Then install Debian (or similar). This can be accomplished as a dual boot or as a chroot inside Android.
Or as neither. /Removable/Foo for both Android and Debian apps, as well as the ability to use Debian programs (e.g. text editor) in the Android hierarchy. You can get the same functionality with enough bind mounts, but debian-kit makes it a lot simpler IMO.
I like Sven-Ola's debian kit which takes advantage of the (mostly) disjoint directory structure of Android and Debian (or rather LSB) to run Debian and Android in the same root. The benefit over chroot is that you can plug in a USB drive, SD card, etc. and instantly have access in
I'd also recommend zshaolin for those looking for a friendly *n*x environment without installing a whole distribution, or if they don't have and can't/won't get root access.
Chroot's still aren't as good. My N900 could run some games I made using PyGAME (all I had to do was something like sudo apt-get install python-pygame) and it was good to go - ran the game just as well as my laptop did, with acceleration. Beautiful.
Unfortunately my N900 screen broke for a second time last year, and I threaded one of the screws trying to replace it, so I too found myself looking for a replacement phone. Even with overclocking the N900 was painfully slow on complex websites, so I wanted something modern but with a hardware keyboard. I couldn't find anything except possibly the Neo900 (which didn't have an ETA at the time - and I wouldn't have been able to wait for anyway), so I decided that I would get the biggest screen I could find - the logic being that if I have to use a virtual keyboard I want it to provide an experience as close to a hardware keyboard as possible.
Hence, I now run a Sony Xperia Z Ultra with the Hacker's Keyboard. Obviously not as good as a hardware keyboard, but the screen size means the virtual keyboard can fit all keys I had on the N900 (and then some) and still have plenty of room to see the text-box I'm typing into.
The Xperial Z Ultra also has expandable storage so a chroot is feasible, and I admit I've used this phone much more than my N900 due to it being more practical for games, e-mail, taking pictures, etc. Sony also provide instructions on unlocking the bootloader. However, lacking a true GNU userland environment for the primary OS, along with lacking the ease of gaining root and lacking a replaceable battery) are things I really miss. I also hate how much of the bloatware cannot be removed, although it can be disabled. It is waterproof though, so it's got that going for it.
I nuked or disabled almost everything related to Sony and Google Play and installed F-Droid instead, and then proceeded to install Firefox Mobile, K-9 and APG, Xabber, TTRSS-Reader, VLC, Open Explorer, Barcode Scanner, Terminal Emulator, Cool Reader, Document Viewer, Aard, OsmAnd~, ScummVM, AnkiDroid, World Clock, VX ConnectBot, a few ownCloud-related sync apps... and of course Frozen Bubble, and now Android can do most of the things I would have used my N900 for.
It's GNU/Linux dammit!
How do you think Google's ad service works? That is the question, and the answer reveals how stupid selling the data would be.
Google's service is simple:
1) Submit an ad to Google (banner / flash / etc)
2) Look at the list of demographics, do you want male or female, what age, what interests?
3) Press submit
Google will store the ad on their server, when a user who matches the chosen profile loads a page with Google ads embedded in it, Google will insert the ad into the page where it downloads from their servers.
Notice specifically that this places Google as the middleman between you and the advertiser, the advertiser chooses what they want from the restaurant menu, Google cooks it then delivers the finished meal (people who clicked on ads) and a bill.
If Google sold the information, Google would have no business, the advertiser could sell ads directly without Google's help.
The lazy assed "I don't want to do my own research" author.
Of course he's going to have to make some choices. But when making such choices, it's helpful to have a feel for how well the devices work in practice, for the intended use: I've had plenty of devices in the past that, according to their specs at least, were perfect - but ended up being frustratingly deficient in some way. Reading online reviews can help with this to some extent, but they tend not to focus on (say) programming as a use case - so I can imagine that input from slashdotters would be very valuable here. (It's also really helpful for pointing out phones/other devices that the author may not have considered, that don't necessarily come up in a typical web search...)
Need to type accents and special characters in Windows? Use FrKeys
This is sooooooooo true. Only the other day, I logged in to AdWords, and there at the top of the screen was a big box that said "Find out the life history of anyone on the Internet by entering their email address, reddit, or Slashdot ID in this box".
So I looked for a random number. There was a flyer for a local car dealership advertising a Corolla for $9,751.38, so I entered that, and clicked Submit. There was a brief request asking me to give my consent to a charge of 25c on my Google Wallet, and I thought "What the hell, why not?" and gave it.
There, in front of me, was all the information about "975138" I asked for. It was one of those "Be careful what you wish for, you might get it" things. Slashdot had pulled up the details of some Slashdotter with the nick "Jaktar".
Everything was there.
His phone numbers. His credit record. I could see he'd spent over $300 in the last month on "Gold pony cookies" for the popular free-to-play Facebook game "Pony club". He had a recurring membership on several websites, including the Alabama Post Gazette, Netflix, and something called "Hot Manponies Dot Com".
Even better was that all of this was hyperlinked to similarly relevant information. I clicked on a credit card billing line marked "KATZ PSYCHIATRIC SERV COPAY", and immediately received a list of future and prior appointments with a therapist. The prior appointments were also hyperlinked, and a quick click revealed a Google Voice style transcription of the appointment in question (not that interesting, 20 minutes of it was marked "(extended sobbing, 2 mins)" alternating with "(hysterical laughing, 60 seconds)".
Finally, there was information to help people like me, who just want to advertise and tailor our ads to people like "Jaktar". Google had analyzed the person's history, and recommended various keywords I could use in my ads to appeal to people like him. "Star Wars", "Leia", "PHP", "Free to play", and "Ponies" came up.
This type of information is gold, quite frankly. Advertisers like me are always interested in targetting specific people at great expense, rather than trying to appeal to broad swathes of the population, so Google collecting this data and selling it to us is exactly what we need.
Thanks Google!
You are not alone. This is not normal. None of this is normal.