Hi-Mobile.net sent us in an unlocked iPhone for testing. We used the iPhone for almost a month now and it's time to write an editorial-type article on the... unlockiness of it all.
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Member since:2005-06-28
IMO, the OpenMoko thing is a joke and it won't be truly ready for at least 2 more years. It does not have the coherence that can derive by a single company working together and doing some real usability studies. I blogged about it in fact the other day:
http://eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2007/10/25/the-openmoko-joke/
Member since:2005-11-14
Well, that's a bit rude to call it a joke. And you have some of your facts wrong.
There IS a company behind OpenMoko, and there are actual usability engineers being paid to work on it. It's still an unfinished product, but compared to most phones out there it's looking quite good already.
Too bad you didn't get to see the iPhone in development, before it was ready.
Member since:2007-01-29
Well, for you (as for many other GNOME users) that might be correct, as you say:
But 1) building a pretty UI on top of a working and powerfull embedded platform is way easier than getting the base stuff working and
2) there are geeks like me who have no problem with whatever interface a device has, as long as it gives access to the FEATURES (and maybe is customizable) in there (heck, give me a shell on my phone and a tiny keyboard
.. So openmoko might seem a joke to you now, but at the moment it is officially 'for geeks only' anyways..
I'm pretty sure though within a year there will be at least one openmoko device which makes GNOME users happy aswell. And has a standard headphone jack, too.
Member since:2005-07-06
IMO, the OpenMoko thing is a joke and it won't be truly ready for at least 2 more years. It does not have the coherence that can derive by a single company working together and doing some real usability studies.
You know, some people are going to get slightly uncomfortable with that, but I have to agree with you. I would absolutely love to buy one of these phones, and I don't like Apple controlling what I install, but the software they're using will be out of commission for the foreseeable future. Your only bet to getting it to do anything today is to install Qtopia.
I blogged about it in fact the other day:
http://eugenia.gnomefiles.org/2007/10/25/the-openmoko-joke/
Nokia and Symbian appear to be going with big widgets, but it's about more than just usability (and being like the iPhone). Having a bigger screen and less keys allows them to basically put more on the phone elsewhere.
Microsoft have also been guilty of going down the same road with Windows Mobile, simply because they think that the Windows desktop and the start menu are so cool then they must work on a phone. They don't.
Member since:2005-07-06
Member since:2006-02-05
Windows Mobile sucks? I have heard nothing but good things about it from people I know who use it. Same with blackberry. Its the treo that I find gets really mixed reviews...
Member since:2005-07-06
Member since:2005-07-06
Let's be realistic. The iPhone and Windows Mobile devices are not aimed at the same market - nor would the iPhone be suitable for the majority of current Win Mobile users (and vice-versa). The iPhone lacks the utility of Win Mobile devices (or Blackberries, or Treos), making them unsuitable for business users. And Win Mobile devices lack the simplicity / attention-to-usability-detail of the iPhone, making them unsuitable for people who don't have a full-time IT department supporting them.
Member since:2006-02-05
I agree. The target audiences and motives of the companies behind the iPhone on one hand and WinMobile/Crackberry/Treo on the other are different, and probably always will be, so I don't see how their focus and thus overall implementation will change much.
So while OpenMoko may take years to become usable, and it may suffer from lack of a single, deep-pocketed benefactor and lack of focus, it is hard to dismiss because it seems to be the only thing out there that has the potential to be (almost) everything to (almost) everyone.
Heh...OpenMoko's interface can't be any worse then Verizon's. [And they're so arrogant about it that they replaced the standard WinMobile interface on the Moto Q with some monstrosity they cooked up - to appeal to the gen-Y crowd I guess.]
OT: $25 a quarter for a cell phone? Emergency use only? Zen-like discipline? Lost it a few months back? 
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Member since:
2007-01-29
i like that
anyways, my w800 is slowly dying getting an iphone sure would be a cool thing.. but this openmoko thing sounds cool too, so i'll wait till i totally wreck my walkman phone i guess.. nice review though.. also the emphasis obviously is on the fact that apple can get it right the first time, while MS software is still barely usable after YEARS of customer exposure.. well and they both suck regarding interoperability and customization, so go openmoko, go!!
Edited 2007-10-27 02:29