LINux on MOBile - englishLINMOB.net is a blog about LINux on MOBile devices. With the PinePhone (Pro) and Librem 5 shipping it is back to report on GNU+Linux on mobile devices.Zola2015-02-28T13:51:00+00:00https://linmob.net/tags/english/feed.xmlBack to QWERTY2015-02-28T13:51:00+00:002015-02-28T13:51:00+00:00https://linmob.net/back-to-qwerty/<p><a href="http://brimborium.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/2015-02-28-14.33.40.jpg"><img src="http://brimborium.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/2015-02-28-14.33.40.jpg" alt="Motorola Droid 4 und LG G2" class="size-full wp-image-3344" /></a> Droid 4 trumps the LG G2</p>
<p>In November 2013, I bought a new smartphone for the last time so far. It was an LG G2. Since then, a few new devices have been released (yes, now it's Mobile World Congress again soon, the device flood has already experienced the first advance "leaks"), but even though I had constantly spent too much money on all kinds of smartphones over the years before, I soon had to realise that the quick change suddenly didn't make sense anymore. Yes, the LG G3 is a bit better, but somehow not really (who needs this display resolution, and why is the thing even bigger?). I don't touch Samsung for reasons (TouchWiz, hardware design), HTC has 4 megapixel cameras and the cases are too big compared to the display.</p>
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<p>But there was a drawback. The text input. Admittedly, with a 5.2" display diagonal in 16:9 format, even I can type to some extent with my sausage fingers. But: </p>
<ol>
<li>I can't type blindly, </li>
<li>at least for the German language, the standard dictionaries of various smartphone keyboards are not quite adequate for my vocabulary, </li>
<li>what do autocorrect allow?</li>
</ol>
<p>I then went back to smartphones with hardware keyboards and returned to the Motorola/Verizon Droid 4, which I had already tried out in 2012 in semi-defective condition. Honestly, it wasn't a conscious decision. I bid $ 42 USD on a Droid 4 on eBay just for fun. With shipping from the US including import VAT, it cost about € 50 at the exchange rate, which was different at the time. I received a functional, albeit relatively scuffed device on which, unfortunately, the earpiece was overloaded at one point and the headphone jack doesn't work either. Otherwise it's fine. And above all, Android 5.0 "Lollipop" in the form of Cyanogen Mod 12 is available for this device from early 2012, which, incidentally, is the last high-end smartphone with a hardware keyboard and SIM card slot to date.</p>
<p>I have since acquired another Droid 4 in better condition for €75, which does not have the shortcomings of the other device. Meanwhile, the LG G2 is gathering dust. Yes, the Droid 4's display is not great. Yes, the browser is slowed down by the hardware here. Yes, the camera of the LG G2 is clearly better. But at last I can write my thoughts in a note app on the go without having to constantly check with algorithms that this long word is actually in the dictionary or that my neologisms shouldn't be destroyed. As a result, I can write down my thoughts undisturbed, no longer write rubbish in chat apps, and writing on the go is fun again. </p>
<p><strong>TLDR:</strong> Hardware keyboard = improved quality of life.</p>
Imerj / frog design 2 in 1 Smartpad2011-06-26T14:13:00+00:002011-06-26T14:13:00+00:00https://linmob.net/imerj-frog-design-2-in-1-smartpad/<p>As you may have noticed, I prefer not to cover each and every device with a short article, I rather write about the few devices, that really seem to make a difference to me along with the devices that I actually buy. </p>
<p>One of these interesting devices I didn't cover because it seemed far to unlikely to ever even get my hands on it was the <a href="http://www.echobykyocera.com">Kyocera Echo</a>, a very interesting 2 screen Android smartphone, made for the US operator sprint, build with two 3.5” inch displays, powered by a first gen CDMA/EVDO Snapdragon CPU (MSM8650). However, this first attempt at a dual screen smartphone seemed to have some caveats, including the fact that it was just on sale on one US network.</p>
<p>The guys over at Engadget (which while certainly having suffered from quite an exodus of editors and writers still is a great online publication on tech) now <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/23/prototype-dual-screened-2-in-1-android-smartpad-from-imerj-previ/">got their hands on a similar device</a>, which is a lot more interesting, just because it will most likely be an AT&T device - AT&T has a WCDMA/GSM network and thus this device will, even if marketed only in the US, be usable (after an unlock) almost everywhere in the world.</p>
<p>Specs have been bumped up in comparison to the “Echo”. The screens on this still feature the same WVGA resolution, size is increased to 4” though, which ads up to one splitted screen of 6” (compared to 4,7” on the “Echo”, the device has a simpler folding mechanism, is thinner (folded: 14mm, as “tablet” 7mm ) and has the horsepower of a TI OMAP4 chip at yet undisclosed/unfinalized speed in it - which means it's totally on par with similar superphone solutions and most likely even faster than those running on a nVidia Tegra 2 SoC. </p>
<p>How you use the device is simple and fascinating, yet hard to describe. That's why I urge you to check out <a href="http://www.imerjdesign.com/">Imerj Designs website</a> and the afore mentioned <a href="http://www.engadget.com/2011/06/23/prototype-dual-screened-2-in-1-android-smartpad-from-imerj-previ/">engadget article</a> now to get an idea about the device.</p>
<p>While certainly not much more than a niche solution (at least as long there is this devider between the two screens), this proposal of a device certainly is a charming thing. It offers a lot more than a stardard (Android) superphone and isn't that much bigger in terms of size - it will most likely be more expensive and battery life is something to be concerned about with such a thin, dual screen device, though.</p>