Weekly GNU-like Mobile Linux Update (1/2025): A New Year and Phosh 0.44.0
Table of Contents
This week: 2024 ended with Phosh 0.44.0 and 2025 starts slowly: First backports to postmarketOS 24.12, some projects getting funding, and more!
Commentary in italics.
Worth Reading
- nlnet: NLnet; 50 Free and Open Source Projects Selected for NGI Zero grants
- Cais: Furiphone FLX1 - First steps, Furilabs Furiphone FLX1
- lprod.dev: My last 6 months in KDE/Plasma Mobile
- Matthew Garrett: The GPU, not the TPM, is the root of hardware DRM
- LINux on MOBile: Looking Back at 2024 and Glimpse at 2025
Worth Watching
- Continuum Gaming: Continuum Gaming E450: SShazam – Music recognition
- Actualia tech: "Postmarket OS 24.12, un Linux pour votre téléphone mobile !"
- orailnoor: Install ubuntu on any phone | Ubuntu touch installation 2025
- Mehedi Shakeel: Ubuntu Touch Linux Install on Your Android Phone (OnePlus 6T)
- Luca Weiss: Capitole du Libre 2023 - Open Source for Sustainable and Long lasting Phones
Worth Noting
- arubislander: "Installed the #utnext preview version of #UbuntuTouch based on 24.04 from @UBports on my Pixel 3a and JingPad. There are the some glitches and niggles, as is to be expected at this stage. But the overall experience is surprisingly smooth!Very many Kudo's to the Team!!"
- Blort: "@NGIZero just dropped the 2025 list of grant-funded FOSS projects, and there's some bangers this year!: https://nlnet.nl/news/2025/20250101-announcing-grantees-June-call.htmlHere's 6 I'm super excited for in reverse order:6. OpenStreetMap-NG"a more accessible, privacy-respecting, and developer-friendly mapping platform.""Our mission is to revolutionize the map and provide a better experience for all users. It is simply the Next Generation of OpenStreetMap." https://OSM.ng🧵 1/6#NGI #OSM #OSM-NG #FOSS #NGI0 #NGIzero"
- sailmates: Sailmates has a flashing service! This is for curious people who want to discover new mobile operating systems. Contact us by email with the OS you want and we will reply with a list of compatible devices we can send you: https://sailmates.net/get_your_phone/
- bhyoram: "I can take a photo or video from WhatsApp Web on #librem5 using #pipewire on top of #libcamera with software IPA. The funny part is that I can't, yet, doi the same thing with native WhatsApp on #WayDroid."
- r/MobileLinux: Mobile Linux Distro
- #LinuxMobile: I upgraded #pmos on my #op6t to the last stable version and experience a strong regression concerning audio. before i only had the known problem that i had to restart the phone after each call. making calls or voice messages via #signal desktop etc worked flawless. now, my microphone does not seem to record anything anymore and i can't hear the other person 90% of the time (calls&signal), although i tried every constellation in settings. anyone else experiencing that? #linuxmobile #mobilelinux
- Lehmanator: @ranfdev This #libadwaita feature is going to be the gift that keeps on giving for #mobilelinux. So many otherwise stellar apps are just plain broken on mobile, likely because devs without a Linux phone can only test by manually resizing the window.
More Software News
Gnome Ecosystem
- This Week in GNOME: #181 Happy New Year!
- Planet GNOME: Reading in 2024—tools
- Planet GNOME: This was 2024
- Phoronix: GNOME Now Has Refine As An Alternative To GNOME Tweaks, Phosh 0.44 Released
Phosh
- Phosh.mobi: Phosh 0.44.0
- #phosh: anybody know why #firefox has the address bar on bottom on #phosh?#linux
- #phosh: In #postmarketOS with #phosh how can I see the used storage and avaiable storage? Is the storage the
rootpartition? - #phosh: …and here's my #FreeSoftware status update for December 24: https://honk.sigxcpu.org/con/Free_Software_Activities_December_2024.html#LinuxMobile #phosh #debian #gnome #sigxcpu #gbp
Plasma Ecosystem
- Nate Graham: This Week in Plasma: Artistry and accessibility
- Carl Schwan et al.: This Week in KDE Apps: Mobile context menus
- KDE Announcements: KDE Plasma 6.2.5, Bugfix Release for December
- Volker Krause: 38C3 Impressions
- lprod.dev: My last 6 months in KDE/Plasma Mobile
- #plasmamobile: One strategy for making a #postmarketOS #plasmamobile #linuxphone useful is to create webapps for some of all those services that there is no app for. I gave up on Tidal for now due to the DRM issue, but here are some that works well:* E-boks - A secure mailbox danes can use to acess mail from public and private services - from gouvernment departments to your payment receipt from your employer, using the official danish secure login MitID.* DMI - The Danish Meterological Institute. This is not quite as good as the android app, but still useful. #angelfish is having problems with the slider in the weather map section, and in general it is less mobile friendly than the app.* Sejladsudsigten - Danish weather prognosis map for sailers, providing wind, current, wave, water level and other data useful for sailors.* DRTV - The Danish Radio/TV broadcast tv (and radio) streaming section. This is about as good as their app, listening to the jazz radio channel writing this.
- Phoronix: KDE Internet of Things "Kiot" Started To Provide Nice Home Assistant Integration
Sailfish OS
- sailmates: "The Sailmates association is happy to announce being part of the 2025 @NGIZero grant:Security audit of Sailfish FOSS components — Analyse security of secrets, Sailfish ofono and Sailjail In the meanwhile, if you are curious and want to try a more privacy focused mobile OS, we setup a free flashing service: https://sailmates.net//get_your_phone/Happy new year to everyone!"
- piggz: "The #SailfishOS @volla Quintus port is already looking pretty good. I think only NFC, Vibration and HW Codecs arnt working now 😀"
- juanro49: Sailfish OS for Fairphones devices https://forum.sailfishos.org/t/sailfish-os-for-fairphones-devices/21516#SailfishOS
- jolla: "🚀 Meet Jolla at CES 2025!Join us in Las Vegas from January 7-10, 2025, and discover how we're advancing Edge AI for automotive and personal computing!🌟 What to Expect:🔹 Live demos showcasing Edge AI in automotive and personal computing🔹 Expert insights from the Jolla team📍 Where: Demo suite @ Hilton Grand Vacations on the StripCo-located with our partner company, Seafarix🗓 When: Tuesday–Friday, January 7–10, 2025Experience the future of AI and privacy from Finland with Jolla Mind2.#JollaMind2 #CES2025 #EdgeAI #PrivacyFromFinland #Seafarix #Jolla #AppSupport"
- #sailfishOS: Top 5 Linux Mobile Operating Systems You Should Try in 2025https://techrefreshing.com/top-5-linux-mobile-operating-systems-you-should-try-in-2025/#Linux #MobileOS #LinuxMobile #OpenSource #PrivacyFirst #TechInnovation #LinuxSmartphones #UbuntuTouch #PostmarketOS #SailfishOS #Mobian #PureOS #LinuxCommunity #TechTrends2025 #CustomizableOS #SustainableTech #FreeSoftware #SecureMobileOS #AlternativeOS #LinuxOnPhones
- #sailfishOS: @jackdaniel 👍ECL keeps delivering. I'm currently working on an app that works on desktop, #SailfishOS, Android and (probably) iOS thanks to LQML¹.I can just develop and preview on desktop and 95% will just work on the other platforms.¹) https://gitlab.com/eql/lqml
Ubuntu Touch
- arubislander: "Installed the #utnext preview version of #UbuntuTouch based on 24.04 from @UBports on my Pixel 3a and JingPad. There are the some glitches and niggles, as is to be expected at this stage. But the overall experience is surprisingly smooth!Very many Kudo's to the Team!!"
- UBports - Development - Issues: SD card not recognised and External Storage app failing to launch when snaps are enabled
- UBports - Development - Issues: Lomiri Launcher Resize
- UBports - Development - Issues: Camera app freezes and won't show up for a while at next startup if microphone permission was denied
- UBports - Development - Issues: Contact's photo to be enlarged while receiving a phone call
- UBports - Development - Issues: [devel-noble] Lomiri stutters when entering/exitting full screen mode
- UBports - Development - Issues: Mulltiple SIM UX
- UBports - Development - Issues: searching app should ignore special characters
Kernel
- phone-devel: [PATCH 0/5] Add EEPROMs found in the camera sensors on Fairphone 5
- phone-devel: [PATCH 0/2] Some fixes for Goodix Berlin touchscreen driver
Distributions
- postmarketOS: "Some great backports landed in v24.12 thanks to the following amazing people! :postmarketos: * @fraolt figured out call audio regressions for sdm845 (bottom mic not working on xiaomi-beryllium (Poco F1), distorted audio on OP6 (and possibly OP6T)) and made a workaround: https://gitlab.postmarketos.org/postmarketOS/pmaports/-/merge_requests/5966* @johkra fixed pinephones with vccq-mod not booting: https://gitlab.postmarketos.org/postmarketOS/pmaports/-/merge_requests/5980* @craftyguy fixed that boot-deploy failed when using a strictly POSIX compatible shell: https://gitlab.postmarketos.org/postmarketOS/pmaports/-/merge_requests/5960"
- postmarketOS pmaports issues: linux-postmarketos-allwinner: switch to mainline rtw88 driver
- postmarketOS pmaports Merge Requests: Mobile configuration for Thunderbird
Apps
- janvlug: "Last year I got a new #Librem5 mobile #Linux phone. #GPS on this new one works, contrary to the very early ones I had.Today, I tracked for the first time a run with the #Jogger app. Jogger is a great app available via #Flathub (https://flathub.org/apps/xyz.slothlife.Jogger).To get it working, I had to do a little tweak on my Librem 5 (https://codeberg.org/baarkerlounger/jogger/issues/8#issuecomment-1103201), but then it nicely found my location and tracked the run.#MobileLinux #FOSS #opensource #phone"
- rolandlo: "Let me share some progress on the "Pushup Sessions" app. I have put it onto my OnePlus 6 and started testing and making necessary adjustments. Most things work and the workouts and training plans are safely stored in a sqlite database. Notifications for sessions is not implemented and translations are not set up yet. There is (optional) sound though and the proximity sensor is used, so I don't have to touch the screen with the nose. Here's a demo:#Oneplus6 #Pushup #GnomeMobile #LinuxMobile"
- tpikonen: "I just tagged version 0.2.0 of OLS, my experimental local #location server. It's a bit over-configurable and under-documented, but may be of interest to technical users who want to play with location services on Linux. Get it from #Codeberg.https://codeberg.org/tpikonen/ols#mobileLinux #geoclue #beacondb #Python"
- TheEvilSkeleton: "Introducing Refine , an app to tweak advanced and experimental settings in GNOME. It is an alternative to GNOME Tweaks ,,,"
- insl: Hey, check out the new gPodder #podcatcher release 3.11.5 featuring a new subscription statistics extension, Podverse search and system dark/light mode support on Linux.Download the installer, get it from #Flathub on Linux, or wait a while for packages in your distro. Also available as an adaptive version for #mobileLinux.https://floss.social/@tpikonen/113736852029978748
- semiprime: "I've released version 0.3.7 of my WIP #Psion Agenda-like app "Pygenda" targeting keyboard-equipped PDAs running Linux (#GeminiPDA, #CosmoCommunicator, #PinePhone + keyboard, #PocketReform, F(x)tec #Pro1X).The last two releases have been bug-fix releases (two releases because minutes after 0.3.6, I noticed an API change in a dependency was causing a crash & rushed out a fix). Hopefully it's in a good state for testing now.Docs & source: https://github.com/semiprime/pygendaVideo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvQqFmlZ6nM"
- Blort: "@NGIZero 1. OrganicMaps Convergent Linux UIA great maps application is critical on any mobile platform, and IMO, @organicmaps is the best #FOSS maps app there is today. It's Android only though, despite having a basic testing tool on #Linux. This project finally funds bringing this amazing map app to mobile (and desktop!) Linux - a big win for mobile freedom. I am PUMPED for this one!https://organicmaps.app/🧵 6/6#OrganicMaps #MobileLinux #NGI #NGI0 #LinuxMobile #OSM #PinePhone #Librem5"
- anderslund: "Logical pencilmark errors in #PuMoKu :D(A logical pencilmark error is that a pencilmark is set for a digit that is present in either of the cells houses.)The entire cell is highlighted, so you are still required to look around and figure out which mark causes the error. Displaying the error in the culprit pencilmark only is easy to do - do you think I should make that possible, or even default for displaying such errors?#plasmamobile #plasma #kde #sudoku #linuxphone #fossphone"
Releases
Matrix
- Matrix.org: This Week in Matrix 2025-01-03
Thanks
Huge thanks to Plata for the nifty set of Python scripts that speed up collecting links from feeds by a lot.
Something missing? Want to contribute?
If your project's cool story (or your awesome video or nifty blog post or ...) is missing and you don't want that to happen again, please just put it into the hedgedoc pad for the next one! Since I am collecting many things there, this get's you early access if you will ;-) If you just stumble on a thing, please put it in there too - all help is appreciated!