this post was submitted on 27 Nov 2024
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Linux Phones
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Community about running GNU/Linux on phones. Projects like Ubuntu Touch, Plasma Mobile, PostmarketOS, Mobian etc. Either on former Android phones or hardware like the PinePhone.
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I find Android not having almost any option for various apps. I just want a touchscreen keyboard friendly text editor which saves txt files in my phone's home directory, for example. The only thing that really exists is emacs or using Termux, and using a modal text editor on a mobile keyboard is a massive pain.To clarify, I prefer installing open source applications on F-Droid on Android, and yes, I could get some stunning 8K resolution text editor SUPER FAST NO ADS on the Play Store which requires GSF and is developed by some random dude, but I want a well-established text editor that Android doesn't have, like VSCode or Kate. This is why Linux phones appeal to me, but they still have various issues and limitations.
Maybe it's because I use my phone like a computer, but I do not like using single purpose, clunky apps that obfuscate the filesystem. Linux, even on arm alone, has so many different apps that Android has no equivalent for. Not denying there's still much work to do for mobile Linux.
I believe the Linux infrastructure for mobile devices needs priority.
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I had difficulty getting images from various operating systems to work (or not crash from updating) on my PinePhone. I need to eventually get Gentoo crossdev setup so I can compile packages for the PinePhone. Curious how well existing Android devices with Linux support fare currently.Not sure if debugging and fixing issues would satisfy your itch, but I guess one idea to consider is porting some Linux applications only available on the x86_64 architecture to arm/arm64/etc., and develop mobile friendly guis for current applications that are still primarily suited for desktop.
the audio is inexcusably inconsistent on my pinephone, particularly the mic.