ubuntu-phone team mailing list archive

[Alan Miller <dralanmiller@xxxxxxxxx>]

"I have never learned anything from any man who agreed with me,".. Dudley Field Malone (1882-1950)

I personally do not think Edge will succeed in raising more than 20Million (but I really hope I am wrong), I will of course be disappointed like everyone else, but the world will not end.
BUT I would be bitterly (emphasis) disappointed in Canonical if they took this lying down. 
A huge number of people have put money on the table in an unprecedented show of faith that they want Ubuntu to succeed on a mobile, and Canonical really should take that as a clear message and opportunity. But has Canonical grasped what that message is ?

I am not a particular believer in convergence, for the same reason I know Cisco Cius converged phone/tablet concept is a dead donkey, but I do strongly believe in the need for an open source mobile phone.
I am not a particular fan of Unity on the desktop either, not when I have OSX, but on a phone I think  Unity is truly  excellent.

I own perhaps a dozen different phones, my iPhone has given me enormous enjoyment ever since it first came out, but much as I love Apple products, the love of my iPhone has been tarnished somewhat by Apples (and others)  lack of respect towards  end users.
When Apple were caught Location tracking everyone covertly, and even after the uproar about it, they simply slid it back in later better hidden when no one was looking hence the arrogance that comes  so often with closed source.
We won't go into CarrierIQ that our friends in the US have to put up with…or even Fin Fisher or even anything Snowden has to say. Closed source is bad, that's about all we need to say. As for Android, well although somewhat open,  its Google enough said… 

On the day Touch was released, like many, I ran out and bought a nexus 4 just so that I could religiously type phablet-update every night waiting for the day I could bury my iPhone at sea. I am still waiting, it is getting close to the day when I can actually use Ubuntu touch as a phone and that will be a happy day for sure.

BUT when I turn on my nexus 4 I still get that   GOOGLE on the screen, honestly it makes my skin crawl to see it, and do I know what the software in the modem actually does behind my back ? nope...

And this is my point, I do not believe I am alone in believing that it is NOT just the advanced platform concept of Edge that people are really supporting. 
Yes it would be really nice to have a platform more advanced than anyone else out there with cutting technology no one else has, but pushing the envelope is expensive.
BUT do we REALLY need something so advanced that we need to raise 32 Million USD in order to see it ?


I think a large part of the community  just want a VERY nicely designed quality phone that the community owns from top to bottom, every driver open source, every service open source, even the modem software all open source and able to be altered as the community sees fit. I  think people are supporting an OPEN SOURCE  mobile OS first and foremost and that this is more important to people than the latest hardware specs.  Just make it pretty but above all else make it OURS !

For this reason I really urge Canonical to do a rethink or at least go back and talk to the community.

It does not take 32 million USD to produce  a phone, I could walk into Huawei tomorrow in Bao'an  (and I know enough staff there to literally do that) and talk OEM. 
I know Canonical staff can do that as well and not just to Huawei, so there is no lack of options to do something.

How much processing power do we really need ? 
What's so bad with only having an advanced 1.5GHz quad core (the fastest in the world presently) ?
Are we really saying a retooled case on a Huawei Ascend P2 4G LTE smartphone isn't good enough as a base OEM platform for Ubuntu  Edge (II) ?
I own a P2,  its a great phone and an engineering marvel.

http://www.huaweidevice.com/worldwide/productFeatures.do?pinfoId=3526&directoryId=6001&treeId=3745&tab=0


So am I making sense to anyone, or am I just a lunatic for thinking any of this ?


On 5 Aug, 2013, at 5:44 AM, Greg W <mttbrnsmls@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:

> Yes, I agree with you on all points :)
> 
> From: joerlend.schinstad@xxxxxxxxxx
> Date: Sun, 4 Aug 2013 23:17:39 +0200
> Subject: Re: [Ubuntu-phone] Ubuntu Edge (constructive criticism/advice on Canonical's approach)
> To: mttbrnsmls@xxxxxxxxxxx
> CC: joerlend.schinstad@xxxxxxxxxx; ubuntu-phone@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> 
> 
> 
> On 4 August 2013 23:13, Greg W <mttbrnsmls@xxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> Thanks :)
> 
> Canonical's influence on the Edge resulted in a great looking/sized/arranged phone. Hopefully Canonical will exert influence in a Huawei designed phone. I'm just reading a lot that makes it sound like Canonical will not bother with hardware design at all unless the Edge succeeds. Yet Canonical's influence on the design of the Edge is really impressive. So I hope Canonical will stay open to designing/influencing hardware design for at least one Ubuntu phone even if the Edge isn't successful.
> 
> 
> Yes, that would be nice. Just to remove any doubt; I'm not employed by Canonical and I have no real reason to expect anything from Huawei. That's hope and nothing else. :)
> 
> In either case, even if they don't succeed this time, they might want to try again next year. I think the biggest mistake that was done, was not to tell the community about these plans ahead of the Indiegogo compaign. That would've allowed more people to prepare for it and set aside some cash. If at first you don't succeed, try and try again :)
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