this post was submitted on 31 Dec 2023
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Smartphone manufacturers still want to make foldables a thing (arstechnica.com)
submitted 10 months ago by BrikoX@lemmy.zip to c/technology@lemmy.zip
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[–] onlinepersona@programming.dev 9 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Budy, all I want is a linux phone without a bunch of proprietary, binary blobs that aren't supported after 2 years, and a thick, replaceable battery that lasts me 3-5 days on average with daily usage.

With the amount of money they are dumping into these gimmicks, they could instead be significantly changing the market by improving ARM or RISC-V linux and making highly portable computers that fit in your pocket and that you can just plug into a screen where you go. They could merge the mobile gaming market with that of the desktop and console market that way for example. One unified OS with the same APIs and frameworks and whole host of native programming languages.

They could rival laptop manufacturers with their low-power, portable devices. Or even enter the OS market that way by providing a linux distro that they can sell and maintain.

I dunno... just anything but these damn foldables.

CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

[–] shutuuplegs@reddthat.com 4 points 10 months ago (2 children)

You will never get that battery if it makes the device thicker. I was in the industry, we made smartphones with a two day battery. Full on thick, in direct response to customers asking.

None sold. Period. It was something like 8-10mm thicker.

Everyone looked at the one with the thick battery then the thin and bought that.

[–] TheLight@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Motorola makes phones with two day batteries (5000 mAh standard, some going up to 6000 mAh) and their market share is growing, recently reaching third place in the US behind Apple and Samsung. And it's all in the standard size, forget being 8-10mm thicker, they're 8-10mm total.

[–] Still@programming.dev 1 points 10 months ago

wait how is 5000 mAh 2 day battery? what features are the cutting? cuz my OnePlus 9 has a 4500 mAh and that lasts for like 30 hours idle or like 5 hours of use?

[–] onlinepersona@programming.dev 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Purism made the Librem 5. It's a chonker and has bad battery life and they only sold a few thousand units. However, if rappers can make dumb phones and sell out 10k units in a few days, I dare say there's a market for thick phones with good batteries, it's just that rappers and celebs do better marketing and have a wider audience.

[–] shutuuplegs@reddthat.com 1 points 10 months ago

Marketing maketh the product. Absolutely true and a thick one there would sell.

If you put two devices down, one thick and one thin, all other things being equal and without an influencer hawking jt. People take the thin one.

[–] space@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Foldables are just an expensive compromise between phones and tablets. For the same amount of money you can buy both, a phone and a tablet, which will last a lot longer.

[–] MayonnaiseArch 3 points 10 months ago

It's not a compromise, the folding things really fall apart and look like shit. I'd love it if they worked but it's the 3d glassses tv thing except in phones

[–] teichflamme@lemm.ee 1 points 10 months ago

The thing is I don't want to carry 2 devices around and I can't fit a tablet into my trouser pockets.

I'd buy a foldable if they weren't absolute shit in the current state.

[–] kubica@kbin.social 5 points 10 months ago* (last edited 10 months ago)

I can only imagine them shrugging it off when it breaks saying you've folded and unfolded the item too many times. No thanks.

[–] AceFuzzLord@lemm.ee 3 points 10 months ago (1 children)

Until we get to the point where I can completely fold my phone into a ring around one of my wrists without it breaking, I don't see a need for a folding phone. It feels more like a gimmick to sell a device more than a useful feature, to me at least

[–] jol@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 10 months ago

Phones are too big. I love the idea of clamshell smartphones. But i won't buy one until it's much more reliable.

[–] COASTER1921@lemmy.ml 2 points 10 months ago (1 children)

At the right price I'd definitely like a foldable. Certainly many people would prefer the smaller form factor at the right price/durability. The durability constraints are largely solved now, so the main concern is pricing.

[–] Truck_kun 2 points 10 months ago

I watch a lot of video on my phone during breaks at work.

For me, that is the main usage. If I am at home, I'm using my iPad or desktop for everything else I would possibly need that larger foldable screen for.

I'm not against foldables, but price needs to be reasonable, as it solely serves to replace my normal smartphone, and it's not worth it unless it's within $100 of the equivalent phone/hardware without the foldable screen.

[–] Hundun 1 points 10 months ago

Make postmarked os drivers a thing. Let me run whatever OS I want, it's 2023 for crying out loud.

Also, I would sooner buy a device that is easier to repair and find spare parts for.

I feel very silly having to advocate for these basic computing necessities.

[–] qyron@sopuli.xyz 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

And I want my Nokia 3330 back, yet I have serious doubts I can ever get it and that it would be useful nowadays.

[–] BrikoX@lemmy.zip 1 points 10 months ago (1 children)

One thing nobody can take away from Nokia 3330 is that it can be used as a weapon.

[–] qyron@sopuli.xyz 2 points 10 months ago

And hammer, meat tenderizer or brick, in a pinch.