PinePhone

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Pinephone
Pinephone with PostmarketOS

Pinephone with PostmarketOS

Manufacturer Pine64
series PinePhone
publication Nov 15, 2019 (presentation)
Jan 2020 (availability)
predecessor none
Technical specifications
display 1440 × 720 5.95 ″ IPS LCD
Main camera OV6540, 5  MP , 1/4 ″, LED Flash
Front camera GC2035, 2  MP , f / 2.8, 1/5 ″
Operating system at launch Linux
Current operating system Plasma Mobile , Ubuntu Touch , PostmarketOS , Sailfish OS , any Linux-on-a-phone or Linux system
System-on-a-chip Allwinner A64 ARM
processor 64-bit quad-core 1.2 GHz ARM Cortex A-53
R.A.M. 2 or 3 GB LPDDR3
Graphics processor Mali-400MP2
Internal memory 16 or 32GB eMMC flash memory
Memory card microSD HC / XC (up to 2TB) (bootable)
Sensors

3-axis angular rate sensor , acceleration sensor , proximity sensor , ambient light sensor , compass , barometer

Connectivity
Cellular networks

GSM , UMTS , LTE-A

Further radio connections
connections

USB-C PD / Displayport Alt Mode, USB host, 3.5 mm jack

accumulator
Type Lithium-ion battery 3000  mAh , Samsung J7 form factor, exchangeable (approx. 10 USD)
Changeable Yes
measures and weight
Dimensions ( H × W × D ) 160.5 mm × 76.6 mm × 9.2 mm
Weight 180/200 g
particularities
  • Privacy kill switches (LTE & GPS, WiFi / BT, Mic, camera)
  • FOSS
  • Open source

The PinePhone is a free smartphone developed by the computer manufacturer Pine64 , which is based on the Linux operating system . Various properties should be able to give the user full control over the device. The phone itself is not glued, but can be dismantled with screws so that repairs or upgrades can be carried out easily. Six kill switches can be accessed by removing the back cover.

history

On November 15, 2019, Pine64 took orders for the so-called BraveHeart -Gamma version of the PinePhone, which was intended for early adopters and software developers and only provided test firmware so that the end user could test the device before installing their own , free operating system. Thousands of BraveHeart phones shipped to early adopters in January 2020.

The first community edition of the PinePhone took orders in April 2020 and was delivered in May 2020. This edition included Ubuntu Touch as a pre-installed operating system. For every sale of the Community Edition versions of the phone and the versions with custom covers, the community operating system project selected by the buyer will receive a donation of $ 10.

The second PinePhone PostmarketOS Community Edition was announced in June 2020 and is available as a base model or an extended Convergence Edition with 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB of flash and a USB-C dock for an additional US $ 50 (US $ 199.99) .

Features and comparison with other Linux-based cell phones

The PinePhone is often compared to other phones with non- Android -Linux distributions ship, especially with the published about the same time Librem 5 and WiFi VoIP phone Necuno which does not use a cellular modem.

Unlike most smartphone manufacturers, Pine64 promises a production time of 5 years. A long production life and the sharing of a common A64 platform with the PineTab tablet and the Pine A64 boards should encourage hobbyists to create mods and DIY projects based on the PinePhone.

hardware

Mainboard; DIP switch center right, black & white

Compared to the Librem 5, the PinePhone has a 20% slower CPU clock rate, a third less RAM, half the flash memory and a smaller but faster rechargeable battery. Both phones have batteries that can be easily removed without tools.

The PinePhone and Librem 5 use separate baseband and WiFi / Bluetooth chips and hardware kill switches, resulting in larger printed circuit boards (PCBs) and lower energy efficiency than a standard Android phone, which has an integrated " system on a Chip "such as Snapdragon , Helio or Exynos . At 9.2 mm, the PinePhone is thinner than the 15.5 mm thick Librem 5, because the PinePhone soldered its communication chips to the circuit board, while the Librem 5 has the cellular and WiFi / Bluetooth modules on two interchangeable M.2 cards placed. In addition, the Librem 5 adds an additional internal plastic cover over the circuit board, and the DIP kill switches under the back cover of the PinePhone take up less space than the kill switches on the side edge of the Librem 5.

Pine64 is the second phone manufacturer (after OpenMoko ) to offer booting from a microSD card, which means that the user can try out or change several operating systems before they are permanently installed in the internal flash memory.

Another special feature of the PinePhone is the 6-pogo-pin I2C connector under the back cover, with which mods can be added to the phone. Pine64 has reported that it is developing three mods including a physical keyboard, 5000mAh battery, and wireless charging.

The PinePhone has 6 DIP switches under the back, of which the first five switch off the following components: Cellular modem / GNSS WiFi / Bluetooth microphone Main camera Front camera The sixth DIP switch converts the 3.5 mm headphone socket into a serial UART - Interface around. This is the first time this type of switch has been included in a mobile phone.

Operating systems

The PinePhone is based entirely on community-driven open source operating systems . Since these community operating system projects were involved in the development of the PinePhone, it was ported to 16 different Linux distributions and 7 different graphical user interfaces from June 2020 , such as Ubuntu Touch by UBports, postmarketOS , Mobian , LuneOS , Nemo Mobile , Manjaro Phosh and Maemo Leste , etc. Since Pine64 has no software development costs, the PinePhone's retail price ($ 149.99 for the base model) is the same as other Linux phones, particularly the Librem 5 ($ 749.99) is supplied with its own, manufacturer-supported open source operating system (mainly GPL- licensed) PureOS .

The only proprietary software in PinePhone's Linux file system is the firmware for the Realtek RTL8723CS WiFi / Bluetooth chip and the optional autofocus firmware for the OmniVision OV6540 rear camera (which is not currently pre-installed on either port).
Although the PinePhone is designed to use completely open source software in its drivers and bootloader, it is next to impossible to find components like the cellular modem, GNSS, WiFi, and Bluetooth that do not contain proprietary blobs. For this reason, the PinePhone isolates these components by communicating via serial protocols such as USB 2.0, I2S and SDIO, which do not allow direct memory access ( DMA ), and offers power isolation switches for them. That way, the blobs are still needed for these radios to operate, but they are isolated or even physically separable from the main independent system.

reception

In November 2019, Android Authority's Phillip Prado said the PinePhone had the potential to " expand our imaginations of what mobile computing might be like, " but didn't expect it to replace everyone's Android device. Linux Magazine explained the different operating systems and community support.

In December 2019, Martins D. Okoi of FossMint said the first edition of PinePhone is aimed at Linux savvy users who want to test beta operating system builds, but the general user version should be available in March 2020.

In January 2020, ZDNet described the PinePhone hardware as "promising" and noted six hardware kill switches for modem, GPS, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, microphone and cameras.

Ars Technica talked about the phone's unusual external connections, which offer I2C, GPIO and serial connectivity.

See also

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c d e f g Ron Amadeo: The PinePhone starts shipping — a Linux-powered smartphone for $ 150 ( en-us ) January 16, 2020.
  2. ↑ PINEPHONE .
  3. ↑ a b c The $ 149 Linux Phone: Everything You Need to Know . November 8, 2019.
  4. ↑ September Update: The PinePhone is real & shipping soon ( en-US )
  5. ↑ Raffaele T .: Librem 5 vs. PinePhone: comparison of two Linux smartphones ( en ) September 2, 2019.
  6. ↑ PinePhone Linux smartphone pre-orders start next week . 7th November 2019.
  7. ↑ November Update: Brave Heart, Pinebook Pro reception and more .
  8. ↑ PINEPHONE - "Community Edition: UBports" Limited Edition Linux SmartPhone $ 149.99 .
  9. ↑ It's time to start giving back .
  10. ↑ June Update: postmarketOS CE PinePhone, Shipping & PINE64 Cluster .
  11. ↑ PinePhone - PINE Store ( en-US )
  12. ↑ Proving our case: Fairphone 2 is sold out! . March 22, 2019.
  13. ↑ amosbatto: Comparing specs of upcoming Linux phones . August 25, 2019.
  14. ↑ Ron Amadeo: Purism's Librem 5 phone starts shipping-a fully open GNU / Linux phone . September 26, 2019. Retrieved October 8, 2019. 
  15. ↑ Librem 5 Update: Fresh Dogwood Pictures . May 21, 2020. Accessed June 24, 2020. 
  16. ↑ PinePhone .
  17. ↑ December Update: Thank You For 2019! . 5th December 2019.
  18. ↑ May Update: PineTab pre-orders, PinePhone Qi charging & more! . May 15, 2020.
  19. ↑ PinePhone .
  20. ↑ Jean-Luc Aufranc: PinePhone "BraveHeart" Limited Edition Linux Smartphone is Now Available for $ 150 . 16th November 2019.
  21. ↑ PinePhone software releases .
  22. ↑ PinePhone - PINE Store ( en-US )
  23. ↑ Librem 5 - Purism ( en-US )
  24. ↑ Lukasz Erecinski: Setting the Record Straight: PinePhone Misconceptions . January 26, 2020.
  25. ↑ Phillip Prado: PinePhone: Everything you need to know about the $ 150 Linux-powered phone ( en-US ) November 28, 2019.
  26. ↑ Jack Wallen: The PinePhone pre-order has Arrived . In: Linux Magazine .
  27. ↑ Martins D. Okoi: PinePhone - An Open Source Smart Phone for Everyone ( en-US ) December 19, 2019.
  28. ↑ Daphne Leprince-Ringuet: This Linux smartphone is now shipping for $ 150 ( en )