Due to all of the news around our Lapdock Kit, I was recently reminded of this Linux Journal article I wrote almost ten years ago (wow...) about my desire for what we now call convergence--using your phone as your main general-purpose personal computer.
Back then the best I could find was docking a Droid 4 on an Atrix lapdock, and running local Linux apps in a chroot over VNC.
How far we've come!
"I don't like how fragmented Android is and how beholden you are to your carrier to get OS upgrades on your device. I also don't like that all of my favorite Linux apps can't be ported over easily. " 2/2
@kyle Ah, I remember that aritcle and the Atrix lapdock ... that was fun to play with but never did anything really useful. Eventually the micro HDMI connection got wobbly and stopped working.
@triantares Yes, I ultimately used mine as a "crash cart" for a headless server in my house, and eventually that HDMI port broke. I still have the hardware in case some day I feel motivated to repair it.
@kyle I tried to repair it but those HDMI connections are so minute that I deemed it a lost cause and eventually threw it away ..... pity actually.
@kyle I remember that setup. It was the bomb when it first landed.
@kyle I find it ironic to see Google not converge both Android and ChromeOS since the latter already has Play Store support for years. Also, Google are going all the trouble of developing a native Desktop Mode feature for Android. And yet, Google disable wired video output on all their Pixel phones in the first place. At this point, I won't be surprise to see why Android Desktop Mode still can't catch on with the general public.
Of course this pull quote shows that some things haven't changed:
"I'll be honest, I don't really like Android. I want a true Linux distribution in my pocket, not a phone OS where you need a special app to do anything. All of the pre-installed junkware you get from your carrier reminds me of Windows desktops. I don't like that you have to sneak around and root the device to use it truly how you want (and to get a halfway usable terminal)." 1/2