Librem 5 Linux phone gets a $300 price cut, now costs $999 for a phone with 2017 specs #Librem5, #Linuxsmartphones, #MobileLinux, #Purism, #Smartphones
@bradlinder Hey now, the SoC it uses wasn't even released until 2018, while the wireless card is from 2021 and supports tech that did not exist in 2017 😛
@dos in some ways saying the processor was 2017 tech was generous: I.MX8 was announced in 2013. They just took a very long time to come to market. https://liliputing.com/freesclae-unveils-plans-mx-7-mx-8-chips/
I really do think Purism is responsible for a lot of the progress that's been made in mobile Linux in recent years. I just also think a $999 phone with those specs remains a tough sell.
@bradlinder i.MX 8 is a series of processors. i.MX 8M was announced in 2017 and released in 2018.
@dos And it uses an Arm processor core architecture introduced in 2012. But I feel like we're nitpicking here. The point is that you won't find another phone anywhere near this price range that's using a Cortex-A53 CPU.
@bradlinder That point is true, but it's not like there are comparable cheaper alternatives out there. It you wanted it to have state-of-the-art specs without compromising on anything else, you would probably have to move the decimal point to the right in that price. It's not something you buy for specs.
But anyway, my point was that contrary to the image painted by the article, even spec-wise it's still a viable device in 2023, supporting recent stuff like 802.11ax/Wi-Fi 6 ;)
