So Far Ubuntu Phone Hasn't Tempted Me, But Would Highly Consider A Tizen Device

[DrYak]

Also a happy Sailfish OS user here.
Eagerly waiting for Jolla and Fairphone to get their shit together and provide full official SFOS on Fairphone 2.
(It is on their todo list, they promise it, but it's moving at the speed of a glacier)

[NateHubbard]

I got my Ubuntu phone (Meizu MX4) from Meizu (China) directly.

Yes, it is possible to just order one from China, but that phone only supports a few bands, none of which are useful here in the US. 2G bands are getting shut down already, so I would imagine that phone wouldn't work at all, or not for much longer.

I am one of those people that would have used an Ubuntu phone regardless of the lack of apps, as long as a few basics were covered. Back when I tried it, there was no available navigation app, which is kind of a show stopper for me.

[coder111]

I wish Jolla had a phone out with better hardware. I have an original Jolla. While I still love it, it is showing its age. I will be forced to get a nexus or maybe a freephone if they don't release a new version soonish...

SailfishOS is quite good, perfectly usable as a daily phone. My main gripes with it are:

* Some Android apps eat battery like crazy.
* Android compatibility could be better.
* No 5GHz wireless.
* Dated hardware- could use better screen, faster CPU, more RAM, etc.
* I feel that the pace of development has slowed since the financial troubles around new year...

--Coder

[Passso]

There's a nice review of the Meizu Pro 5 running Ubuntu Phone up on http://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?is...01#ubuntuphone

Thanks, it is an interresting review. Far away from the classical article focusing on the technical data and the lack of apps.
This one is about experience and globally the results seem positive. I like the interface of this Ubuntu phone.

[Passso]

Then a few months ago, all smartphones in the world were useless? I didn't know …

This is how the world changes, a few decades ago a computer without internet connection was useful.

[Herem]

There's a nice review of the Meizu Pro 5 running Ubuntu Phone up on http://distrowatch.com/weekly.php?is...01#ubuntuphone

[CrystalGamma]

If it cannot run Pokémon GO, your phone is useless.

Then a few months ago, all smartphones in the world were useless? I didn't know …

[Passso]

I got my Ubuntu phone (Meizu MX4) from Meizu (China) directly. I had a mid range Android before this one, but needed to install Cyanomod on this to get openvpn working. I really wanted to sync our owncloud calendar and address book with it, but didn't find an app that did this well.

So while Ubuntu doesn't have 1M+ apps, I find it has the stuff I need:
- openvpn built-in
- ssh server built-in
- uses syncevolution to sync owncloud calendar and address book (unfortunately for now only from the konsole/ssh)

Unlike Samsung android and Cyanomod I get regular updates and the thing just keeps getting better, including the battery life (3 day intervals between charging).

Most apps that I need are available through the browser or as web apps, which is just fine. Except of course whatsapp. But I had switched to telegram anyway because that allows installation on multiple devices, including my laptop and PC.

If it cannot run Pokémon GO, your phone is useless.

[theghost]

Fixed that for you, obviously they wouldn't be selling it in a 3rd world country like the USA (which in many, many social standards really is a third world country compared to Europe, where Ubuntu Phone is widely available by mail-order)

As of Ubuntu Phone (having used it quite a bit on my Nexus4), I think they seriously have their priorities wrong. Instead of ensuring that the main functions and typical apps (all available from the Maemo/Meego ecosystem) are working fine and in a performant way (main apps like the phone dialer and messaging are starting sooo slow), they keep on developing crap like Mir and Snappy packages that break compatibility with mainstream Linux and fail to achieve their target anyways.

I was really looking forward to Ubuntu Phone, but after all these years with little progress on the actual main functionality, I have more or less given up

I am with you. Got an Ubuntu Phone for several months. I really tried to like it and get used to it flaws (slow, horrible browser, bugs in the main apps, bad ui on several applications) but one day it was enough. I moved back to Android, got a Nexus and never looked back.

Even if the whole usability concept is better than Android (which I doubt, Scopes are useless) the whole systems seems totally hacked together. Even if they offer 6 weekly updates, I doubt that they can fix enough and build new features with the actual dev team. After all this buggy software, it seems Canonical hasn't learnt it's lesson. They must have pretty solid nerves to sell such crap to customers.
They have a long long way to go to get a good system, especially if you want to catch former Apple or Android users. So good luck Canonical.

On the other hand, SailfishOS looks much better. Unfortunately their phone selection is pretty low...

[GraysonPeddie]

Convergence is a great feature, but it will be about 2 to 3 years down the road for me. I cannot see myself leaving Android ecosystem as I am using Google Fi service. Plus, I don't see Google releasing Project Fi app to Ubuntu Phone or non-Android smartphones. Even after I discontinue Project Fi once my phone payment is paid in full I will stick with Google using Google Voice.

That's why I'm glad that Canonical started to let users move the dock to the bottom of the screen using Unity Tweak Tool if they don't plan on buying an Ubuntu Phone or Tablet.