I hope they are able to get 25K pre-orders and expand their geographic sales coverage after that.

You are likely correct that forking Android would be a better (cheaper and more efficient) option. But I can’t get rid of the feeling that it’s best to do a clean break with American oligarchy and make design choices that reflect regional priorities.

Agreed. Hardware supply chains and ecosystem externalities are an extremely challenging area and it will take both industrial policy and de facto tariffs to raise the cost of devices with non-local components.

I was refering to the software/OS. An operating system and platform that has nothing to do with Android, iOS or HarmonyOS. I think in theory, software can have faster market adoption.

How it does very well and it even gets up to 10K+.

I just realized that I can’t pre-order even if I wanted to since I am not in EU/UK/Norway/Switzerland.

We really need an Android alternative with no involvement from American or Chinese companies.

Can’t buy in at this point, but I will most probably buy it early next year, hopefully the crowd-buy goes through.

I can’t participate in ecosystems run by corrupt Americans (such as Android or iOS). They’ve been posturing about “freedoms” for so long that they’ve totally lost understanding of the true meaning of freedom.

I am done with their bullshit.

OxygenOS 16 is described by OnePlus in grandiose terms as “a defiant rebellion for authenticity.”

Oh, the irony of describing such a “basic bitch” releases as “a defiant rebellion for authenticity” …

It’s better than nothing.

They will continue to releases major security updates for Windows 10 as long as it has double digit installed base share.

The Creator Program wasn’t just a feature, it was a full blown movement that rocked Reddit, on the blockchain no less. You all built communities. You created art. Your art became memes. You put a cone on it. You even got paid (a first!). At the end of the day, you all made magic.

I still think personal responsibility (as outlined in my post above) is a far better option that a fine.

A fine is the cost of business. I don’t think a senior Deloitte partner or manager would like to do a 6 month mandatory de-mining community service program (Australia can send them to my country, Ukraine, as part of a community service exchange program).

And a partial refund at that.

Better option would be to require the senior Deloitte partners and managers to do real community service program (live-in junior janitor at homeless shelter or a hospice) for 6 months (with an asset freeze for the duration of community service).

I’ve been slowly getting rid of American products/services. App distribution lockdown greatly increases the need to move off Android.

I will of course keep my current Android phone for banking and government apps, but I am not looking forward to carrying two phones.

I strongly disagree. Even the section on his articles about trans kids shows that Singal is able to show a measure of nuance and understanding with respect to the critiques of his work.

Not to mention the more global context. Are you sure that non-english speaking trans folks would have the same attitude (i.e. they may have their own opinions and priorities)? The reason I mention this is that I have some exposure to the local LGBT community and their attitudes don’t always align with “Western” expectations.

Bluesky is of course just another American social media company. If they are not shit now, they will be once they get bigger. The American model has reached a dead end and it’s not suitable for good products, competition and real innovation.

Side note, it’s been a while since I’ve lived in the US, so my knowledge of local “culture wars” is from online sources, but the article is incorrect in claiming that Jesse Singal is a transphobe. I say this as someone who often disagrees with him.

I will add that many of the commentators in his substack are unhinged and likely transphobes.

Trying do a URL lookup at archive.fo. For Wired there is very likely an archived copy.

Well, they clearly have too much money

They may have a lot of money, but they definitely don’t have anything close to a reasonable return on investment. I believe the total revenues from “AI services” are sub $50 billion per year compared to at least x20 times capex and likely a very high amount of opex (hundreds of billion) per year.

Keep in mind the original X Elite benchmarks were never replicated in real world devices (not even close).

They used a desktop style device (with intense cooling that is not possible with laptops) and “developed solely for benchmarking” version of Linux (to this day X Elite runs like shit in Linux).

This is almost certainly a premeditated attempt at “legal false advertising”.

Mark my words, you’ll never see 4,000 points in GB6 ST on any real products.

Yeah, a mandatory work phone (where the employer can define requirements) should be purchased and funded by the employer.

Ah, yeah forgot about that one.

That wasn’t the glasses though, it was his eyes/cameras.

But makes sense.

The keynote was to feature the Ray-Ban Meta Display, the latest version of what is essentially a face-mounted iPhone – ideal for the consumer who lacks the energy to pull a device from their pocket and idolizes both Buddy Holly and the Terminator.

What does Terminator have to do with any of this? Did they add the reference because Schwarzenegger wears sunglasses in the movies?