As someone who owns a Fairphone 4, this is such a welcome development. We create so much electronics waste nowadays for no real reason other than "The battery no longer lasts long enough" or "No...
As someone who owns a Fairphone 4, this is such a welcome development. We create so much electronics waste nowadays for no real reason other than "The battery no longer lasts long enough" or "No longer holds a charge".
In a lot of ways, AA and AAA rechargables were and are the superior battery option.
USA does have this librem/purism which I think is similar freedom friendly alternative: https://puri.sm/products/librem-5-usa/ In any case, you can probably get one shipped from EU but not sure...
In any case, you can probably get one shipped from EU but not sure your country's providers like Verizon, TMobile, etc. will support that. They mostly come tied to a particular phone I think?
I still think the Samsung Galaxy 5 was the best phone ever made: replaceable battery with no tools needed waterproof IP68 microUSB (ie non-bespoke) charging what little bloatware was included was...
I still think the Samsung Galaxy 5 was the best phone ever made:
replaceable battery with no tools needed
waterproof IP68
microUSB (ie non-bespoke) charging
what little bloatware was included was easily removeable
I agree with all your points, except the one about micro USB. It was absolutely awful…made even worse by the fact that it was micro USB 3. USB C has its share of problems, but I’m very glad we’ve...
I agree with all your points, except the one about micro USB. It was absolutely awful…made even worse by the fact that it was micro USB 3.
USB C has its share of problems, but I’m very glad we’ve moved to that as the standard for charging phones now.
Really the biggest problem with it is there's still devices that need micro and even mini USB kicking around. I'd gladly use USB C for everything, but unfortunately that's not the case even for...
Really the biggest problem with it is there's still devices that need micro and even mini USB kicking around. I'd gladly use USB C for everything, but unfortunately that's not the case even for new devices -- most cheap household electronics are still using micro for power, and if you have legacy devices you use you need to keep at least a couple of each kind of cable around.
USB-C is definitely better, but my main point was that the thing was USB. I never had trouble with mine, and I think I also remember people were able to get in there and replace it
USB-C is definitely better, but my main point was that the thing was USB. I never had trouble with mine, and I think I also remember people were able to get in there and replace it
I am so glad MicroUSB is dead. Over the years I learned that port would fail every single time if used enough and unfortunately with phones that port was so heavily used that it was near...
I am so glad MicroUSB is dead. Over the years I learned that port would fail every single time if used enough and unfortunately with phones that port was so heavily used that it was near guaranteed. I will say that phone makers did make more effort with it though, you could expect to get a lot longer life out of it than many other devices.
I understand every port has a lifespan but there seemed to be some poor decisions made with MicroUSB that made it particularly unsuitable.
It's not though. Its such a ubiquitous and simple connector for dozens of small devices. Most of my usb connector issues are no worse than usual cable breakage or dust in the charging port. But...
I am so glad MicroUSB is dead
It's not though. Its such a ubiquitous and simple connector for dozens of small devices.
Most of my usb connector issues are no worse than usual cable breakage or dust in the charging port. But the simplicity of microusb makes it way easier to repair the cable.
I have noticed that most of the cheap things that would previously come with MicroUSB now come with USB-C instead so I consider MicroUSB to be dead, more or less. Given the failure rate of that...
I have noticed that most of the cheap things that would previously come with MicroUSB now come with USB-C instead so I consider MicroUSB to be dead, more or less. Given the failure rate of that connector it's a matter of time until it disappears.
My failures have always been the port itself, they're often poorly anchored and given their use subject to high wear. Replacing the port is a tricky job without quality soldering equipment as well.
Not to say that similar cost cutting won't happen with USB-C of course, I feel there is a huge variation in quality when it comes to MicroUSB ports and obviously designers do better or worse jobs when anchoring ports properly on a PCB etc but in general the construction of USB-C seems more robust to me at least.
Many of the earlier Android phones that came around ~2010-14 had replaceable batteries. Some point after that, the manufacturers suddenly decided to lock everything and make battery irreplaceable....
Many of the earlier Android phones that came around ~2010-14 had replaceable batteries. Some point after that, the manufacturers suddenly decided to lock everything and make battery irreplaceable. It also started becoming more difficult to even open the box without specialized tools.
Note that the rule is explicitly not about “on-to-go” replaceability, and I absolutely agree with that decision. Sure, let’s make the battery replaceable after the 2-3+ years of service by paying...
Note that the rule is explicitly not about “on-to-go” replaceability, and I absolutely agree with that decision. Sure, let’s make the battery replaceable after the 2-3+ years of service by paying that few 10s of dollars to a repair shop. But I much prefer the manufacturer maximizing the capacity of the battery, as they are still not quite there — making it swappable on the go is likely against that goal.
I only relatively recently (like 3 or 4 years ago) stopped using my S5, it was such a damn good phone and held up pretty well forever, especially with the custom ROM community being an old...
I only relatively recently (like 3 or 4 years ago) stopped using my S5, it was such a damn good phone and held up pretty well forever, especially with the custom ROM community being an old flagship implies
I loved that phone. It got me into the custom ROM scene, and I swear I spent more time tinkering with that thing than anything else. Don’t regret a second of it.
I loved that phone. It got me into the custom ROM scene, and I swear I spent more time
tinkering with that thing than anything else. Don’t regret a second of it.
I see there is a lot of misinformation on this topic already (not here - other places) with people thinking this is mandating a move back to snap-on batteries like your old Nokia when really it is...
I see there is a lot of misinformation on this topic already (not here - other places) with people thinking this is mandating a move back to snap-on batteries like your old Nokia when really it is about just telling manufacturers to not make removing rear covers overly difficult without 'normal' tools and not do stuff like glue batteries down excessively.
I think on the whole this is a good thing but... having seen how few people work on their own equipment that are perfectly serviceable by the user like laptops I'm not sure how many users will actually take advantage of easily removable back panels to replace batteries. Still, it should reduce servicing/repair costs and that's a good thing.
Ironically, I haven't run down a battery since having a replaceable one in a Samsung Galaxy S4. These days something else breaks before the battery does. Nevertheless, this is an overall good...
Ironically, I haven't run down a battery since having a replaceable one in a Samsung Galaxy S4. These days something else breaks before the battery does.
Nevertheless, this is an overall good change for the longevity of phones. What I personally hope for is when consumers start using phones longer, which is already happening but I hope for even longer, that support will be extended too.
Having a replaceable battery is nice and all, but without security updates it matters little for actual e-waste.
Ultimately it's not even about the battery, it's about being able to repair your own device. Something that's been bothering a good many people is that it somehow always feels like you don't actually own the device you bought since you're barely able to repair it.
Like the internet cookie laws, good intentions but let's hope it doesn't get in the way of usability too much.
As someone who owns a Fairphone 4, this is such a welcome development. We create so much electronics waste nowadays for no real reason other than "The battery no longer lasts long enough" or "No longer holds a charge".
In a lot of ways, AA and AAA rechargables were and are the superior battery option.
I just looked at Fairphone, but they don’t sell in the US :-(
USA does have this librem/purism which I think is similar freedom friendly alternative: https://puri.sm/products/librem-5-usa/
In any case, you can probably get one shipped from EU but not sure your country's providers like Verizon, TMobile, etc. will support that. They mostly come tied to a particular phone I think?
Idk if it would be compatible since the chargers on the site seem to have European plugs. I’ll check those alternatives out though!
The wall power supply is European, but the USB input is just normal USB power.
I still think the Samsung Galaxy 5 was the best phone ever made:
replaceable battery with no tools needed
waterproof IP68
microUSB (ie non-bespoke) charging
what little bloatware was included was easily removeable
easily accessible microSD slot
major manufacturer, commonly available
used by all major networks (US, at least)
I agree with all your points, except the one about micro USB. It was absolutely awful…made even worse by the fact that it was micro USB 3.
USB C has its share of problems, but I’m very glad we’ve moved to that as the standard for charging phones now.
Really the biggest problem with it is there's still devices that need micro and even mini USB kicking around. I'd gladly use USB C for everything, but unfortunately that's not the case even for new devices -- most cheap household electronics are still using micro for power, and if you have legacy devices you use you need to keep at least a couple of each kind of cable around.
Basically, what Randall Monroe said much more succinctly several years ago.
USB-C is definitely better, but my main point was that the thing was USB. I never had trouble with mine, and I think I also remember people were able to get in there and replace it
I am so glad MicroUSB is dead. Over the years I learned that port would fail every single time if used enough and unfortunately with phones that port was so heavily used that it was near guaranteed. I will say that phone makers did make more effort with it though, you could expect to get a lot longer life out of it than many other devices.
I understand every port has a lifespan but there seemed to be some poor decisions made with MicroUSB that made it particularly unsuitable.
It's not though. Its such a ubiquitous and simple connector for dozens of small devices.
Most of my usb connector issues are no worse than usual cable breakage or dust in the charging port. But the simplicity of microusb makes it way easier to repair the cable.
I have noticed that most of the cheap things that would previously come with MicroUSB now come with USB-C instead so I consider MicroUSB to be dead, more or less. Given the failure rate of that connector it's a matter of time until it disappears.
My failures have always been the port itself, they're often poorly anchored and given their use subject to high wear. Replacing the port is a tricky job without quality soldering equipment as well.
Not to say that similar cost cutting won't happen with USB-C of course, I feel there is a huge variation in quality when it comes to MicroUSB ports and obviously designers do better or worse jobs when anchoring ports properly on a PCB etc but in general the construction of USB-C seems more robust to me at least.
Many of the earlier Android phones that came around ~2010-14 had replaceable batteries. Some point after that, the manufacturers suddenly decided to lock everything and make battery irreplaceable. It also started becoming more difficult to even open the box without specialized tools.
Note that the rule is explicitly not about “on-to-go” replaceability, and I absolutely agree with that decision. Sure, let’s make the battery replaceable after the 2-3+ years of service by paying that few 10s of dollars to a repair shop. But I much prefer the manufacturer maximizing the capacity of the battery, as they are still not quite there — making it swappable on the go is likely against that goal.
I only relatively recently (like 3 or 4 years ago) stopped using my S5, it was such a damn good phone and held up pretty well forever, especially with the custom ROM community being an old flagship implies
I loved that phone. It got me into the custom ROM scene, and I swear I spent more time
tinkering with that thing than anything else. Don’t regret a second of it.
I see there is a lot of misinformation on this topic already (not here - other places) with people thinking this is mandating a move back to snap-on batteries like your old Nokia when really it is about just telling manufacturers to not make removing rear covers overly difficult without 'normal' tools and not do stuff like glue batteries down excessively.
I think on the whole this is a good thing but... having seen how few people work on their own equipment that are perfectly serviceable by the user like laptops I'm not sure how many users will actually take advantage of easily removable back panels to replace batteries. Still, it should reduce servicing/repair costs and that's a good thing.
Ironically, I haven't run down a battery since having a replaceable one in a Samsung Galaxy S4. These days something else breaks before the battery does.
Nevertheless, this is an overall good change for the longevity of phones. What I personally hope for is when consumers start using phones longer, which is already happening but I hope for even longer, that support will be extended too.
Having a replaceable battery is nice and all, but without security updates it matters little for actual e-waste.
Ultimately it's not even about the battery, it's about being able to repair your own device. Something that's been bothering a good many people is that it somehow always feels like you don't actually own the device you bought since you're barely able to repair it.
Like the internet cookie laws, good intentions but let's hope it doesn't get in the way of usability too much.