Thread: What's the best Handheld gnu/linux machine for 2016?
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kyllerbuzcut is offline kyllerbuzcut
2017-03-02 , 13:32
Posts: 345 | Thanked: 117 times | Joined on Jan 2010 @ uk
#619
Originally Posted by juiceme View Post
You're partly correct in your posting, but I disagree with this;



The real bloody reasons for current trend of buttonless portable devices are many, first which I can think of;
  • Cost of localization; If you have a device with HWKBD you need to have dozens of different models for each corner of the world to suit the established layout and the "special characters" of each country.
  • The non-latin languages, most important being chinese! It is a real pain to input such local alphabets on a non-virtual keyboard, there is a very steep learning curve associated.
  • Cost of manufacturing, even without any localization a keyboard contains mechanical moving parts which makes it way more expensive to make than a flat seet of glass.
  • Reliability and guarantee issues; when you have moving pieces in a device it will create way more returns than a featureless box which you only can beak the front-facing glass.

The ugly truth is that there will never again exist a HWKBD device as an affordable alternative for a mobile device meant for the masses. Ever.
Yes - interesting points.
Costs would quickly escalate with HWKBs, but then again they could just bump up the price....bit then that takes away some of the mass market appeal if it would cost too much.

But ... The GPD Win can do it - and is less than £300.
ok, it's not a phone, but the basic idea/shape/style of device is all there.
When people pay £700 or £800 for the latest iphone, £300 doesn't seem a lot. I don't know what sort of hardware issues (if any) have been
reported on those devices, but I vet those buttons get a lot of mashing, judging by the type f device they are suposed to be (handheld gaming devices), and I haven't seen complai ts or anything on forums. Usually people shout loudest about faults. I also think the n900 keyboard worked great, and mine still works perfectly - so it creating something with a keyboard shouldn't be as hard as the manufacturers might say.

Localised keyboards would require lits of diferent models, which, yes, is a pain in the *** - The only way around that I can think of is if the keyboard was then some kind of clip on acessory. Another pain for the manufacturers, but how do keyboard makers manage now? KBs are sold as acesories on winndows surface devices, and other tablets etc. This problen can turn into an opportunity to sell accesories.... although likely more cost to us

I still think the excuses coming from device makers are lame. They are lazily churning out flat rectangles. The business model works because people are buying them. People are buying them because there are no other options. If there were other options then they likely would give them a try.

What is the first thing a lot of people do when they get a tablet though?
...look for a case / keyboard for it.

The problem is there is no space on the bean counters' balance sheet for "likely", "might" , "possibly" etc The immediately profitable thing to do is to keep makong the cheap rectangles and selling the accesories.

Once in a while though - someone comes along with a new idea or new device. A risk is taken, it works and then 6 months later everyone is copying it and continues for the next 10 years. I am just hoping the next risk taken by a manufacturer works in our favour and produces something we can work with
 

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