The new fairphone 5 came out, it looks cool but the price is really, really high…
If it’s a phone that can really last 10 years it could be good, but is that true? Is it worth it? I could get the one with /e/os from Murena because i want a degoogled phone with a bootloader locked, but is it usable on a daily basis?
If you’re not a power user, then it’ll probably work fine for several years. And it will be cheap and easy to replace the battery in 3-5 years when it starts to degrade, or replace the screen if you drop it. Not sure if a full 10 year lifespan is realistic, though.
And you’re right, the price is high, but it’s not supposed to be an affordable phone. The stated goal of the Fairphone is to be better for the environment and better for people than most other electronics. So, they have to do things like use sustainable materials and source parts from places that treat their workers well. All of that means that Fairphones will NEVER be as cheap as other brands. Because doing things right costs more.
We’ll probably never be allowed Fairphone in USA, which I’ve been eying since before launch. Curiosity got the better of me anyway; it’s still cheaper than iPhone https://eu.mobgsm.com/mobile/apple-iphone-14-pro-max-price-in-europe
Do you not count the Murena partnership? I’ve been considering a Fairphone since I saw this.
I don’t know enough about Murena to speculate, let alone comment
Wasn’t the FP4 launched in the US recently?
I had to search, and so it was! https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/5/23783714/murena-fairphone-4-us-release-date-price-sustainability-repair
It’s still currently not budgetable, but it’s closer! Thanks for great news!
Why did you think it wouldn’t be allowed in USA?
Honestly? Because politicians and citizens alike would use it as a rallying cry, label it “European soshulist garbage.” Ffs, they even aoc and Bernie claim they’re socialists. They aren’t.
I bought the FP3, then upgraded it to an FP3+ when the camera broke. Never had as much fun with a phone before or since. It has been my daily driver for years and it did everything well enough, if a bit slow. My friends either get new phones or use them despite visible damage because they can’t fix them. Now I ordered the FP5 to have the 3+ as a backup and test setup and I am confident I will use the FP5 for 3-6 years again :)
Fairphones are like an odd car: There are sleeker, faster, cheaper and maybe just better alternatives around. However you still like it and just learn where to hit it with a hammer when it starts making funny noises. If you can afford it and like odd devices, it’s for you.
Don’t hit your phone with a hammer please . 🤓
You can’t tell me what to do!!!
…but it kinda makes sense, so I won’t hit it with a hammer 😐
Had the fair phone 4 since launch running e/os, then there was an update that was rinsing the battery so I went back to stock android. Performance just wasn’t good on stock so i got fed up and got an s3 ultra. No more privacy but never had a better phone. Now the fair phone is just collecting dust; I like the idea of it but just needs a bit more juice
Depends on what you’re using the phone for. Personally, my usage isn’t very demanding, so having a phone that’s going to have security updates and a replaceable battery will probably let me use the phone for 5+ years.
I probably won’t keep the phone for 10 years, but it means I can upgrade on my schedule, not just because some company decided for me.
I can hear consumers now, “ But I want muh planned obsolescence!”
I’ve had a Fairphone 4 for just under a year running CalyxOS, and I am very happy with it. Not sure when / if CalyxOS will be available for FP5, but unless they have locked down anything, I don’t see why that shouldn’t happen. If I understand your post correctly, it is already available with e/OS/?
Maybe the specs are underwhelming, but with the FP4, it does not affect me the slightest based on my use case. Phones are more than good enough already. I do not play any games on my phone. Camera could be better - maybe it is on FP5? Is it the perfect phone? Nope, but at the moment, I think our choices are too limited if you want privacy and repairability. Supporting a company that pushes these kinds of phone is also a reason I went with this phone.
Swapable batteries are nice - I’ve not made use of it yet, but I am planning on getting one or two spare batteries for travel to keep in a printed case. In the EU, this will be mandatory in the future, but first form 2027. Other than that, I am happy with the ability to buy spare parts if something breaks. I can’t see myself ever buying something that is deliberately unrepairable again when there is no reason it should be. I don’t mind the lack of 3.5mm-port, which I know irritates a lot of people. If you swear to this, I can understand that this is disappointing. There exists an adapter, but my experience with these kind of adapters is that they quickly wear out. That was my experience with the iPhone and Apple’s own adapters at least. I burned through four in 1-2 years.
Running a Fairphone 4 with IodéOS (another de-Googled privacy focused Android) for close to two years now and I agree that it’s a capable phone which doesn’t limit myself in any way.
As you mentioned the biggest downside is the camera, which apparently has something to do with the firmware.
Edit: regarding the headphone situation: I’m using Austrian Audio (=former AKG engineering team) Hi-X25BT headphones, which are noticeably better than pods or cheap headphones and have been running well over a year now. They come with both (mini-)jack to USB-C and USB-C to USB-C cables, but I haven’t tried the latter yet.
I believe that the price is reasonable overall: it has good specs and now that FP is an established brand you know it won’t go out of business and support will last. /e/OS has become good enough lately to be reliable to daily drive (it requires some initial adjustment, but nothing to be worried about).
Also, they are phones that withhold their value in the secondary market: a used FP3+ on ebay costs more than 400€ and it had a launch price of 439€, so you can easily sell them for a good price if you ever change your mind about owning one.
The only thing that makes me hesitant to buy one is the fact that now the EU is pushing a lot of consumer friendly laws, like mandatory USB-C, replaceable batteries, extended software support and so on… So in two or three years the smartphone market might offer more high-end products that are long lasting and have a more accessible price tag. It only depends on how much time can you wait.Edit: added links to sources
A second-hand phone is always worthier
No.
No headphone jack, no buy. It’s not a question of whether a headphone jack is useful to you, it’s just the principle of it - there’s no good reason to remove it (especially for the asking price of FP5), and more importantly, it goes against what the Fairphone stands for, IMO. I can understand if it were some other profit-driven company making a shrewd business decision, but for Fairphone to do it, seems very unfair to me.
“This phone has a port I’m not going to use & I’m angry out of morals”
I’m still on a CRT because most new TV don’t have AVI for some reason, I convert AVI to HDMI on my CRT but its about the morals.
Those legacy connectors (AV, SCART, S-Video, RF Modulators etc.) have had a superior replacement with no compromises though, HDMI.
The 3.5mm jack hasn’t really had a viable replacement IMO, and to be honest I don’t think it needs one. Personally I use bluetooth headphones when I’m out, usually switching it off in shopping environments (see #1 below) but indoors everything is 3.5mm.
My main problems with the omission of the 3.5mm jack are…
- privacy: Beacon trackers can follow you through a store by monitoring the bluetooth packets between your phone and headphones
- Limited spectrum space: if you’ve been on public transport where everyone is wearing BT headphones, the signal is terrible. Newer versions of BT are much better at frequency hopping compared to the old ones, but it’s still not a great listening experience
- interference: retrofitting/replacing a perfectly good sound system just to add Bluetooth capabilities isn’t realistic for everyone. Most of the retrofit BT recievers add unnecessary interference to a sound setup, and this gets worse if you need a longer cable to put the aftermarket reciever somewhere to get a better BT signal for your phone
- dongles: they’re a solution, however IMO it’s a bit of a janky one that puts unnecessary strain on your charging port when you’re out and about. They also may consume more battery life (external ADC via USB, if your device/headphones/dongle does not support amplifying audio directly over the C port) and even more jank when the headphone cable is weighing down the dongle. In something like a car, or maybe home too, these dongles are OK, but they’re a non starter for people who like to go out and about.
My biggest issue though is the planned obselecence stuff. The tiny li-ion batteries in the buds being pushed by manufacturers as a “3.5mm replacement” are likely going to get their recharge cycles rinsed out with frequent usage, leading the consumer to buy new buds every 2 years, just like with phones. It’s really disappointing.
if only USB C headphones existed, also 3.5mm jacks aren’t prefect and tend to snap and get warn out quite quickly.
But like your comment is completely beside the point, your allowed to want a headphone jack and u can freely dictate your purchasing habits due to that. But it isn’t anything to do with Morals
True, worn out 3.5mm jacks are very annoying.
I’m in no way trying to imply they’re perfect - IMO there’s always room for improvement. I just don’t think a low tolerance 10 gigabit, 100W capable connector is the right choice to replace a port that gets a lot of abuse.
I did get a bit carried away in my response though tbh, I did not notice you were focused on the morals part - I agree a connector jack is not a moral issue
I just double checked OP’s post (now edited) and couldn’t see anything related to morals though, unless they’ve removed it?
yea original comment included something along the lines of “im not going to buy it even if i don’t need a 3.5mm jack, just out of morals”
There is a good reason to remove it. Especially for a company like fairphone. Why waste resources and money into making a redundant component (USB-C can do audio, also the majority of people have switched to wireless audio) when you’re trying to make a planet-conscious product?
There is no good faith argument that can be made for the removal of the headphone jack. Companies removed it to sell overpriced wireless headphones.
They said it was due to size, but new phones are quite chunky these days so that’s not true. Waterproofing? Can be done, many phones have waterproofing and a headphone jack.
Costs? Come on it’s a very simple, very old, plastic bit.
And sustainability? “planet-conscious”? You must be kidding. It’s way better to use regular headphones than the wireless pieces of crap with batteries and an amplifier and a bluetooth receiver in them.Well good luck then. Because enough of us have absolutely no problem with using the usbc or Bluetooth. I rarely even listen to music anymore anyway so it’s not something I use.
Companies removed it to sell overpriced wireless headphones.
Of course, I’m not denying this. That still doesn’t negate my point about audio jacks being redundant ports.
It’s way better to use regular headphones than the wireless pieces of crap with batteries and an amplifier and a bluetooth receiver in them.
Yes, and those regular headphones CAN be plugged into phones without headphone jack via the USB-C port
Maybe an unpopular opinion, but I think phones without a headphone jack should have a second USB C port instead.
I can get behind this
I miss the simplicity of plugging in something that worked reliably well 100% of the time tho
it’s not a redundant component at all. USB-C doesn’t carry analogue audio. You need an external DAC to convert that digital signal to analogue to make it usable. You can’t plug your headphones into a USB-C port.
Basically you need to buy a 10$ dongle to make it work. How hard is that?
I bought one, tried it out: only works while screen is on, also bad audio quality. I didn’t even bought it online, but in a store. I want my jack back :(
It’s not hard. It’s wasteful and unnecessary. It means you can’t charge your phone and listen to music at the same time. There are no advantages to removing the headphone jack
My FP4 lasts two days on one charge, and charges fully in about 30 minutes. In most cases it shouldn’t be an issue finding a 15-30 minute interval within two days where you don’t listen to music in order to charge. Not all arguments against the removal are equally good, in my opinion.
However, I agree that dongles are wasteful. I burned through many such 3.5mm to Lightning on my previous iPhone. They had the durability of a snowman in Summer, and also cost about 10 bucks each for the official one. Since Fairphone claims sustainability as the main reason to remove the port, I’d love to see an actual calculation on the impact of broken ports vs broken dongles. I think the dongles will lose.
majority of people have switched to wireless audio
Citation needed. Also, just because people have “switched” to wireless doesn’t mean that they don’t have a pair of old wired headphones still lying around somewhere, unused, eventually turning into e-waste. Also, I suspect a significant portion of Fairphone users are the kind who’d still hold on to wired headphones.
when you’re trying to make a planet-conscious product?
The first rule in making a planet-conscious product is the RRR - Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. If people already have wired headphones, then the most eco-friendly solution would be to enable users to continue to use them, and not force them to buy even more new products. And as a manufacturer, there’s practically no shortage of 3.5mm jacks around (plenty of old devices where the parts can be recycled from), and there’s almost no complexity involved in wiring up or making circuitry for something that’s been a standard for several decades.
Also, just because people have “switched” to wireless doesn’t mean that they don’t have a pair of old wired headphones still lying around somewhere, unused, eventually turning into e-waste.
Another use-case for the headphone jack: I use it to connect my phone to various audio devices, e. g. E-drums for practising playback or the practice room PA tolisten to demos. Nearly all professional equipment uses wired connections.
Not to mention that unlike the wireless buds, headphones I used ten years ago and sat on a shelf that whole time will all still work 100% of the time. Show me wireless battery powered crap that can claim that
Citation needed.
I don’t have a source ready with me to back up my statement. But at least here in India, almost everyone I see in public transportation use wireless earbuds. Usually I look like the odd one out for wearing wired earphones.
If people already have wired headphones, then the most eco-friendly solution would be to enable users to continue to use them, and not force them to buy even more new products.
You absolutely don’t need to go out and buy a new headphones if your phone doesn’t have an audio jack. Just buy a dongle. Yes, I’m aware that this is worse for the planet than just including an audio jack in the phone. But if you buy a dongle once, you don’t have to worry about your future phones not having a headphone jack. So in the long run, this move is better for the planet.
How is buying a dongle you shouldn’t need better for the planet than a phone manufacturer providing a headphone jack??? The phone already has a DAC in it, they literally only need to include the actual port
almost everyone I see in public transportation use wireless earbuds. Usually I look like the odd one out for wearing wired earphones.
your sample is incredibly biased, you’re taking 1 demographic and assuming everyone acts like that. Go into a recording studio and see how many wireless headphones they use, Go to a concert and see how they are driving their speakers. Just because a lot of consumers use wireless earphones in an environment that doesn’t lend itself to good audio (like public transport), doesn’t mean most people are using it.
How is buying a dongle you shouldn’t need better for the planet than a phone manufacturer providing a headphone jack??
Did you even read my reply fully?
Go into a recording studio and see how many wireless headphones they use
Recording studios also don’t use a smartphone to do their work.
Even if we do assume that the majority of the world still uses wired earphones, it still makes sense to remove the audio jack for reasons I have explained already.
You haven’t provided a single good reason. Why are you fighting this so hard? Samsung isn’t gonna kiss you.
Ah yes, it is totally unfair to expect consumers who prefer wired audio to make a one time purchase of a 10$ dongle. Instead phone manufacturers should continue to ship every single phone with an audio jack for years to come. And anybody who says it is fine to remove the audio jack because those who prefer wired audio can use a dongle is obviously a samsung shill.
deleted by creator
Removed by mod
On the GrapheneOS side, a used Pixel 5a js the last good phone… both size and a headphone jack. Sucks a lot.
Removed by mod
I like a headphone jack and definitely prefer to have one but even to me that’s a really fucking stupid comment!
Personally, I don’t want a huge hole in my phone and case that I’m never going to take advantage of. Wireless headphones with noise cancelling and such are far more convenient when outside than the open backs I use at my computer. The DAC in most desktops suck so I use a USB-C to 3.5mm anyways, makes it really easy to plug into my phone if I ever needed.
Just my opinion for my situation, but I would honestly rather buy the same phone without a headphone jack than one that did.
i took a chance with the FP4 and bought it even though it has no 3,5mm jack. i absolutely hate it. if there’s no headphone jack on the next model, i will have to switch to nokia or shiftphone.
Regarding the “no good reason to remove it,” my understanding was that Samsung opted to remove it to increase the water resistance rating. Unfortunately the fairphone 4 only has an IP54 rating, so that’s certainly not the case here.
Apparently they address the headphones jack question in an article on fairphone’s support page.
Not arguing with you btw, but the excuses they’ve provided are all BS. For starters, IP rating isn’t really an issue - the Pixel 5a, Galaxy A52, Xperia 5 V, Zenfone 10 - all have a headphone jack, and a minimum of IP65, even going up to IP68 (Pixel 5a), so that really can’t be an excuse. Also, cost can’t be an excuse either, considering the examples I’ve provided consists of both budget and premium phones.
The only answer that makes sense here is GREED. Nothing but plain and good ol capitalism at work.
Solid agree.
The Galaxy S5 from ~7 years ago was submersible, had a headphone jack, and was pretty damn slim.
Any points made by manufacturers now for 3.5mm removal IMO are just excuses in my eyes. A supply chain issue is the only reason I’ll (selfishly) accept.
S5 also had a removable back cover and battery.
I think Air Pods netted Apple more money than Spotify’s annual revenue or some shit.
Which is why Samsung gave up after making fun of Apple.
For some time, air pods would have been a top 20 company on their own or something like that.
The new one is definitely too expensive for me. I have a phone that I’m not really happy with, but I’m keeping it for as long as possible. After that, I’m probably going to look for a used fairphone. I don’t see myself going with another completely unrepairable device.
I’m happy with mine.
The price feels really high, you’re right. For me, it makes me think of why the rest is the phones are not more expensive. If FP5 costs this much with such underwhelming specs, but with a truly fair supply chain, then all other players must be cutting a lot of corners. I will must likely be getting a FP5 because of the statement. Just hope the camera is good enough that I can live with it for 10 years…
then all other players must be cutting a lot of corners
I mean, I’m pretty sure other phone companies use child labor to harvest the raw materials necessary to produce their devices, so yeah, they are screwing over tons of people.
Ingl, I don’t see the difference between phone cameras anymore. I mean, I do when I look very closely, but if I want a really proper photo, I use a standalone camera. (Or ask people who own lenses twice as expensive as my phone on their own.)
I suspect the question isn’t just how sharp or high res or low distortion or whatever your pictures are, but how fast will the camera open and take a picture and how many of those pictures are good enough given the range of lighting and distance people want quick pics of.
If you miss a lot of shots because the camera is too slow or crashes or the files are blurry, text unreadable, out of focus, badly exposed… failures of any kind, then the camera is not usable. That’s still not uncommon in phones.
Lots of people are starting to figure out how useful being able to take a picture at a moment’s notice is.
Reminder that a used phone with a nonstock rom is more environmentally conscious.
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. Some other bloke skipped the first step, which is why the used phone makes sense.
deleted by creator
We are on a sub. I think fairphone is a good thing, but typically people are here because they are techie and can do a Rom swap.
Actually, when you buy a Fairphone directly from them, they offer you to send them your old phone to be refurbished and reused, I believe in 3rd world countries.
Edit: Here’s the direct link: https://shop.fairphone.com/recycle
It’s interesting that they include phone brands like MobiWire and Blackberry, but not Google.
Thats actually pretty great.
I don’t see it as being “out”. The webpage only has a preorder option and I’ll never preorder anything. I’d wait and see what the general consensus is before buying anything. Things can look good on paper. All that being said, if it’s actually decent then it seems like a pretty good deal.
Do not buy preloaded LineageOS or /e/ OS phones or any Android phones without proper Verified Boot support and firmware updates. These devices also have no way for you to check whether they’ve been tampered with.> from privacyguides.org
Removed by mod
That isn’t an official GrapheneOS channel, it’s called PrivacyPhones. I doubt it’s a person involved with GrapheneOS trying to spread FUD or something. You could always go make questions on the official chatrooms.
Removed by mod
In theory,yes.
I won’t buy it as my whole charging environment is wireless these days and the FP5 has no wireless charging.
Rolling back of course would be possible but annoying, especially for phone I would use for 5 years possibly.
It won’t be as good as native hardware support, but you can buy a device to add wireless charging. It plugs into the phone USB-C and has a short flexible cable leading into a thin (1 mm maybe) wireless charger receiver that can fit inside a phone case
Yeah, had one of these for previous phones,but most don’t fit properly with cases and if you need to properly charge the phone you are always fiddling around. Was not really satisfied with them.
Ive been wondering what stops people to mod their phone for wireless charging
From the tear downs I’ve seen with wireless charging it’s actually a pretty sizable and complicated addition to just slap into a phone that’s already had it’s space optimized. I’m sure there’s work arounds, but with so many various models and configurations I doubt you could create a one-size-fits all mod that would be popular/easy to implement.
Fair, but with how moduler the fairphone’s are, i kinda expected somebody to have made it possible :p
