OpenMoko details pricing, availability for Neo1973

End users are still in for a bit of a wait, but tinkerers, devs, and 1337 hax0rz should soon be able to get their hands on FIC's Linux-based Neo1973 handset. The device, getting thrown together courtesy of the OpenMoko project with the goal of open-sourcing both the phone and the platform, will drop first in $200 "Hacker's Lunchbox" trim (for the aforementioned hackers) late this month featuring a seemingly bombproof plastic box to hold your GPLed bundle of joy and its dev tools. This fall -- September, if OpenMoko's prediction holds up -- the retail version will follow on for $350 with a variety of bundled accessories (though not the pictured car mount, which'll run an extra $75), faster processor, and possibly a cam or integrated WiFi. Why not both, FIC? Go crazy!

[Via LinuxDevices.com]

[offstump @ Mar 3rd 2007 10:55AM]

Looks a whole lot better in silver/black than orange. Anyone seen any figures on the euro/uk price for one of these?

[Mr. Picklesworth @ Mar 3rd 2007 11:55AM]

Yah, that colour scheme looks a lot nicer. I'm still not a fan of the rounded top and bottom because it gives that dreaded effect of "The screen is smaller than it needs to be!". This is not really helped by how most of the space within that rounded area is consumed by logos and an enormous hole.
I guess there is still a lot more screen than there would be if they had put buttons - or a crippled miniature keyboard - on there, so I guess I really shouldn't complain.

Anyhow, it is a nice little gadget. I may get one just for its abilities as an open PDA that doesn't need to be dragged through ugly / dangerous hacks to get there :)
Then again, since there is no WiFi at the moment, I may wait until they pull out another. Either way, I'm going to pay close attention to these.

[dfrag @ Mar 3rd 2007 12:10PM]

Moko sounds nasty. In spanish (at least Mexican-spanish), Moko, or Moco is booger. Snot.

Eww.

[ethana2 @ Mar 3rd 2007 5:11PM]

Finally, ditching that old, hideous design.

It better have USB 2.0. I assume that's what that is on the side. I hope it can charge through it. Does it have PC-side software to go with it yet?

If you had a touchscreen for your PC, you could have a complete software version of it. Plug it in, and bam! There it is, fully interactive, on your full size monitor.

And about the RAM and stuff, well... I don't know... I think the memory should be separate and fully extensible. Same with the battery. We need a USB 3.0 standard.
Hey! USB 3.0! There's an idea! Anyone want to help me with that?
[e-mail]

[SpeedEvil @ Mar 3rd 2007 6:47PM]

Several inaccuracies.
From the top.
The initial price is $350. The hackers lunchbox is $200.
The final release price has not been announced.
The USB is 1 - at least for the initial release.
Whether the public version will have USB2 along with a faster CPU has not been revealed.
The battery is easily replacable, and is compatible with the Nokia BL-C5, which is on ebay for $several.

The software at the release date later this month will be in a very basic state.
It will be a simple touchscreen phone, with little else actually working.
As time progresses towards September, and more applications get written, it'll become slowly more usable for users.
You can actually run the software on your PC at the moment - it's just that there is very little of it. (and the themes are made for 480*640, not larger)
There is 64M internal flash, 128M internal RAM, and a slot for a micro-SD.
The initial release will be delivered from a drop-shipper in europe, for those in europe - hopefully it'll be $350 in your local currency.

http://wiki.openmoko.org/ for more information, screenshots of the current state, dissasembly pictures, ...

[yayikillu @ Mar 4th 2007 1:13AM]

i want so much but i have no money

[SpeedEvil @ Mar 4th 2007 1:18PM]

Several inaccuracies.
From the top.
The initial price is $350. The hackers lunchbox is $200.
The final release price has not been announced.
The USB is 1 - at least for the initial release.
Whether the public version will have USB2 along with a faster CPU has not been revealed.
The battery is easily replacable, and is compatible with the Nokia BL-C5, which is on ebay for $several.

The software at the release date later this month will be in a very basic state.
It will be a simple touchscreen phone, with little else actually working.
As time progresses towards September, and more applications get written, it'll become slowly more usable for users.
You can actually run the software on your PC at the moment - it's just that there is very little of it. (and the themes are made for 480*640, not larger)
There is 64M internal flash, 128M internal RAM, and a slot for a micro-SD.
The initial release will be delivered from a drop-shipper in europe, for those in europe - hopefully it'll be $350 in your local currency.

http://wiki.openmoko.org/ for more information, screenshots of the current state, dissasembly pictures, ...

[steve @ Mar 4th 2007 3:42PM]

are you or anybody out there aware that mOKO means snot in spanish? imagine a phone called openscum or openflem....33 percent of themarket will have a laugh as thatmany are hispanic...What about opendrek for the jewish buyers?

[sean @ Jul 10th 2007 5:08PM]

Thirty three percent of the open cellphone market speaks spanish? Check your stats.

[PeteCresswell @ Sep 26th 2007 10:07AM]

Somebody should probably write in some kind of phonetic search to SOPs for naming new products.

OTOH Ford did OK with the Thunderbird - which I understand to mean "toilet" in Canada. And Bridgestone - whose logo is "BS" - is still around, although I'm not sure they have the same logo....

[Dave @ Sep 25th 2007 5:58PM]

Now if they would just add the Wifi AND DVB-T digital TV decoder on board so we could do interactive TV things too. See http://www.gsmarena.com/lg_u900-reviews-1553p2.php for the LG900.

[changzer @ Apr 20th 2008 10:41AM]

wifi would be sweet