Jolla wish list - reality check

Some time ago, I wrote about my wishes for the upcoming Jolla device. Now that phone is on the market and has finally arrived at my home. Time to check what's in store. The original text is written in italic, normal text is the updated content.

Battery

  • for me a long lasting battery would make a really smart phone. You started with a full battery in the morning and need a power supply at 5pm? Not smart! I’m not quite sure that they can achieve the extraordinary here but hey, let me dream my dreams. One week would be great and everything more would be (and I rarely use this word) awesome. when the TOH bug is fixed, I get something about 2,5 days out of that phone. Of course the theoretical data reads better, but I tend to use a phone and not leave it in pure stand by. Could be better but isn't bad either. If there will be an other half with wireless charging I won't care anymore. ~As long as I don't go on a longer trip far from power outlets~

Openness

  • Every owner of a phone (or any hardware) should be able to with it what he wants. If I want to write software for that thing, it must be possible without any fees, payments or artificial hoops to jump through. check!
  • No limits for developers, which means: a developer should be able to use each and every resource of that phone. That collides with security but I think that can be managed to a certain degree. Not 100% sure yet, but close to check!
  • Secure way to opt in for all kinds of access levels to the device (see security). So far a check! But that might change in future.
  • Open Source compatible shop / license model(s). check!
  • Filesystem access. If you want to be productive, you can't live in an app-centric ecosystem. You often have data, that is used from different apps. There needs to be some common file space where all apps can share data. Blackberry did that and even Microsoft. Again, developers should actively opt in for it. You can access the filesystem and there are already free 3rd party apps to support the user doing so. check!
  • External storage. If I want to connect a USB flashdrive, harddrive or whatever, it simply should be possible, it is my device. But it should be consistent in use: many Android phones mount external devices in different paths: a usability nightmare. dunno
  • Micro SD card slot (maybe in #theotherhalf) No, it's in the body of the phone, just behind the other half. Class10 capable of course or even better: UHS-II check! But I don't know the max. supported standard.
  • Network printers from any manufacturers should be accessible. nope
  • PDF export from any document. nope
  • shell (bash or whatever) access (see security) and therefore ssh, scp and all that stuff. check!
  • possible shop alternatives without rooting the device. check!
  • Bluetooth in every possible aspect. There is bluetooth support of course but not in every aspect - so nope, not yet?
  • Regular security updates, should be no problem in a Linux RPM packaged environment check!
  • Predictable product lifecycle. Oh boy, I hate it when a product gets artificially crippled (can you say Apple?), just to sell the next generation. If people are happy with a product they will come again, no force needed. Only time will tell.

Connectivity

  • OpenVPN. partially, install from developer mode, GUI missing.
  • syncml support. Wouldn't it be great to sync your address book and calendar with non-cloudy classic applications? nope.
  • Cross platform cross browser bookmark sync. nope!
  • Cross platform address book sync. nope, not yet?
  • Cross platform calendar sync. nope, not yet?
  • iCal nope, not yet? Seems to be on the roadmap now.
  • CalDav nope, not yet? Seems to be on the roadmap now.

Security

  • PGP mail nope, being discussed at the developer mailing list.
  • Mr. and Mrs. Average need a secure phone. If you want many customers, you simply can't lean back and babble something from Linux and command line freedom. If a geek can do with that thingy what he wants, that is OK, because he certainly knows what the consequences are. But a regular user does not care, does not want to care and to be honest: why must or should he? So we need a sandbox. Yes, your eyes are alright. Most apps would do pretty fine inside a sandbox so why give up the security that comes along with it? But I claimed that I want an open phone, so every developer should be able to configure his app for a wider or deeper access. And if he does so, that should be clearly visible in the Shop. This way you have at least a chance to think about the entitlements, an application asks for. A calendar app that needs to install Kernel modules is kind of suspicious. nope. At least to in the way I intended. But that does not mean that it is a insecure phone. There is an interesting discussion going on together.jolla.com.
  • Secure Shop. Customers need at least one trustworthy shop where they can buy their apps. This is a big challenge because it binds resources. And it ain't 100% secure. Just look at Apples Appstore. How many apps had tethering inside so far? So mar there are only free apps in the store. They are mostly open source but they could be closed source. So in theory there could be bogus apps in the store. But if you think about it: where is the difference to any other kind of online store or download location? Or even the operating system. At some point you just have to trust them.
  • Easy backup of all the data on the device check!
  • No enforcing of the cloud check!

Usability

  • sophisticated on screen keyboard. Provide some virtual cursor keys, so that a user can easily place the cursor. Fumbling with a magnifier is a no-go. Nope, that one could be better, IMHO.
  • A nice way to organize browser bookmarks - maybe that's a good idea for an extra app. Nope, not yet?
  • A shop system where you can actually find something. Should be easy? Reality shows that it's not (so far). There are not enough apps yet to answer that question.
  • A shop system where you can try before you buy. nope, but you must not pay so far :-D

Apps

  • Dropbox integration. check!
  • KeePass client. Yes, Ownkeepass in the app store.
  • BTSync No client yet. You could install the ARM binary from developer mode but that would run the whole time, IMHO not fitting for a smart phone. Those two are the most important ones for me. Dropbox is cloud enough (well, after knowing about the NSA I am not so sure about that one), KeePass is simply crucial!
  • IRC chat There is a native IRC client in the app store.

The software is still marked as Beta and that's okay. Jolla lacks of resources (as in manpower) and thus will not provide solutions for the missing bits and pieces in short time (if at all, it's my wish list). But they have provided 3 (sic!) OS updates in one month, even during the christmas holidays when running with a reduced staff. To make it clear: this is a great and usable phone! It just needs some polish to bring shine to the diamond!

P.S.: If I write he, she is also included ;-)