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Wednesday January 9, 2008
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This is the triumph and the tragedy of open source. At CES this year, I got to spend what would have been some quality time with the new OpenMoko FreeRunner, the Messiah of open-source smartphones. The only problem: the darn thing doesn't work. It has a Potemkin interface with a bunch of dead buttons, periodically drops to the command line, and crashes.
This is all in line with the open source mentality, which is to keep the product development process open and public. Which is great. But we've been hearing about OpenMoko for a year now, and they seem to have fallen into a common open-source trap: when, exactly, is the software project going to be finished? Later this year, they say, which makes it a year late.
Trivia and another pic after the jump.
I did get a little scoop on why it's called the "FreeRunner." Apparently, OpenMoko's Steven Mosher was watching YouTube videos of Parcour, the French sport which involves urban obstacle courses. The English-language term for Parcour is "free-running," according to Mosher, and it's a good metaphor for what OpenMoko is trying to do: letting people vault over fences, climb up walls, and run along the roofs of the wireless industry. Okay, guys, that's great - now how about a product that works?
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January 29, 2008 9:25 PM
The FreeRunner at Least has to be able to measure up, if clone, the iPhone. It has to have a seamless interface that makes one oooh and ahhhh.
Then, have a camera that you can do whatever you please with. Zoom, take pictures on the fly, take video, etc.
As of right now, it has a lot of potential, and no promise.
October 9, 2008 8:03 AM
I disagree. making peeople ooh and ahh over shiney uselessness is silly. making it highly functional and work as a business and productivity tool is far more important.
if I can use this to replace the blackberry and expensive blackberry service I know of millions of small businessmen that would buy it in a heartbeat.
It needs to appeal to the educated technology crowd, not the easily distracted young highschooler and college student.
the round fisher-price toy shape needs to go. and they really need to work on making cellphone use to be 101% reliable and THEN work on the other stuff. This is where my blackjack and blackberry fall down. they can become wacky and not recieve calls. That is unacceptable.