Trolltech GPLs Qtopia Phone Edition

Provataki writes "Trolltech has announced that they are releasing the new version of Qtopia Phone Edition under the GPL along with a port on the FIC Neo1973 smartphone. Trolltech also continues to support Greenphone as a reference platform for mobile development within the company and through its partners. Benoit Schillings, CTO of Trolltech (also of BeOS fame as one of the original Be, Inc. engineers) commented on the news."

QTopia vs OpenMoko

[Aladrin (926209)]

So... At this point, QTopia runs on several phones while OpenMoko only runs on the one they designed. I have to say, I've been planning to buy a neo9173 for a while now, but I'm starting to seriously thinking about re-flashing it with QTopia or just buying a green phone with QTopia. In terms of how many apps will be ported to it, I think QTopia already has a huge advantage since it works on multiple phones already.

As I stated in the other news topic, I want a phone that has Skype and will let me answer with Skype or via cell tower when both ring at once. I use Grand Central to ring both numbers at the same time, and I'd rather have just a single phone to do it with. I think QTopia is likely to offer that more quickly than OpenMoko.

Re:

[Directrix1 (157787)]

OpenMoko runs on other phones already. They designed it to run on anything the user wants it to run on.

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[Aladrin (926209)]

Oh, name a few?

Or perhaps you actually meant that it COULD be ported, should anyone take the time and effort. That's quite a bit different from running on other phones.

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[Directrix1 (157787)]

Well, despite the fact that OpenMoko is using OpenEmbedded which is designed to run on everything it can (Zaurus, Compaq, etc.). I remember reading about people who have put OpenMoko on their phones. Its not selling on any other phones at the moment. And most of the work is going into the FIC Neo 1973, but the OpenMoko platform is a platform designed to be run on other phones. I lurk in the #openmoko IRC channel, and I can't find specific instances of other people using it at the moment. So, I guess I'

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[mrslacker (1122161)]

And a little bit of research is a little different to posting to Slashdot, isn't it?

FWIW http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/Supported_Hardware [openmoko.org]. Of course, on any platform, it's clearly WIP.

In any case, the Greenphone is way too expensive to purchase for personal use:

http://trolltech.com/products/qtopia/greenphone/greenphone_pricing [trolltech.com] ($695)

The user version of the Neo will be around $450 or so - still pricey - but I might be able to justify it. I'm still considering one of the iPhone clones (Cect P168 et al at $1

Re:QTopia vs OpenMoko

[AVee (557523)]

Why Skype? You're buying an opensource phone, you want choice when it comes to who delivers you calls to you, yet you choose to use a closed source VOIP provider?
Seems kind of strange to me. I can understand what you want, I want functionality like that, but I want it useing standard open SIP. Otherwise your just trading one lock-in for the other.

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[Aladrin (926209)]

Because I have, and use, a Skype account.

You know of some cheap service with unlimited calling via a SIP phone? Preferably one that works with clients on all major OSs including Linux, Windows, and OSX?

Or were you just saying that only open source zealots should support open source, and they would never buy a commercial product?

I only care what fulfills my needs, and I'm willing to pay to get it.

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[AVee (557523)]

1 seconds of google usage brought me a list [voipproviderslist.com] of 670 voip provider in the USA. There are plenty (if not most) of Voip providers which are cheaper then skype. There is also is a far wider variety of hard and software which can be used with SIP, you can even set up your own PBX [wikipedia.org] if you like.
There really is no good reason to use a totally closed Voip protocol over SIP. There are a whole lot of reasons not to promote closed communication protocols. I don't even care if you choose to use closed source software, bu

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[Aladrin (926209)]

I realize that, however, I don't have all day to sort through that many and try to find one that will allow me unlimited calls to the US and Canada for under $9/mo, and unlimited net calls for free. The first one I looked at is $15/mo for 500 calls max or $30/mo unlimited. That's not even close.

By the way, did you notice that site uses Skype for their tech support calls? They obviously don't find SIP to be cheaper.

I could indeed set up my own Asterisk system (I have in fact) but I don't feel like keeping

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[mrchaotica (681592)]

I know OpenMoko "runs" on the neo1973, and I assume QTopia "runs" on the Greenphone and whatever else, but are either of them actually usable to make calls yet, in the same way my current proprietary cellphone is?

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[Aladrin (926209)]

Last I heard on the OpenMoko/neo1973, it was usable but unstable, since only the developer phones are out yet. It was not recommended for general use.

How do we choose providers on an open cellphone?

[KWTm (808824)]

Can someone explain how I, the cell phone user, would choose a cell phone service provider myself? Suppose I get some sort of open phone that runs either OpenMoko or QtPhones-a-lot or something. Is there a C library that includes the function dial_this(int phonenum)? Do I stick a SIM card in and just do what I want, treating the open phone like a computer and the SIM card like a modem?

For reference: I bought an unlocked Treo 650 (none of the more advanced models were not available unlocked). Treos are o

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[Aladrin (926209)]

Assuming the phone uses the same network type, it's as simple as just sticking your sim card in. For instance, I bought a Cingular phone a while back that had been unlocked, and I just use it on my T-Mobile account with my sim card. I didn't call them or anything. They don't actually care.

In fact, in europe, locking a phone to a provider is illegal. The last phone I bought was the european version so I didn't have to bother unlocking it. It works just find in the US.

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[Yosho (135835)]

(and Qt is pronounced "cute" by the Trolls, just fyi)

A few months ago, one of the TrollTech's developers came and gave a presentation on Qt to several of the developers at my workplace. Interestingly, apparently the "cute" pronunciation is mostly an invention of their marketing people -- many of their own developers still say "Q T".

GPLv2

[samkass (174571)]

For those too lazy to go read the press release, it's GPLv2, not GPLv3.

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[Brandybuck (704397)]

Besides, on embedded devices like phones, you're likely to run across the occasional patent. There is a lot of industry confusion about the GPLv3 and a lot of companies are deliberately avoiding it.

I'm curious...

[AKAImBatman (238306)]

...if any open source developers will start making Open Hardware phones. With the rise of the cell phone as a complete multimedia platform (a wave to Apple in particular here), the market is ripe for sophisticated embedded hardware of the type that OSS developers have been toying with [opencores.org] for some time now.

Obviously, the biggest hurdle is FCC regulations. You can't actually install and run the radio without an FCC license and/or a shielded area to test radio communications from. I don't know what's involved in being licensed for public airwaves (especially for development purposes), but even finding a mini-tower to install in your "Faraday garage" that you're sure properly emulates a true cell tower could be difficult.

Hmm... unless someone OSSed that first? An OSS cell network? (Yeah, right.) ;-)

Re:I'm curious...

[richlv (778496)]

hmm. actually, the device the article is about - Neo1973 - is pretty much open.
http://wiki.openmoko.org/wiki/Neo1973_Hardware [openmoko.org]

few things are closed for quite valid reasons, but hopefully with time this will have a chance to improve.

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[tchuladdiass (174342)]

Well, your best bet if you are putting together your own cell phone design would be to grab one of those GM862 GSM modules they have at sparkfun.com. You address them via a standard rs232 interface (I think some of them have usb also), and issue standard GSM AT commands for communications; ie. open a serial connection, issue "ATDphone-number" and the cellular connection is then made, routing the audio in/out to seperate audio pins on the module. These audio pins you then connect to the line in / line out

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[by Anonymous Coward]

The polling issue described in that blog is not a restriction in Qtopia, but a workaround for 2.4 kernels because inotify support is missing. The kernel from OpenMoko is a 2.6 kernel so if your toolchain is configured properly, this will be detected and you get the inotify implementation instead of the polling implementation.

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[somersault (912633)]

Don't feed the trolls!

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[gravos (912628)]

Sorry, I just modded your comment -1 Trolltech.

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[mrchaotica (681592)]

If you already have the phone, it meant you bought a phase 1 device, about which the site clearly states (in bold, on the front page) that "currently it is not suitable for users" [openmoko.org]. I'm sorry, but your complaints are entirely your own fault.

mod parent up Re:FIC problems

[speculatrix (678524)]

to prevent grandparent's FUD from confusing the issue

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[Chatterton (228704)]

As mrchaotica (681592) says the v1 is "currently it is not suitable for users", and I would personally add "and for high level application developers who need functional and stable stacks to work on". This is why I wait for the V2, and perhaps a little more for USB2 & multi touch screen. I have a lot of ideas for this phone/plateform, but I don't want to fight with unstable APIs and to make a stable phone call :) (Actually I don't want to struggle with the telephony part of the phone except from the poi