Thank you for 2.5 years!
I’ve never had a phone that had as many problems as the FP 3+ and I only ever bought used phones before that.
On average, every half a year I had such serious problems that I could not use the FP at all or only to a very limited extent.
The problems that occurred always came out of nowhere (I didn’t drop my phone, nor were there any other external factors that could have been the cause). Other Android devices were not affected, so it was due to internal/firmware causes.
FP’s support in these situations was always fast and good, which I must emphasize positively!
Nevertheless, it is now no longer viable and, above all, financially feasible for me to fix the current problem. In addition, there is reason to believe that the FP will break again after a few months.
It is a pity that Fairphone cannot keep its promised ideology and promises!
I will now go back to buying good used devices from other brands.
Ah! The big issue
The ideology is an everlasting commitment to fairtrade not an everlasting phone, though the word ‘sustainability’ is, in my view, inappropriate.
Still I have two FP3s getting on for 3 years old with no problem other than the charging port getting apple in it from a grandchild that loves to chew on it with it’s green ‘stretchy’ case.
Hope you can pass the phone to maybe a fairphoneangels that it may be repaired or used for spares.
Reducing waste is also part of FPs mission. If software is poor then people aren’t happy. I’ll buy the FP5 when it will be released. In contrast, my Pixel 3 wasn’t build to last, but at least I wanted to use it longer. My FP4 still has 3 years in it, probably more. But I cannot use it. Screen dims in the sun, phone calls and video calls are a pain, camera isn’t satisfying, battery life isn’t that amazing (although A12 improved it), no notification LED or always on screen, poor vibration motor, so I miss many in the moment notifications. Many UI bugs since launch. It also has to be fair to the end user. I hope the FP5 will have a better launch. Otherwise it’s more sustainable to buy a Pixel.
If people use their phone for 5 years instead of 1.5 years, then that’s a major win for sustainability. If software quality limits people in keeping their phone for 5 years, then that’s a problem. Don’t you agree? You can have the most sustainable phone in the world. But if it doesn’t work, then it becomes a waste product faster.
Same here. I’m willing to give them a few months, but if they can’t fix the issues with screen dimming and proximity sensor by then (those bother me the most, especially now in summer), then I’ll probably sell it and buy another phone.
I doubt that FP5 will be any better, especially if they will use the same software vendor.
People want a functional phone. I’ll give it one more shot to make this point clear. You can have the most sustainable and fairly built clock, but if that clock can’t display the correct time, then people will buy something else. Then all that sustainability and fairness is undone. Usability is very important. But I guess you think that’s something people should live with and they shouldn’t expect improvement because that’s “wanting too much”.
Well this won’t be my last Well maybe it will be the last here as it is about saying [Goodbye] and I never did say hello to sustainability.
Sustainability is a hoax in the material world except where some things are sacrificed to sustain another.
Fairness too as the above always exploits other ‘poor’ people to sustain ‘the product’
So in my book the Fair trade aspect is the direction. If the people are treated better I don’t care about the phone, I can always buy one that works for a while as there are billions of people prepared to mine, manufacture and man the shops for some ‘payment’ else they will probably starve.
Hi,
I can understand your arguments. I have not been around quite as long. However, I also hope that it will get a little better. Probably the FP3+ problems are greater so with the FP4. Your anger I can understand and hope that you find with other brands mehre peace. I have resolved to use the FP4 until the end of support. A Pixel device from google would be an alternative for me. Until then
Well I have removed most most of the sentence maybe this i more to your taste.
.Thanks for getting on board though the sea may be a bit rough for you. Riding the waves isn’t for many, some ships do sink no matter how strong their build
However putting up with a faulty product is a user issue, ideally the phone could have been return to the vendor within a few weeks if it seems unsuitable for use.
My daughter gave up her FP3 after few months but I have since been using it for two years. So I don’t see that there is a faulty product as a general idea or argument.
Some argument suit some people but not others, I like the sea but I can’t swim so I want a wooden boat that can float even in a storm, there’s no way i would go surfing in over 5 feet of water.
Maybe that better explains my previous words better and thank you for your efforts to tell me of your concern, though I’m not sure what it is.
maybe you would like to read the initial post again. it indicates that first issues started only after 6 month or so. And it seems like the TO was idealistic enough to bear with reoccuring hazzle for more than 2 years. my respect for that!
Yes it seems that after six months the problems were serious and Fairphone were helpful. I suppose the problem arose once the warranty expired, although as the OP said serious problems every six months was happening.
Still after nearly three years with two FP3 and no problems it’s not that Fairphone is not keeping their promise issue.
It’s impossible to know the user history, but there’s no doubt the OP wanted a phone to last longer, who doesn’t.
There’s a choice to buy the phone and it doesn’t work out how some expected, Although mine are fine I wouldn’t recommend a Fairphone to anyone that is not focused on Fairtrade.
Each person has a different tolerance level and I ask that their opinion is also respected. It can not be, if one is of a different opinion, that one downplays these things. This is not a respectful way. I can understand the frustration and yet I will not convince him to stay with FP. The problems can be read here in the forum. So there are more than enough of them. So no need to keep looking for reasons either. As of today, I would also not buy a FP and would not recommend it and go straight to a Pixel device. Of course, a company has completely different resources than FairPhone. Self-explanatory at the size and have thereby also completely different possibilities. At the end of the day, everyone has to be happy. Life is too short to be annoyed with things that make you unhappy.
"The problems ?? " I wasn’t aware that any problems were defined as to say they “can be read here in the forum”
Some problems by some users isn’t indicative that the phone is generally problematic, as I have no problems
But as I said although I wouldn’t recommend the Fairphone to anyone except a fair trade freak ~ being one though I’m more than happy to stick with with Fairphone and am looking forward to a possible replacement when the FP6 is available or maybe the FP9
So I don’t have any problem with someone saying goodbye to this experiment in applying fair trade to a phone. It’s a risk,
I avoided the FP1 and FP2 whose users, were, and some still are, extraordinarily strong and brave, or just plain crazy.
I’m sorry to hear that - I just realized that it is three years since I last visited the forum here - because my FP3 is just running flawless since I bought it. What made me return is some minor issues I have due to the Android 13 update - which was to be expected. I personally do not regret buying the FP3 a single day - not because I’m a hardcore ideologist, but because the phone has not shown what many phones did that I owned before: Getting worse over time - slower, battery deteriorating, outdated, unsupported. Only a few weeks ago Fairphone sent a survey on how long I intend to continue to use my FP3, and I answered 3 years without knowing I’d get the Android 13 update, and I would not be surprised if it will be five years in the end. Admittedly, my demands are not very intense - I do not do 3D games or so, just phone, mail, internet and GPS, but for that it is fast and stable to the day.
Still, I’m impressed getting the A13 update - came as a pleasant surprise, and is really not a minor feat on the Fairphone side - I know from other sources that the SOC manufacturers really just stop supporting their old SOCs at some point, and Fairphone will have needed to work out all the details themselves. In that sense, me having just one minor issue after the update feel really happy, and want to repeat a big THANKS to Fairphone to staying true to their promise of long support.
