Healthy discussion about Fairphone

Discuss The Industry
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Hello!

I have been following Fairphone ever since learning about the Fairphone 3.I have never owned fairphone even though i would like to own one (more on this later).I learned about this community very recently and i am very proud to make an account here.This post is gonna be a long one so take your time.In this post i will be articulating thoughts about the fairphone in total.
(This is my opinion and should be taken very lightly because neither have i owned a Fairphone nor have i been here from the start)

#1 Fairphone (the company) and my view on its progression since Fairphone 3

Fairphone as a company really stood out for me from the very first moment i heard about it (i think it was 4 or 5 years ago).The values this company has and the procedures it follows to make sure that these values are actually implemented is astonishing.It might be one of the very few companies that actually gives me some hope for this world.

Fairphone 3 was really impressing.It was a big step up from Fairphone 2 and despite its shortcomings, it felt like the company had many ideas that wanted to implement and was trying to make them possible.I remember when Fairphone 3+ was released, both the company and the phone became well known due to the camera upgrade.It was very revolutionary for its time.I was aware of its shortcomings and even though i wasnt willing to buy it,i was following the project very closely.

Fairphone 4 was better than its predecessors.However the removal of the headphone jack was and still is to this date not viewed very postively.Nonetheless Fairphone was clearly becoming more competitive.Fairphone 4 has a even better design and specs are getting better.

A big problem with the previous phones was the lack of the support qualcom provided to its chips.

This problem is solved in the new Fairphone 5 as its chipset will be officially supported for quite some time.Also it has more features compared to its previous phones
(eco charging and etc) so fairphones are getting noticably better.

Why did i go back in the past?

Because it has to be kept in mind that fairphones are always improving.Sometimes the fierce competition and the problems the phone has, makes it easy to lose track of this fact.

#2 What does fairphone provide compared to other phone companies? (my view)

Fairphone is one of those companies that fits perfectly with the phrase “vote with your wallet”.By buying a Fairphone, you turn your back to the companies that dont have a moral compass and exploit anything that can be exploited for their profit.Also, you support a big effort to reduce electronic waste cause after all overconsumption is a big problem and it isnt in the big companies interest to do something about it (they are the ones that promote it with their practices actually).Lastly, Fairphone is all about ownership and having the right to repair your device.This last one is so important for me because unfortunately the world is headed to a subscription based business model in which you dont own anything and you cant repair anything.Owning something and having the freedom to do whatever you want with your device is very important.It is your right and nobody should take that right away from you.Louis Rossmann covers this extensively on his youtube channel.

#3 Critisism

(Take note that i write this post with good intentions in mind.I dont want to undermine the company or the phone.However good critisism contributes to making the phone and the compamy better.)

I read this review from Gsmarena (Fairphone 5 review - GSMArena.com tests) and basically it says the phone isnt very good.Some comments on that post are very harsh or dont realise what fairphone is about.The truth is that Fairphone isnt for the average person (yet).It is great to support a company that has ethics and actually tries to make the world a better place but this isnt enough (for me atleast) to justify buying the phone.Lets look at the negatives:

1)Expensive

This is very important to consider cause 700 euros (or less with the discount) is a lot of money.We are talking about a big commitment financially.Also obviously not everyone can afford the phone at this price.I know that the company has a very small profit margin (more on this later) but nonetheless we have to state this drawback.

2)Inadequate specs

This is a dealbraker for me.Buying a phone that is slow isnt appealing.Considering how expensive it is too,this is enough to make the average person walk away.

3)Reliability (software and hardware)

The phone should be more reliable.I had read a comment saying that he doesnt want to commit a lot of time just to fix the issues the phone has.He is right.This isnt to say that only Fairphone has its problems and the rest of the phones are without issues.I am saying that the phone has to be more reliable both in software and hardware.We have to say props to the company for trying their best to fix those issues.

4)No headphone jack

This has been said to many times but people cant stop complaining about it since the introduction of Fairphone 4.I agree with those people.It wasnt a good decision.

5)Not future proof

I havent seen this being said enough.In order for the phone to last the specs have to be good enough.This isnt the case and it kinda defeats fairphone’s purpose.Having a repairable phone is great but isnt enough.The hardware has to be good enough so that it isnt laggy after one Android update.Also not every person has the same tolerance to the phone being less usable.Fairphone has to do better here.

#4 Recommendations

We wil start from the easiest one:

1)Bring back the headphone jack.

This is a no brainer.I dont believe Fairphones statement that headphone jack produces more waste.This is bs to promote their headphones which arent that repairable (i might be wrong here any correction is welcome).Even if that is case, they understimated how much value headphone jack provides to their current customers or to their potential customers. Personally they should bring it back.Bringing it back is like showing their disagreement on what the industry does.Also Fairphone would provide something most phone companies dont provide and that alone would change the minds of some people.

2)Avaiability of parts

This shouldnt happen at the first place and it is clearly a logistics issue.They can definetely fix it.

3)Increase profit margin

I watched the video from tech altar regarding the Fairphone and the fact the company has less than 1% profit margin, isnt viable.Cut costs (always with a moral compass in mind),achieve economies of scale,expand to new markets.I know this is easier said than done but it is crucial for the existence of Fairphone.Their direct competitor Shiftphone is releasing more devices than just their phone models.This approach will definetely help Fairphone.For example i have observed that there is demand for charging batteries externally.Fairphone could release a charger that does that.It will be welcomed from the community.Also, they should offer more services which would be optional.For example their version of icloud or insurance.Moreover they could try joint vetures with other companies like the Framework.In other words Fairphone should embrace its own eco system without of course enforcing its users to use it.I am well aware that Fairphone doesnt have the resources or the leverage to achieve a cut in its costs but at the very least try to A) make the phone better and b) provide services that are supplementary (at least here it is easier to control your costs).

4)Larger customer base

Fairphone should reach a point in which it does so well that the average person would consider the company’s ethics and the repairability a bonus and not its main
selling point.

(Better specs and relaibility is something obvious, so there is no need for further analysis)

#5 Conclusion

I admire the Fairphone overall and i am so jealous of its repairability.I hope that in Fairphone 6, specs are good enough for the phone to be called future proof.If that was the case along with better reliability i would defenitely consider buying it.

What do you think? Share your thoughts below.

Thanks for your time!

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Hi back!

Having read through your post, I agree and disagree with you.

I agree that Fairphone has improved in great leaps from FP1 through FP5, and that it’s important from a sustainability point of view to have a phone that you own and can repair by yourself.

On the other hand, I strongly disagree with some of your criticisms - it’s obvious you haven’t used a Fairphone yet.

I had a FP3 as my first Fairphone, and it was more than adequate (it was just a little slower than the mid range phone I had before (which broke), it served me brilliantly for 4 years, and would still be serving me if I hadn’t been offered a FP5 (as beta tester). In fact, the phone is still in use by my son. The repairability allowed me to swap the USB port which gave out after about 2 years of service (for the average mid range phone, this would have been so prohibitively expensive that I would have bought a new phone instead of having it repaired).
Now I have the Fairphone 5, and while it’s probable that there are better ‘top mid range’ phones available at the same or slightly lower price point, none of these will have guaranteed 5 years warranty (+ ‘promise’ of 5 more years of updates), none of these is easily repairable, not to speak of fair trade/conflict free/recycled/… targets.
The phone is definitely not slow, the camera much improved compared to the FP3’s ‘potato’ camera (arguably FP3’s weak point), and while there are some toothing pains (like the Telekom 5G debacle and the AoD issue which currently kind of invalidates the whole point of using OLED), it’s very good as a day to day phone (I have never had a better phone, to be perfectly honest, and that is as I would have expected). I’m fairly sure you’d be able to live with the phone if you could just step over the little hurdle of having no 3.5mm jack.

Maybe you should bite the bullet and consider the step once your current phone breaks?

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I would rather have the average person reaching a point in which they would prioritise any company’s ethics and the repairability of devices as main selling points over specs.

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Is this your way of getting attention?!? I mean, come on… new user, first time poster, doesn’t own, hasn’t used one, and writes a short story sized-post… all for what? To complain about a headphone jack… I feel like your entire post was a cover story so you could complain about THAT… gggaaawwwwdddd!

buy a DAC…

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Hi Userfair,

Welcome to the forum. You have wrote an interesting post about your perception of FP. I think you are completely right in mentioning that every FP has had major improvements compared to the previous one, which is great to see and shows their ambition.

However, I am wondering what you mean by “better specs”. I do not have a lot of technical knowledge, but having read the forum for a few years now I do not really agree with you.

Maybe you are referring to the chipset, that they should have chosen a more high-end one? However, I have read somewhere (can’t remember where exacty) that they have chosen the most powerful chip that could be used for this purpose and will be supported for a long time by Qualcomm. This is I think the main point: maybe there were better chips, but if they are supported for only a few years, they are not a valid option.

A second thing to keep in mind is that we cannot see the future. Who knows what the actual requirements of a smartphone are in 2033, and how this chip will perform then. I think it is a bit early to conclude that it will not be up to the task.

Another thing you could be referring to with specs are the cameras. However, from what I have read in this forum a lot, the “issues” (imo being the increased expectations of what a camera should be able to do) are related to software, not to hardware. Fairphone has only a small team as a small company, because they need to be financially viable.

In general, better specs will be more expensive, and to make a FP accessible and affordable for people, it is important to keep in mind that most of the users will not need high-end specs. Since you are also mentioning that FPs are expensive (or other phones are too cheap) this is something to take into consideration.

That brings me to the last point I’d like to respond to: the profit margin. I think the main way to increase the profit margin, is by being able to order larger quantities. If you want to make that happen, I suggest you order the FP as your next phone :wink:

Don’t feel attacked by my “essay”, just wanted to share my view :slight_smile:

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Are you sure? If you’re honest you can’t just look at the number but you’ve to calculate the total amount of money you pay during your usage lifetime (let’s assume 5 years or more). Calculate the cost for various other “cheaper” devices because you change after SW support ends, your battery fails or something breaks without your fault and you don’t have HW support anymore. Or maybe additional cost because you’ve shattered your screen.
And even if you might decide to sell it earlier you’ll notice that you’ll get a higher second hand price (the phone has lost less of it’s value). I think that’s because you’d sell a device with still valid SW and HW support.
So don’t just focus on the number but calculate a price and judge then.

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I understand people think the FP5 is expensive for them. If I buy a Samsung Galaxy A34, I pay about 300 € and I get 5 years of software support and Samsung phones are easy to make repair in dedicated stores.

I thought about buying an FP5 myself and didn’t at the end because I find it too expensive since I don’t want to spend more than 500 € in a smartphone.

I also find it too big whereas I have quite large hands but this is another story :wink:

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If you think this after reading the GSMArena review, you probably don’t belong to the target of Fairphone as written in some of the comments below the review.
I say this because the FP5 allows everything 2ms slower than a flagship, which doesn’t change anything in daily life, but you have to accept you cannot play all the new very demanding games with all the details and that camera is behind in low light conditions.

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Hello!

Thanks for taking the time to read the post and comment.Unfortunately i dont have any experience of the fairphone.I know i have mentioned it but it seems like we cant talk about something i dont know about.The critisisms are based on the issues i have read that users have here,the reviews and the wishes some people have.Overall you may be right.I might be too harsh or my idea of a fairphone might be completely wrong.Despite the critisisms for the fairphone this doesnt mean that i wont continue following the project or that i dont plan on getting one.I am waiting for the right time.About the headphone jack: I have a samsung galaxy a34 so i know how it feels like and even though i have the dongle and i can live with it sometimes i feels like i was fooled by samsung because i have to buy specifically their own dongle which costed me 15 euro and felt like a rip off for its quality.The headphone jack isnt a dealbraker for me but it is definetely for other people and that is why i included it. Again thanks for your time!

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Hello!

Thanks for taking your time to answer.You are right no doubt.However that is not how people think about buying a device unfortunately.I know changing their ideas isnt an easy tasks however my point was that making the user experience better maybe would attract people that wouldnt buy a fairphone in the first place.Thanks for commenting!

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Hello!

Thanks for taking the time to read the post and comment on it.I said in another post that i have a samsung galaxy A34 which has no headphone jack and i can live without it.I feel like a fool being forced to buy the cable they want or else this basic functionality doesnt work.Alsoit is expensive for its quality. Nonetheless this isnt a dealbraker for me but it is a critisism other people have and i understand them.Also this post doesnt “complaing about that” it is an overview about my thoughts on fairphone.We can disagree on anything but at least you can see in the post that i am actuallying praising fairphone and still want one despite the critisism.Thanks for your time!

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Hello!

Thanks for taking the time to read the post and post your comment.I will start from the very last sentence of your post.I am not attacked by your post.Let be me clear, this is a discussion and there isnt one side against the other side.The goal of this post is to gather opinions of other people,give some attention to the good and the bad things of a fairphone and see what can be improved.About the better specs maybe a snapdragon 8th generation would be a great choice.I know the cost of this move is the phone being more expensive.I cant ask for things that are very hard to do, it is just a thought of mine.Since this is the most powerful and supported chip by Qualcolm ( something i wasnt aware of) i am glad they made that decision.Cameras matter for me.My galaxy a34 had great cameras despite the filters they use.Thanks for welcoming the idea of buying a new Fairphone!Despite having a 6 month old phone i will continue following the project and this forum.In the future i would like to buy a fairphone, when the time is right.The profit margin aspect still i believe Fairphone shouldnt restrict themselves to just the phone.Shiftphone is taking in my opinion a better strategy by intoducing their own ecosystem.You might not agree with this because of the footprint, at least introduce new services that people might want.I think innovation and making decisions that have some risk will help Fairphone grow.Thanks for your time!

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Hello!

Thanks for taking the time to read the post and post your comment.Look i know what you are saying.Other phones are cheap, Fairphone is the reasonable price considering what others do and what Fairhone doesnt do.Unfortunately still to the average person 700 euro is a lot of money.I would like to feel more secure about the phone before making the decision.Also i will be honest with you.I hated cheap chinese phones.I hate what they stand for, i disliked owning them and how they are made.However for many people this is their only solution.I am not saying Fairphone should compete with them.I am trying to say Fairphone should improve and find new innovative was to improve its margins, so the value of the Fairphone can increase for its fixed price.The opposite cant happen and Fairphone doesnt stand by that and neither do i.Still you might be right.Many people choose based on price and not what by you say.This isnt to blame them but price is something that has to be taken into consideration.I would say same thing about Fairphone regardless of me being able to afford it.Thanks for your time!

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Hello!

Thanks for taking the time to read and post your opinion.I will reply to this post,so that i dont have to reply 2 times.I have the phone you mentioned and you are right about it.Big phones are a go to for me.I like them i have big hands too.About GSM arena.There arent many reviews of the phone and i consider GSMarena a good website.I know that they might not be on the same page with us but they are definetely skilled enough to make a good technical review.I dont play demanding games.I use my phone for basic stuff.Camera is a thing to consider so thats not very good.Again i am not trashing Fairphone or the company i am just expressing some thoughts.I want Fairphone to succeed and i will be more than happy to buy it when i feel like the time is right.Thanks for your time!

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I believe durability and repairable are the most important for us. :heart:
Except for FairPhone 4, other products are not available, and many people want to buy FairPhone 5 and Fairbuds. :face_with_spiral_eyes:
It’s quite challenging in Taiwan. :confounded::confounded::confounded::confounded::confounded: