Wishlist for the FP2

:information_source: Info by @Stefan: This is a wiki post, everyone can contribute by clicking the green pencil next to the post. If you add something, please specify in the comments section why you added it.

Hello! Since today this is a Wiki post! Feel free to add you thoughts, but i would like to discuss additions in the comments.

Things to keep

  • Dual Sim
  • Replaceble Battery
  • Micro-SD slot
  • Fairphone Branding and Ringtone!
  • Enjoy Peace Widget

General improvements

  • Weight: Overall, the community agrees that the phone could be a tad lighter.
  • Battery: Fine. Batter lifetime can always be longer - P: 3
  • Improve sensor to reduce unwanted touches on display while calling - P: 1
  • Improve: improve sourcing of raw materials and repairability - P: 1
  • Use correctly labeled, illuminated buttons or even better on-screen-buttons. P: 2
  • More space between USB and Headphone Jack. P: 3
  • Trough-Hole on on edge of the case for lanyard P: 3
  • make cell (buffer) battery on the mainboard replaceable (and include in specs which type of battery should be used).
  • Usability: make it easier to know without looking how the phone is oriented (aka where is the power switch)
  • Usability: camera protrusion from the rear is annoying.

Screen

  • A little bit more max brightness and lower min brightness. General a wider range: It is sometimes hard to read the screen outside, but it very bright at night in bed) - P: 1 :sunny:
  • Slightly larger screen, when possible without increasing device size - P: 2
  • oleophobic glass to prevent smear and ease cleaning - P: 2
  • Display resolution: Slightly higher ppi (Pixel density, makes for clearer fonts and nice looking images), 720p would be nice. Depending on display resolution - P: 3Higher resolution compared to FP1 is confirmed!

Connection

  • Add quad-band for 3G networks (UMTS/HSPA+ (850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz) or (UMTS/HSPA+/DC-HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz ) (for US) - P: 1
  • Real Bluetooth 4 LE support (also in Software :smile: ) - P: 1
  • LTE - P:2LTE support is confirmed. :thumbsup:
  • WiFI: Dual band, eg. 2,4 and 5 GHz support would be great P: 3
  • NFC makes for some nice use cases P: 3

Location

  • Improve GPS fix speed - P: 1
  • Generally improved sensors (E-Compass for example acts crazy on my current FP1) - P: 2
  • Add GLONASS support

Processing and Storage

  • Choose a processing unit (CPU+GPU) with best possible support for open source and os upgrades - P: 1The next Fairphone will feature a Qualcomm processor to improve driver support, see Fairleaks
  • Quadcore is fine, speed should be bumped a bit according to 2015 standards. The same goes from RAM
  • Internal storage: 16GB is fine when unified as with OS 1.6+ and combined with micro sd card

Camera and Speakers

  • Improve sealing of Camera module - P: 1
  • Move Loudspeaker to the front - P: 2
  • Camera could use some fine tuning P: 2
  • Improve front facing camera - P: 3
  • A more powerful flash

Software

  • Use updatable OS and have clear software support and upgrade path. Provide mayor OS updates for 24 or 36 months - P: 1
  • Preinstall useful apps but make them removable (like F-Droid, iFixit) - P: 1
  • Use standard launcher to reduce software maintenance - P: 3
  • Possibility to specify which SIM slot to use for payments

Addons

  • Accessory connector comparable or even better compatible with Jolla

23 Likes

+1 to everything, except:

  • Weight: I feel the weight could easily be much lower. Atm it’s heavier than the nexus 5, which is bigger.
  • Screen: at least break the 300ppi mark :stuck_out_tongue:
    Also use oleophobic glass, my screen gets quite greasy and doesn’t wipe nicely either.

Add:
LTE (why the hell not? :smiley:)
On-screen buttons, or at least illuminated capacitive ones

Price and battery where my concerns here.

I added oleophobic glass and button illumination to my list :wink:

Well, in my area there isn’t even 3g, so I could certainly do without it.
But thinking about future proofing I feel you need at least up to date tech to start with.
With new android versions getting more power efficient I think battery life won’t suffer much and it should also be getting more affordable in '15.

I remember reading somewhere that LTE (4G) is actually more energy efficient than 3G, so the battery should last longer.

2 Likes

I agree with all of this, with a wish for GPS improvement being a bit more priority, because the current one is so poor that it prevents full functionalities (e. g. track recording)…

3 Likes

I also think the FP2 should be lighter. Sometimes it’s hard to hold it in one hand for some time. Aluminium back cover is no necessity (looks nice though).

I think real and true open hardware/software should be the only deal breaker for a future product.
What I mean is full freedom both on hardware specs and the OS and software installed by default.
Anyone should be able to install whatever system and apps he/she chooses (if they choose the dark side :stuck_out_tongue: ) , but the base phone should be absolutely Free.

Commitment to this is the major aspect regarding a product like a smartphone that is complementary to the overall vision of Fairphone.

Then of course yes, all the little/big enhancements that would make the Fairphone more competitive on the features and performances’ race, but only if they don’t come at the expenses of Freedom and a reasonable price.

This last aspect is to take into account because the typical Fairphone user is certainly willing to spend a little more, but I think only as long as the “more” is for the “principles’ part”, because if we would have to pay the FP2 500€ only to be competitive specs-wise with similarly priced Samsung products, then what’s the point of it trying to be Fair and Free?

Cheers

4 Likes

@van
I think I got carried away there.
Of course we have to stay within the bounds of possibility.
It’s already a challenge to keep your phone open and fair.

And while I’m not mad at Fairphone for not making a perfect device on the first try, I would like them to consider these improvements and incorporate them as best they can.

1 Like

Oh but I’m not mad either, actually I’m still very much in awe of what Fairphone has done and is planning to do.

My post was merely my own personal opinion about priorities: Freedom over better specs and enhancements.

While I recognize that there will always be a tradeoff between being able to stay true to ideals and being capable to produce a phone that is market-appealing (which is fundamental for the main goal to be achieved), I want to stress out the importance of prioritizing efforts in the direction of Freedom in hardware/software over technical issues.
This is because working on the latter would of course broaden the circle of potential buyers (this is a business after all), but would broaden it in a direction that is less and less made of people who are putting certain values first, like I believe most of us do.

I too would like to see some things fixed/added/enhanced in a future model and of course in the current ones through updates and whatnot, but not at the expense of the principles that, for me, are still far more important than having a “better device”.

Bye

2 Likes
  • Make the design more haptic, easier to handle: Currently, the phone easily slips out of the hands, the edges feel uncomfortable. Maybe a rubber or softer version of plastic would help here.
4 Likes

What really annoys me is the bump on the backside of the FP, where the loudspeaker is. I don’t use a cover, so when I put my FP on the table, it does not lie even. FP2 shouldn’t have this!

7 Likes

would indeed be great to have for FP2. and a design-related idea: skip the white border frame in favor of a slightly more haptic black one. the silver-ish back cover does not look nice together with the white frame.

I agree the grey and white don’t really fit together, but I for one love the white frame and find it a bit distinctive :wink:

1 Like

Did you take part in the vote? I voted for the blue frame… :slight_smile:

looking at my FP right now — early in the morning — it appears that a grey-ish frame would probably also do. it would match with the silver-ish back cover and also correspond to the grey-on-black fairphone star-logo on the screen. it still would be ‘distinctive’ — to other phones around, if this is what you meant — and would also match to any colors of wallpaper on the screen. considering sustainability: i have no idea to which color the white frame will turn within the next 4-5 years, probably some sort of yellow-ish. this would be not so pleasant, i fear.

Definetly need 4G (also because 4g uses less battery than 3g) and absolutely not a bigger screen!!! 4.5 inch is already too big! I want a Phone not a Tablet wtf…

8 Likes

+1.
Work on how to prepare a separate, side screen (in the form of a watch for instance :wink: ) would be welcome instead.
Of course given the datarate it may be not for next year, but having a physical architecture that thought about it will be important.

1 Like

Just FTR, I know some engineers with a perceptual psychology / biology background who will tell everyone that you don’t need higher resolutions. To paraphrase a certain Mr. Gates: 250 ppi should be enough for everyone.

1 Like

Bigger screen? Only if by reducing the bezels the phone itself will not be a lot bigger. I want to be able to use it with one hand.

Pixels? More is fine (720p?) but I hardly see the difference between the FP1’s 256 ppi and a 400+ ppi high-end-high-price phone. So don’t go for the most pixels possible - that just makes the phone more expensive en takes a larger toll on the battery.

Brightness? A higher maximum brightness would be nice, but a lower minimum brightness would be great. My eyes hurt when I look at the screen at night.

Oh, and please make the back of the phone flat. The FP1 wobbles when lying on a table. This is not very convenient. Also, it damages (particularly one corner of) the edge around the camera.

Other improvements: of course a lot of fairness-improvements. More conflict-free materials, better repairability, etc. A Lighter phone would also be preferred. Bettery life on FP1 is quite good, but improving this is always good.

5 Likes