Commodore's Next Hardware Release Is Dumb, And Proud Of It
23h 43m ago by lemmus.org/u/sundray in technology from www.timeextension.com
It's 2026 and I'm suddenly desperately interested in buying a flipphone from Commodore? What is even going on? Has reality itself completely jumped the shark?
You found a secret level!! 🤯🔥💥
Ooooh 😲
T9 😞😭
Wait I looove t9 bro
Fuck yeah, I miss being able to send messages without looking at my phone, or even removing it from my pocket.
I've been thinking lately how cool it would be to type via T-9 on PC via the numpad. Game-changer for HTPC duties.
Oo someone has to have done it
You need professional help. Like, immediately.
Like... Hire a developer? Hmm 🤔
:))
but would you want it flipped to suit the numpad layout? personally i'd be happy with flipping the whole numpad to a phone dialler layout.
Good question. I'd have to relearn it anyway, so i don't think it matters either way.
Can't say I was a fan...
I smell a young poster here
Nah I’m 50. T9 was necessary, not some kind of miracle.
Had a nokia 3310, had a flip phone, did not like T9. The predictive nature was aweful and never got me to like it before I got a slide keyboard phone.
Predictive nature? I remember just spelling every word out.
that was the other mode, where you just tap "777" for R for example, T9 predictive had a dictionary to match the word so "weed" became 9333, instead of 933>33>3.
Yeah, everyone i know turned off or ignored the prediction crap back in the day.
Yep.
Thank you!! 👌
Over 9000
Commodore has had an interesting year. A retro-tech YouTuber got into discussions with the company and ended up buying it. I think they had plans to become a public benefit company of some kind, with a focus on openness and preserving old tech.
I'm surprised that the Wikipedia article doesn't have a lot of details on those recent developments from the past year
Well, bought the trademarks at least. Commodore as a proper company hasn't existed for over three decades, the name has just been bouncing around from one company to another.
There's another Commodore in Italy too though. Not sure what's the deal with that.
Privacy first? So what is WhatsApp doing on there?
I get why, that is for a lot of people the ONLY way they use a phone instead of calling, but this definitely not privacy first or social media free then.
I mean, it's not like it comes preloaded or anything. It's Linux, you can choose install (or not install) whatever you want.
Edit: Good Lord, it actually does come preloaded. Unreal.
It’s Linux, you can choose install (or not install) whatever you want.
yes, well except that is what they are trying to patent (as far as I can tell) using key based tools to not allow certain apps and DNS filtering as well. If its based on linux, thats one thing, but doesnt stop them from locking things down.
Sure, but the point is, it doesn't come with WhatsApp on it.
According to their ad, it does.
No, it's showcasing the ability to install Android apps.
which offers 99% compatibility with Android apps, including WhatsApp, Google Maps, and Spotify.
They have it in the screen shot. And my point stands: they said they would stop apps that were social or anti-privacy (by refusing to load them or dns blocking) and WhatsApp is both of these things.
Actually I checked their site and you're 100% right -- WhatsApp does come preinstalled: https://commodore.net/callback/
I agree, that's unbelievably stupid.
Edit: Good Lord, it actually does come preloaded.
At least Facebook will subsidize a large portion of the price, right?
> $500
Well then.
Supposedly you can't install some things. Hopefully this is an optional parental control feature, and not baked in to every phone. They would be losing a lot of potential nostalgia sales if they only chase after the "forced distraction free" market. Some people can control their usage without needing the device to do it for them. 🤷
The phone also blocks internet browsers and social media apps at a system level, "using patent-pending technology, eliminating temptation and designed with distraction-free schools in mind." This ties in neatly with the upcoming ban on social media for the under-16s in the UK, but I can't imagine there are many teenagers who even know what Commodore is.
Interesting. Hopefully it's easy enough to replace the OS.
Wait, where? Is that in te video i didnt watch? Preloaded whatsapp spyware is a dealbreaker if it cant be removed easily and immediately.
On their site, in the FAQ: https://commodore.net/callback/
I'd take some sandbox mechanism for those predatory apps, as it's a pain living without them (I do, but school, colleges etc don't).
One has nothing to do with the other. A properly configured Android is not going to leak any information to its apps. The problem comes with the customized Android a phone maker uses, where they do everything to gather data (or let others gather data if they pay for it).
So while the app itself is anything but privacy friendly, the phone is. So is GrapheneOS with WhatsApp.
WhatsApp has access to your plain text before it encrypts it. One has to trust WhatsApp with that. That’s the problem. Meta is untrustworthy.
I did not try to imply that WhatsApp is secure or trustworthy. They will, of course, use as much data as they can. But that’s something out of control of the mobile phone. And if they wouldn’t pre-install WhatsApp, users will download it ASAP.
As much as awesome this is, ~450$ for this is toooooo much
Yeah I was pretty shocked at that price, I thought it would be less than $200
300 because of the nostalgia maybe, but 500? Ludicrous.
Agreed
"We built the phone in between" [a smart phone and dumb phone] is a pretty appealing tag line. In the last half of the 2010s, when I finally dragged myself into getting an actual smart phone, I really wished I could get a flip phone that was more capable. The feature phones still on the market at the time seemed to be right out of 2003.
This implementation seems a little off. It has the flip form factor, and can run most android apps, great! But then it sounds like they arbitrarily block browsers and 'social media'? I think just leave them out by default, and let people go that route if they want it. The form factor already limits how well some of those would work.
Agreed, it's an odd move when so much else about the phone is being marketed as having the user's interests at heart. If you scratch a bit and squint at the wording they're using, though, it feels more and more like the CEO has his own idea of how people should be using their phones and is pushing that. The fact that it is more privacy respecting is incidental to the fact. I could be wrong, but that's the vibe I've certainly gotten.
It's too bad. I wouldn't mind having a phone with no social media but no browser is probably going to be a dealbreaker for me. Their FAQ says it's basically a way of 'cheating' to get to social media sites and that's incredibly condescending. I probably just want to look up if a nearby store is still open or something.
the CEO has his own idea of how people should be using their phones and is pushing that.
He does and he is. I've watched Perifractic's channel for awhile and he is really very strident about "digital detox" on account of his smartphone use negatively effecting his mental health. This phone is made for Peri specifically; he just happens to be selling it.
(Which I'm fine with, by the way. I hope it does well; I'd like to see the new Commodore stick around a little longer.)
I mean the iPhone was what Steve Jobs wanted.
If there’s a market for it then leave them to it
You know what, that's fair.
I don't want more capability in general. I kinda want less. like no calendar and such. what I do want is the dumb phone to be able to act as a cellular hotspot for my laptop but I would like it to be able to do it and stay sub $100.
I am with you.
I will suck Commodore's dick all day, but for $500?
Fuck out of here with your AI-ass ad and Whatsapp-preloaded flip phone.
Commodore's promo image is 3008, the other phone brands are 2000 and late. Gotta get that.
Dumb ❌
Overpriced ✅
I want this but no 5g is a deal breaker
What do you need 5G for with a phone like this, though? It's explicitly not a media-consumption device.
While true, won't 4g be phased out in like 5 years?
Works better in high density areas than 4G, even bandwidth/latency aside.
5g has better coverage for me.
I'm on a provider that only has 5g in some areas. Nobody is putting up new 4g or lower towers I guess
Do you think the other gs are gonna run out of bits?
The other Gs are all dead except 4g who’s days are soon to be numbered
i am the target audiance like 100% but.. THE PRICE! HOLLY FUCK! the idea is nice but.. realy? t9 crap? and lets take about the website. i can smell ai generated background. and the scheme of the phone look like a chat gpt thing.
- Love the idea
- Already exists via kei phones out however you call them
- Love the transparent shell
- $599?!?!?! (512€)?!?!?! Chat that’s pricey as hell for a lil thing like that, girl we can get a better phone for way cheaper and just side load Linux into it. Sheeeeesh you crazy
- again transparent phone case with that flash notification mwah icing on the cake
Overall: we want to either get a cheap one second hand or make our own because PWEW that’s such a good idea lol
and more expensive for the transparent one!
Hey kids! Do you want a phone that costs more, does less, and still comes bundled with privacy breaching software? Well then have I got a phone for YOU!
It's super cool and I'm strongly considering it, but not including 5G is dumb I think. Where I live 5G has way better coverage and 4G is lacking and spotty many places. Also no mentioning of Bluetooth is also a big no no for me. So much for a good DAC buy now all my headphones I already own are wireless with LDAC And AptX etc.
Has Bluetooth, shows it in the graphic. But, no 5g. Hour this helps
I was doing Ctrl+f searching for Bluetooth on their homepage and no results. A bit annoying its only in the graphics. The page is so long and I'm not reading all that filler text. I just want a nice spec sheet. I hope it'll come with time. Still cool project.
This is the second time I've seen that, the mecha comet, I think thats what its called is the same. No bluetooth listed, only in the graphic. Just list hardware stats like we are used to
I just noticed it has a SID chip for ringtones. I'm sold.
Nah, it says their enspired by. Not that it has one onboard.
Not sure I could face T9 typing again.
I miss T9, the typing speed has never been the same again.
Loved it. I just memorized the dictionary positions and since it was consistent unlike modern autocorrect it was so much faster for me. I never liked the later T9 dictionaries that did dynamic positions of words. It works extremely well for Danish and other Scandinavian languages (inventet around here iirc) , but I know for other countries T9 dictionaries were just not a thing which is sad.
If they don't allow social media and chats you would have no one to type to though lol
Holy shit thats actually cute as fuck. Sad I need a qwerty keyboard 🥲
Not a PETSCII keyboard?
This actually looks cool af. I’d strongly consider using this.
Kinda funny that we’re looking at this on lemmy, 90% of us are on our phones browsing while doing random things.
It looks cool, but smartphones, good or bad, fill the void of riding the bus, waiting 5 mins for your next meeting, waiting for your partner to get ready in “5 more minutes”. I’m ADHD and this helps me just unwind.
I know it’s not for everyone, but it’s silly that this is being pitched as revolutionary.
I have ADHD too and my smartphone is pure poison. It's way too addicting. I long back for the days I could just zone out on the bus while listening to music.
$499 hell no, max $70
At the heart of the Callback is a MediaTek Helio G81 SoC, with 4GB/64GB on board. A 32GB microSD card is included to get you started, too.
$70 is a bit low but yeah $500 bucks for this phone is just stupid. Max I think would be $150 to $200 just because that's the economy right now. It's not like these kinds of phones are hard to build.
As always these companies are overestimating the power of nostalgia.
Frankly, I'm not feeling it.
Long ago, Commodore trademark was just slapped on random junk.
It was my hope that when the Commodore trademark was recently acquired by folks who genuinely care about Commodore history, this sort of things would not happen again.
Makes me a bit apprehensive.
Just take my damn money
I would be interested, but the amount of paternalism is disgusting.
No browser? I'm an adult; if I want to google something I forgot (when was that event?), that's my f'ing right. Don't try to patronize me.
They sabotage themselves by trying to teach you "to be a better person".
No social media or internet browsering for you, young man! Now do your homework. 🙄
I'm not buying Linux, if the drivers aren't open.
Respect.
I don't share this stance (I prefer open, but it's not a deal breaker if most alternatives are even less open), but I greatly appreciate those who do.
Care to share your mobile OS preferences? I'm test driving GrapheneOS on my old Pixel 7 Pro, but not sure if it can fully replace my daily driver yet.
Can it still run Doom though?
I was thinking I'd have to spend almost that amount on a Pixel to install Graphene but this seems like it could be a fun alternative. I'll wait and see. I'm unemployed rn so a phone purchase is not a priority right now. Probably not until next year anyway.
Frutiger Aero is back in fashion!
Here is the things I would want it to have. 1. Be usable as a hotspot or tether for my computer 2 voice to text because I am not using the keypad to type out text. 3 touch screen for the few app I do use. That is all I need.
It does all that , read the faq
Yes, they do want that money. Holy moly, that's steep.
That one wasn't on my bingo card lol
I do not understand my need for this but I WANT IT BADLY.
This will flop. Iol be surprised if this gets more than 5 units sold to collectors.
I want this
“Sorry no U2” on the spec image is funny
Looks like one of those flip phones with large keys for elderly people. Looks like it's running Sailfish OS.
Includes audiophile grade HD Audio
I somehow doubt that
DAC chips from ESS and Cirrus Logic
What.
Yeah audiophile grade mobile players are fucking huge. So unless they made a breakthrough in audio hardware design, that's just not true.
Or maybe it's because "audiophile-grade" isn't an actual thing.
That's not necessarily true, look at the Hiby R3 Pro II for instance. Even older players like the FiiO X3 II or the iPod 5.5 Gen (which is considered audiophile by many).
LG waves hi from the grave
LG G6 with Quad-DAC!
The oldest initial users of the C64 are elderly now. Those folks were adults in the '80s when the machine came out.
And those of us who were kids at the time are now late forties, early fifties or thereabouts. Riiight about the age eyesight starts to go...
I have some of c64 stuff in my storage. Computer, disk drive, and monitor
It's niche hardware: a smartphone in a flip-phone formfactor (with a headphone jack). Of course they're not producing them for <$100. Ars Technica costed out other phones in a similar market category ( last paragraph here ) and by that standard it's middle-priced, or a bit above.
relevant to retrowebnet@retrofed.com maybe?
Good, I’ll buy one
I kinda like the phone. Would be a good phone for my daughter, but not at that price tag. I'd pay 150€ max.