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You might be right about the performance, I don't use it much. But maybe it is OK for large files, which is probably the main point of MTP for many. I am not sure how could Google have done better here. UMS and MTP protocols were ready to use. While they could have created a new protocol, it they would need to persuade desktop OS vendors to implement it or to persuade users to install additional software just in order to transfer files. BTW, according to https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Media_Transfer_Protocol#Direct_modification_and_partial_transfer_features , Google seems to have ad

Well, I would also like to have a finer-grained permission model. But we need a reasonable trade-off. If the permission model gets too finer-grained from user perspective, users are not likely to be willing to consider all those permissions. Not giving the app the Internet permission looks nice, but it would be rather a false sense of security for preventing data exfiltration: * App can open links in web browser, which usually happens without user's contest. This is enough to exfiltrate some data. And even if there was user contest required, I don't think many people would understand

While OTA updates are a simple binary diff, the reason is different. With verified boot, dm-verity operates on block level. As a result, changing a single bit, even in timestamp or in unused area, can effectively break the device. As far as I remember, the size of the binary diffs is actually slightly larger than the size of file-based updates. But doing file-based updates on a storage protected by dm-verity would be very questionable and implementation-dependent.

Well, while there might have been plenty of reasons, I see some advantages of MTP over the mass storage. Mass storage provides the SD card (or some other internal memory) just as a raw block device. This has some implications: 1. The other OS needs to understand the filesystem. This limits the choices. FAT32 Is far from being a modern filesystem. ExFAT might not be the preferred way for multiple reasons, including fees and compatibility. (While the compatibility might not be a great deal today, the situation was completely different when Android was introduced, and maybe partially di

Security of temporary root – it can be actually less secure than having full root. Having a temporary root often means that you have an outdated system with a vulnerability that allows you to gain the privileges. The preconditions for the vulnerability might vary, but in general, this vulnerability can be also used by an attacker that meets the preconditions. If it is enough to just run some app, then the permission system on your phone is kind of gone and you essentially trust any app you download that it will not do that...

I really liked the KeyOne/KeyTwo form. It is small enough to control with a single hand. Yes, it is a trade-off, like everything else. On security – there is nothing specific revealed. It might be a marketing bs or a real thing, we don't know (yet). At minimum, I expect protection against known threats, i.e., monthly security updates. This is not unique (for example Pixel and Nokia phones have monthly security updates for three years), but I consider it as a minimum. Without this, I am not going to take seriously any security claim. We'll see. We also have yet to see the support period.

Well, I would also prefer a portrait keyboard, maybe rather non-slider at the cost of having a smaller screen. But even a Priv-like slider could be better. Nokia 9110 was an interesting concept, essentially trying to offer the best for both portrait and landscape. It would be cool to have both portrait and landscape QWERTY and to choose the best one for the current situation, but this would take some space and it might have been some even more niche product than the Pro1... But I don't expect any new model anytime soon. You can see many people waiting for production of the curren

For a device being viable, the manufacturer needs to cover both unit costs and fixed costs. The more units you sell, the less are the fixed costs noticable per unit. The fixed costs include: * R&D costs * Certification costs * Manufacturing preparation costs – if you want to mass-produce PCBs, plastic components etc., you need to produce some masks, which also isn't cheap. Once this is done, I see some effects: * More SKUs. There are at least 2 different (QWERTY and QWERTZ), which can make the logistics more complex. After all, F(x)rec has reportedly p

Virtual GBoard, Nokia 7.2, single hand: 10 WPM on the first test, 13 WPM on the second one. I can't try it with both hands these days, but I don't expect it to be much better, 20 WPM would be a surprise. Little background: Until recently, I've always had a phone with a physical keyboard (smartphones: SE X10 mini pro, SE Mini Pro, BB Priv, BB KeyOne, BB Key2), but the end of security updates for Key2 had caused me to buy the Nokia 7.2. I've kept some of my old habits, most notably looking at the text rather than looking at the keyboard. This is also supported by my computer keyboard w

Well, I have no idea about AT&T, but this can be potentially an issue. In my area (Czech Republic): * 4G is supported by all the major carriers and have a good coverage. * While VoLTE is also supported, it is not enough to just have a phone with VoLTE support. You need a phone that is explicitly allowed by the carrier, sometimes you also need the phone to be bought at the carrier. (Yes, this resembles the 1G/NMT times...) For a niche phone, you are likely out of luck. Sometimes, you might be successful with requesting an exception at the carrier. * 3G is also supported, but

Well, BlackBerry phones are dead soon. That is, even the latest ones will stop receiving any official security updates. With locked bootloader, we cannot simply do it for ourselves. (Well, we can use a chainloading hack at the cost of boot time…) Having no security updates is no-go for me. This is the reason why I am ordering a new phone. Pro1 is not perfect (I would have to unlock the bootloader and flash a GSI or so), but the issues have a solution. I am not going to wait much more. Currently, I am exploring a plan B with an external keyboard.

Sure, having some exact delivery date might not be realistic these days for some relatively new company. But on the other hand, the communication might have been better. Today's communication is rather like „we are doing our best“ and virtually nothing more. They also use phrases like “few devices”, which gives us just a little information. OK, I see that the number of produced might be secret and it is OK. But maybe some information like “all devices ordered on XX. YY. ZZZZ and sooner are shipped” or maybe “Your device is expected to be shipped on XX. YY. ZZZZ. Unfortunately, we cannot guaran

Short: I am afraid this is not easy to implement without sacrificing something else. Long: As far as I know, there are two designs of virtual SD. a. Virtual SD is on separate partitions. This works more like SD with all its advantages (USB mass storage, separate wipe) and disadvantages (separate space, FAT32). b. Virtual SD is on the same partition as /data. (Technically, it is mounted as a separate FUSE filesystem because of permissions and case sensitivity, but all the content is stored under /data.) This solves some issues of the older design, most notably separate stor

I have asked F(x)Tec at https://www.fxtec.com/contact/ and got the response. Unfortunately, I cannot share the response there for others, because the e-mail prohibits sharing any information. (It is probably a general footer not specific to this reply.)

@EskeRahn: You are probably right, it is likely a different kind of service. I just wanted to find the closest similar service of Czech Post. I am afraid that Czech Post provides no suitable service similar to this. IIRC, such service is provided by some private companies (maybe just for some specific eshops), but this does not help me if the phone is sent via Czech Post. Which is why I am asking.

Well, I could visit the post office (!) in order to get a P.O. box (and pay about 17 EUR for month). And I am also not sure if it can be used for packages like phone. But anyway, as getting a P.O.Box requires visiting the post office, it is not better than visiting the post office for getting the package itself.

Actually, the COVID-19 situation is the reason why I am asking. Even in standard times, Czech Post has not the best reputation – they sometimes pretend that you were not at home, so you have to go to the post office, wait and pick the package there. It is not so bad when delivering at company address, but that's not my option in the COVID-19 times. During COVID-19 times, many private companies have implemented contactless delivery – the delivery man lays the package on floor, goes away and waits for you to pick it. The state-funded Czech Post has implemented their own version of “contactl

Hello, If I order the phone to the Czech Republic, what company will deliver it to me? I would like to avoid Czech Post (Česká pošta). I have found someone mentioning FedEx, which would be probably OK. But you don't seem to mention how you deliver the phone just now, to it might have changed.

Hello, I have few questions. Note that I don't have they phone yet. 1. Does it use hardware-based key store? It should be available in Settings, probably under Security & location » Encryption & credentials » Storage type. 2. Does it wipe after 10 unsuccessful attempts to enter the PIN? 3. When I switch the selinux mode to enforcing, how much am I going to break?

Thank you for the answer. Actually, while the official statement could be useful, I rather wanted to see how much is the promise actually kept, which is something you answers. Yes, unofficial info can be more valuable than official promise 😥 While I understand that 2019-nCoV might delay something, I don't see the impact on software development. Software can be developed when working from home.

Hello, I barely remember there was some promise of security updates. However, I would like to ask something a bit different: How often and how early does F(x)tec actually publish those security updates?

On accidental pressing multiple keys: This is quite more complex. Proper key shape and key spacing can help. But it also depends on holding the phone and on angle of your thumbs. (I assume people usually type on phone keyboards with thumbs.) I have had various phones with physical QWERTY (SE Xperia X10 Mini Pro, SE Xperia Mini Pro, BlackBerry Priv, BlackBerry KeyOne, BlackBerry KEY2) and a different phone construction can imply different thumb angle when typing. The thumb angle can affect what keys you tend to hit – vertical neighbours, horizontal neighbours or diagonal neighbours. For exam

Well, that's true for computer keyboards. For phone keyboards, columnar layouts are quite common, maybe even majority, see https://www.google.com/search?q=phone+qwerty&client=ms-android-alcatel-rev1&prmd=isvn&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_wdvd2onlAhVLYVAKHZNTAgkQ_AUoAXoECBAQAQ&biw=486&bih=649 . Note that you can also see various oddly staggered phone keyboards. This also holds for virtual keyboards. For example, such mass-targeted product like iPhone aligns the “S” key with “Z” key. At least, we cannot consider staggering something that has a str

As far as I can see, the original Livermorium keyboard mod had a non-staggered layout, i.e., all the keys in columns. The same as BlackBerry and Sony Ericsson keyboard phones. The Fxtec Pro1 however has a staggered layout. Why? The staggering on computer keyboard is actually a relict from typewriters. I see this relict affects all mainstream compouter keyboards. OK, it is hard to be the first to make a change. But I wonder what is the reason for doing this change on a phone keyboard.