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I am excited to update you guys on life with the @furilabs@fosstodon.org FLX1s, a new Linux smartphone that follows and improves on their previous model, the FLX1.

I've been daily driving it since shortly after I received it - over a month now! And, yes, you read that correctly: it is a daily driveable Linux phone. I have had to make a few minor compromises but a lot of it comes down to the fact that the mobile app ecosystem on Linux isn't as expansive as those of other platforms and isn't targeted by developers. Fortunately, the phone includes a Waydroid fork called Andromeda which makes it a breeze to launch and use most Android apps but, unfortunately, those relying on direct hardware and/or networking access may not function correctly. For example, you lose access to Roku Private Listening and my RingConn Gen 2 smartring is essentially a dumbring now. The great thing is, though, that if you are a developer, you have a lot of opportunities to chip in!

I wouldn't call myself anything close to a developer but I've made what I hope are meaningful, if minor, contributions. I've added to the FAQ via a merge request. I managed to pin down a small environmental variable change that would allow Qt6 flatpaks to render correctly at certain scaling. I got a merge request accepted to upstream Phosh that changes the bluetooth tile in quick settings to list devices by aliases instead of names. I've made and shared a handful of scripts to improve mobile usability (like ramping up alarm volume, being able to pre-dismiss alarms, automatic nightlight/dark theme/do-not-disturb settings) and I have more in the works. There is an active, engaged, and incredibly helpful community in their Matrix room (and the web forum) who have also been contributing in all sorts of amazing ways (most in ways far exceeding my small skill set).

Speaking of which, there is nearly always a member of the @furilabs@fosstodon.org team in the chat willing to provide one-on-one troubleshooting covering anything from payment and shipment hiccups to mobile network issues. They are friendly and approachable and the accessibility is something I am not accustomed to.

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