you can keep your iPhone

[lo5an]

I, personally, want an OpenMoko phone. What do you want to be it already runs But emacs? (speaking of which, I found a utility that gives you emacs keybindings in pretty much every Windows application... But then, I'm weird. I just picked a web based address book tool because of the export tools it provides... "Sure, features are nice... but what's

Comments

[lo5an]

You understand correctly. Open Moko is an open source mobile phone operating system . Actually, it's even cooler than just being able to write apps, which you can, in theory, do for many existing phones. The entire software stack is open source, so you can even make changes to the operating system, if you've got the chops and the motivation.

Most phones are really locked down by the phone companies that you get them from. The phone company usually configures your phone to take away lots of functionality before they sell it to you. They will often, for instance, make the phone only usable with their network.

That's part of why you can often get such big discounts on phones. And, from a usability stand point, it makes a certain degree of sense. Taking away the ability to change their phone's setting so that it no longer functions with their carrier is going to prevent a lot of support calls. ( It is, in part, an application of the principle of least privilege.)

At the same time, though, most phones can run a variety of user installed applications. Smart phones, especially. Also, some people buy unlocked phones, or have their phones unlocked by a third party, and most mobile phone companies will sell you a data plan and modem for use with a laptop. So, mobile phone companies can't be relying on the fact that only trusted applications will be run on devices connected to their network.

I've just started reading about Open Moko, but it looks like people aren't so much worried that the phone companies will forbid Open Moko phones as they are that the phone companies will force people to get laptop data plans in order to use one (phone plans are much cheaper).