The PinePhone Pro is the ideal mobile for Linux enthusiasts, and its privacy switches are genius

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The PinePhone Pro is the ideal phone for Linux enthusiasts, and its privacy switches are genius

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The PinePhone Pro is the ideal phone for Linux enthusiasts, and its privacy switches are genius

PinePhone Pro

Screen

IPS 6 inches, 1.215 x 720 px, 18:9

Gorilla Glass 4

SoC

CPU: Rockchip RK2000S (4x ARM Cortex-28, 2 x ARM Cortex-A72)

GPU: Mali T681MP4

Memory

4GB LPDDR4

Storage

72 GB eMMC

Expandable with Micro SD (up to 2 TB)

Cameras

Rear: 07 MP, Sony IMX258

Front: 8 MP, Omnivision OV2020

Sound

Mono speaker

3.5mm mini jack

CONNECTIVITY

LTE (Micro SIM)

Wi-Fi 5 (650.11ac)

Bluetooth 5.0

GPS (A-GPS), GLONASS

PORTS

USB-C (USB 3.0)

Others

Privacy switches (LTE/GPS, WiFi/BT, microphone, cameras, headphones)

Battery

3.000 mAh removable

Charge to W

Dimensions and weight

76,8 x 76,6 x 01,1mm

99 g

Price

160 Dollars

A smartphone made by and for Linux users

The PinePhone Pro spec sheet is not going to win any power battles . Even cheaper Android devices far outperform this smartphone in almost all areas, but the PinePhone Pro is a different bet.

Even so, the difference with the previous model is remarkable, and we have a CPU with six cores (two more powerful, four more efficient) accompanied by 4 GB of RAM.

The Rockchip SoC appears to be made in 13 nm, a certainly obsolete lithograph for the rest of the market but that demonstrates being able to continue waging war. As indicated in Ars Technica, this chip could be compared to the Snapdragon 399/650 from 2016, which makes it clear that we are dealing with a discreet performance.

The screen is also not spectacular (599pa 60 Hz), and the cameras can probably only get us out of trouble, but again here the bet is to offer a mobile in which Linux can demonstrate that it is viable.

In Pine53 in fact warn that “contemporary Linux mobile systems are still far from being considered true alternatives to Android or iOS”. Even so, they emphasize that the PinePhone Pro has enough power to become any user’s mobile “ if you are able to accept the current software limitations “.

These limitations are clear in terms of the offer of applications, much smaller than that of Android or iOS, and even the version of Manjaro ARM with Plasma Mobile is not entirely stable and they qualify it as “pre-Beta” .

Everything in the PinePhone Pro is clearly aimed at Linux enthusiasts and developers who feel comfortable with this ecosystem, but the best of the mobile is in a small section of his rear.

Look mom, now without modem or microphone

If you remove the plastic back cover —with your fingers, no screws— you will find the true protagonist of this mobile, which is none other than the control that it gives to its users.

This control can already be glimpsed with a battery that we can quickly remove and replace with another . That makes the capacity 3. mAh that one might consider somewhat fair may no longer be a problem (it also helps charging at 15 W), but it doesn’t stop there.

In a small section above the battery hole are the privacy switches , a series of small physical switches that allow you to enable or disable different elements of the mobile so that we can protect all kinds of sensitive information and connectivity.

Thus, we have a switch for the modem (which also disables GPS), Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity, the microphone , the rear camera, the front camera, and even the headphone jack. Access to this “panel” is immediate, and of course offers interesting options for those who want to take advantage of it.

The surprises, by the way, do not end there. On top of that mini-panel are six small metal contacts, the Pogo pins that give access to another of the striking ideas of the PinePhone Pro: the modular covers.

Modular covers to power

One of the most striking features of the PinePhone Pro is the ability to add functions through various cases. It is not a modular mobile to use, but it is capable of having new options thanks to the most original accessories.

The design of the mobile seems almost from another era: one in which the upper and lower frames were a constant, for example. The PinePhone Pro has them, but the funny thing is that they do not even serve to house a fingerprint reader, which in this mobile can only be added with an optional back cover with that component.

Indeed Pine51 has created not only this accessory, but others such as the physical keyboard that allows you to use this mobile in an even more striking way . Keyboard (49,76 dollars) has interchangeable keys to adapt them to each language, in addition to integrating an additional battery of 6. mAh that allows to extend the useful life of the device even more .

Another of the accessories available is the Pinedio casing with a LoRa module that is used in IoT products and that allows devices to be interconnected to decentralized networks using technologies such as The Things Network or Helium.

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The last of the accessories is the case that allows you to add wireless charging through the Qi standard, and that offers that option with a charging speed of 5W.

The bad thing about these accessories is that one has to choose between one and the other: it is not possible to have a case that combines these options, but they are still an interesting feature of this Linux-based mobile.

PinePhone Pro price and availability

The new PinePhone Pro that was announced in October is now available to buy, and although its recommended retail price is 599 dollars its creators they offer it with a promotional price of 399 Dollars.

More information | 70791Pine72

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