Is Ubuntu touch still active?
this post was submitted on 27 Aug 2023
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Linux Phones
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Community about running GNU/Linux on phones. Projects like Ubuntu Touch, Plasma Mobile, PostmarketOS, Mobian etc. Either on former Android phones or hardware like the PinePhone.
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Very much so. Canonical stopped developing it a long time ago, but it's a community project now.
I got curious and looked up the supported devices, I've got an old xiaomi redmi note 8 lying around and they support the note 7, note 7 pro, the note 8 pro and the note 9 lol
Oh well
Thanx for info.
Keep in mind that none of these phones support the mainline kernel.
There are only 3 phones that supports mainline kernel: PinePhone, PinePhone Pro and Librem 5.
All other phones use Halium. In short, because there are no drivers, your phone will use Android container to talk to hardware.
The entire idea of Ubuntu Touch device support, was to be based on Halium. It's a bit different than regular mobile Linux (outside of Droidian, of course), where mainline is a requirement.
Sure, I just wanted to mention it. I personally learned about this not too long ago.
Thanx for info and answer about Halium.
@Shatur @markkdark what about OnePlus 6? IIRC there are just few missing bits in camera support, but otherwise it is mainline kernel
I probably phrased it wrong. There only 3 devices that can run mainline kernel and have fully functioning hardware. Yes, you can run mainline Linux on OnePlus 6 without camera and USB-OTG. I also think that there are some other minor issues. But on UBT camera in OnePlus 6 will work through Halium: https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/device/enchilada
I own OP6, on Ubuntu Touch it has an annoying bug with shutdown (see my other reply here).
On mobile Linux, though, it's quite close: camera is missing, GPS is a bit finicky about SIM card you use, I did not seriously test battery life yet. I plan to give it a proper try to daily drive it soon.
Thanks for your answer, I know and pine phone pro is a on my priority list, but it's still buggy with UBT.
True. PPP will be functional on other mobile Linux distributions that target mainline Linux. Like PostmarketOS or Mobian.
Also keep in mind that Ubuntu Touch doesn't support VoLTE at this time which is a problem if you live in the US where it's required for basic voice support.
Last I saw they were hoping to have it fixed by the end of the year but am unsure of the current progress.
Just look at https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/
I have a Pixel 3a and it's a really great port.
I'm looking at getting this phone to use with UT. Are there any bugs/limitations that I should know about? And do you have a sense of how long it will be supported for? Thanks :)
The Pixel 3a? As stated on https://devices.ubuntu-touch.io/ it's the best port out there (and my previous experience with a OG Volla/GS 290 confirms this). Now is Ubuntu Touch perfect? No, and everything depends on your use-case (and because of no VoLTE support, the region you are in also matters). You can also try Droidian (https://droidian.org/) with a Pixel 3a, so given likely availability of a working, used device for less than USD/EUR 100 you can't go wrong with it, IMHO.
I got a 3a and put UT on it but couldn't make mobile data work on a UK sim. It was the same for Droidian unfortunately. Droidian looked especially cool.
I waiting for use UT on my Pixel 6, this will be perfect, for use on newer phones.
It won't be much of help, but I have a few devices:
- Xperia X which so far works well, except that it feels like the phone's internals are a bit too slow for today's standards, so even if I will use it for the time being, if I were yo,u I would pick something more powerful.
- OnePlus 6 which would be very cool (especially that it's one of the best phones for regular 'mobile Linux' so far), if not for shutdown being bugged, which results in time getting reset on every boot. But it's fast enough, and I hope the bug will eventually get a fix.
- last time I tried PPP was not good enough, but it's been ~2 months ago and support was quite fresh. Might need to check again.
Thanx for info and answers. Best regards