[HN Gopher] The Pyra Handheld Linux PC is Shipping
___________________________________________________________________
The Pyra Handheld Linux PC is Shipping
Author : ekianjo
Score : 75 points
Date : 2021-01-24 09:45 UTC (1 days ago)
(HTM) web link (boilingsteam.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (boilingsteam.com)
| GNU_James wrote:
| Ye, no. I have x86 GPD MicroPC with a powerbank and I don't need
| no ARM.
| spijdar wrote:
| Man, I remember stumbling on this project every few years. 5 or
| so years ago I remember being tempted to preorder one, but
| decided I'd just wait until it was ready.
|
| Now it just kind of makes me sad. Sure, some people will be
| really happy with this, and I hope they enjoy them, but for most
| use cases there's just so many better products out nowadays IMO.
|
| Because of the GPU it's not really suited to be positioned as an
| "open source friendly" design, and if that's not important, GPD
| has a lot of really good products now. Most aren't quite as
| small, granted, but I imagine a pinephone with a keyboard case
| would be a close match. The physical controls (especially for
| gaming) probably wouldn't be as good, though...
| ekianjo wrote:
| > GPD has a lot of really good products now.
|
| GPD's keyboards are notoriously bad so far for their handhelds.
| The Pyra's keyboard is small but has been crafted to be quite
| usable for thumb typing. (Even the Pandora was quite OK in that
| regard).
| spijdar wrote:
| Yeah giving it a second thought, I was too quick to praise
| products I haven't used.
|
| I should have said that I've heard lots of good things about.
| Still, given the price and performance deltas, I'm not sure
| the keyboard would be enough to persuade me, personally. The
| _exact_ form factor is still definitely unique, as the
| article mentions, at least.
| progman32 wrote:
| GPD MicroPC owner here. Keyboard is mechanically reliable
| so far. It's nice and tactile. Because of the width of the
| device thumb typing can get a little tiring, and there's no
| way to touch type (too small). Overall, while I'd prefer a
| full layout like on the Toshiba Libretto 50CT, I've no real
| complaints given the size and what I use it for (basic
| mobile troubleshooting and light CLI).
|
| That being said, if there's a USB keyboard within 50 feet
| of me, I'll grab it instead of using the built-in.
| guru_meditation wrote:
| Writing this from a GPD Pocket 2 (see my reply above):
|
| The key size is very similar to a standard laptop for most
| keys. The key travel is longer than that of a 13" MacBook
| Pro, and I guarantee it because I use both daily.
|
| 60+ WPM after a few days of use. Have 80-100WPM on my MacBook
| Pro.
|
| The adjustment comes from having a QWERTY keyboard layout
| where some of the keys have been reduced in size to fit.
| Space bar is half the size, Return is the size of a standard
| key and you only get the left modifier keys (ctrl, fn, win,
| alt) and the keys past the letter P to the right are
| scattered elsewhere. IMHO very good trade offs as the arrow
| keys are full size. The coding keys (curly braces, brackets,
| pipe, etc.) are in a non standard location, so take longer to
| adjust to.
| ekianjo wrote:
| I was referring to the GPD win. The pocket is a different
| category in terms of size.
| GNU_James wrote:
| I use microPC as my main mobile device. I'm posting from GPD
| right now. What's wrong with the keyboard, Sir?
| ekianjo wrote:
| I don't know about the microPC, but I used the GPD Win
| keyboards before (1 and 2) and the key placement was quite
| awkward.
| GNU_James wrote:
| I used my plastic human brain to get used to the key
| placement. Now I can type quicker than on a smartphone.
| It's all in your head, man.
| guru_meditation wrote:
| A recent convert to GPD Pocket 2. Decades of programming
| experience from kernel hacking to 3d engines and distributed
| systems.
|
| After a few days reached 60-80 wpm (depending on the typing
| test). A drop of ca. 20 wpm from my 13" MacBook Pro.
|
| Installed a dual booting Ubuntu 20.04 Mate LTS. Comes with all
| the necessary open source drivers. Make sure to get the pre-
| baked distro for GPD Pocket 2 from Canonical's website. Intel
| Graphics acceleration works flawlessly as do all the GPU
| acceleration options in Firefox. Installing Compiz as a
| compositing manager really speeds everything up.
|
| Now use this more often than my Macbook Pro. In fact, the GPD
| Pocket's touchscreen spoiled me and now I keep pressing on
| normal laptop's screens expecting for things to happen :D.
| GPD's substitute for a mouse is incredibly precise, a huge
| surprise as my expectations were super low for such an unproven
| solution. Think of it as some sort of capacitive/optoelectric
| Lenovo nub in the corner of the keyboard.
|
| Ultimate hackery: The keyboard has a fan on/off switch as the
| Celeron provided has an operating range of up to 100C. So if
| you don't need the highest clock rate, turn off the fan with
| one key press :D
|
| Hoping fellow hackers appreciate this review. Of course, this
| post is written from my GPD Pocket 2.
|
| P.S. Also running Wine, PlayOnLinux, WinUAE and AROS. 8 GB RAM
| and 256 GB SSD make it easy to be cavalier about resource use.
| Performance wise you'll be fines as long as you're not
| compiling large codebases, editing large videos or expecting to
| raytrace animations in Blender...
| bserge wrote:
| Since this thread has a lot of people interested in obscure/niche
| tech, would anyone comment on this idea:
|
| A single eye VR/AR headset, think a Borg ocular implant, but
| smaller and nicer looking. With a high quality camera for see-
| through functionality. Used as a HUD for, well, anything. Reading
| web pages, Google Maps, Google Search and Assistant, notes,
| schedule, how to instructions, etc.
|
| Definitely a very niche product (then again, so was Google
| Glass), but I would love to make one haha. Best thing is, anyone
| could build it using easily available components and software.
| https://github.com/relativty/Relativty was my inspiration, I see
| no reason why that wouldn't work in non-3D on a single display.
|
| Anyone have any thoughts?
|
| (Also, if you want to build it, hire me, I would work on this
| 12hrs/day for ramen money heh)
| hug wrote:
| It's not at all see-through, but the Vufine+ exists -- it's a
| single-eye HMD.
|
| I've been vaguely interested in buying one for quite a while,
| although it's one of those purchases I haven't made (and
| probably won't) because I can't actually see any real use for
| it.
|
| https://store.vufine.com/
| samatman wrote:
| I think it's a cool idea, but "see-through functionality" isn't
| possible with today's hardware.
|
| Eyes work in tandem, including focus. If you have a screen over
| one eye, there's no good way to have what's displaying on the
| screen cooperate with what the other eye is doing.
|
| Similarly, I think VR is out: sending disparate signals to each
| eye would be murder on the inner ear. So that leaves a Google
| Glass-style AR overlay, which remains an ok idea, but is
| apparently pretty hard to get right.
| barrenko wrote:
| May sound weird, but I had the same exact idea when I was a
| kid.
| vnxli wrote:
| You mean a saiyan scouter?
| https://dragonball.fandom.com/wiki/Scouter
|
| Always wanted one. So bad. I don't think our tech is there, we
| still can't accurately measure someone's power levels. But one
| day, our grandchildren will and it will be beautiful
| mrtweetyhack wrote:
| hard pressed to find an alternative? Connect a keyboard to a
| rooted tablet/smartphone, done.
| jandrese wrote:
| For the price point and chunky design I was really expecting an
| RJ45 port. Sure you can put a USB dongle on there, but for
| something this geeky I was expecting it to be built-in.
|
| A serial port wouldn't have been out of place either. This is
| small enough you could have it on your belt and use it to console
| into ailing servers or esoteric pieces of hardware.
|
| As it is, it feels like a toy. A very expensive toy.
| windexh8er wrote:
| I was thinking the same thing. Something more inline with the
| GPD Micro PC [0].
|
| [0] https://www.gpd.hk/gpdmicropc
| tastyfreeze wrote:
| That is a sexy piece of gear. Still a niche product but for
| people that need a full machine for interfacing with other
| hardware this blows a heavy laptop away.
| jandrese wrote:
| Damn, that thing blows the Pyra out of the water and at
| roughly half of the price.
| progman32 wrote:
| I have one and I can confirm it's great. They even provide
| a Linux image for it (but I stuck my $FAVORITE_DISTRO on it
| with minimal fuss). The fact that it has an Intel CPU and
| can run plain Windows is a big plus in my book over the
| Pyra, but that's just my preference.
|
| Built in ethernet and serial port have proven useful as I'm
| running around debugging networks.
|
| What I really have been searching for, however, is a clone
| of the Toshiba Libretto 50CT with a modern CPU and ports.
| To me that represented the peak of micro computers. The
| keyboard is small but usable, the mouse is fantastic (you
| grip the screen, the buttons are on the back of the screen
| - don't knock it till you try it). I'm lowkey considering
| making a replacement PCB for it.
| guru_meditation wrote:
| Trying not to spam, but extremely satisfied with GPD
| Pocket 2, which I purchased recently. Old enough to have
| used the very first laptops on the market, was looking
| for a Libretto-like machine, settled with this.
|
| What drove me to GPD Pocket 2 was the key size, massive
| RAM and SSD and that it is extensively supported in the
| new Linux kernel and several mainstream distros (Ubuntu,
| Ubuntu Mate, Linux Mint, Arch). Delighted to report that
| I type faster on this than a lot of fellow engineers on a
| standard PC.
| jandrese wrote:
| Back in the day we used the half height Sony Vaios a lot
| for stuff like this. Unfortunately I think Sony stopped
| making those about a decade ago.
| ekianjo wrote:
| > perfect support for Ubuntu MATE 18.10
|
| I hope they support more recent distros...
| progman32 wrote:
| I stuck a recent Kubuntu on mine with no big issue. The
| screen is wired in sideways though so you'll have to tell
| your DE to rotate the display (or xrandr --rotate).
| Everything else just worked.
| ekianjo wrote:
| Thanks for reporting. How do you like that device so far?
| What do you use it mainly for?
| progman32 wrote:
| Love it when used in its niche (for me):
|
| - Walking around a building, working on the network.
|
| - Those occasions where I "might need a computer" but
| don't want to lug around a bag. Traveling for pleasure,
| while on-call at work, etc. Thing fits in my jacket
| pocket.
|
| - Working on my car (plugging into the OBD port, tuning,
| etc).
|
| - Gaming/video while traveling. Its single-channel memory
| severely limits what you can play (unlike GPD's gaming
| line), but I'm into oldschool and indie games so it's
| fine. I could use my phone but I like PC games and
| software better.
|
| Also it's weird and I like weird things :)
|
| I wouldn't recommend it as a primary workstation unless
| your situation really calls for it. I've used it with a
| USB-C docking station as a primary machine while I was
| between homes. It worked fine, bit slow. Went back to my
| Zen2 beast as soon as possible.
|
| It charges and runs off of a normal USB-C power bank,
| which gives me ridiculous runtime for cheap. My "minimal"
| travel kit has the GPD, my phone, and one charger between
| the two. Crazy capability in a jacket pocket.
|
| Things I don't like about it:
|
| - Whiny fan. Not sure what could be done, it's so tiny...
| you can turn it off with a handy switch above the
| keyboard, but I don't really like doing that.
|
| - Single channel memory. Severely cripples the GPU. GPD's
| gaming machines don't have this issue.
|
| - No video output over USB-C, you have to use the full-
| size HDMI.
|
| - Display is wired sideways. Linux/GRUB doesn't auto
| detect this; Windows does.
|
| - Wish it had a nub mouse. Would free up space for a more
| normal KB layout.
|
| Edit: formatting
| guru_meditation wrote:
| Linux/GRUB protip:
|
| GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX_DEFAULT="video=efifb
| fbcon=rotate_all:1 quiet" GRUB_CMDLINE_LINUX="video=efifb
| fbcon=rotate_all:1 quiet splash noautomount"
| GRUB_GFXMODE=1200x1920x32
|
| ( see here: https://www.reddit.com/r/GPDPocket/comments/9
| sl9sp/grub_land... )
|
| More super-handy GPD patches
| https://github.com/stockmind/gpd-pocket-ubuntu-respin
|
| (Note: a lot of this is not needed anymore and mainlined
| into Ubuntu 20, Linux Mint 20, etc.)
| GNU_James wrote:
| >The closest thing that comes to it is the GPD Win series, but
| there's no official Linux support there, and it's not ARM based.
|
| Cool lies there. Linux Mint exists and runs on GPD products.
| ekianjo wrote:
| Notice the "official support" there. GPD does not officially
| provide any Linux distro installed on their devices (at least
| the GPD Win series, which is the what comes the closest to the
| Pyra). You have to do it all yourself - and the GPD Win 2, at
| launch, needed some extra patches on Linux for its specific
| controls (not provided by GPD, that goes without saying).
| jandrese wrote:
| https://www.gpd.hk/gpdmicropc
|
| Near the bottom of the page they say:
|
| > Furthermore, under the strategic cooperation with Ubuntu
| MATE, MicroPC will support Ubuntu MATE 18.10. At that time,
| you may download the Ubuntu MATE 18.10 firmware on the GPD
| official website and crowdfunding update area. The shipped
| machine defaults to Windows 10 Pro.
|
| If you go to their site they have the Linux distro available
| for download under the "Linux Firmware and Hackintosh" tab:
|
| https://www.gpd.hk/gpd_micropc_firmware_driver_bios
| dang wrote:
| If curious see also
|
| 3 months ago https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=25015999
|
| 2016 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11606007
|
| 2016 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=11277408
|
| 2015 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9463032
| tyingq wrote:
| Reminds me of the old HP Jornada 680 I had. I really wanted it to
| be able to do rudimentary support when I was on the go, but
| ultimately went back to a laptop because it was just too tedious
| without a real keyboard. Perhaps, though, things have changed
| enough that these tiny devices are more practical now.
|
| They looked like this:
| https://preview.redd.it/nnf9bvpmgpk51.jpg?width=640&crop=sma...
| ekianjo wrote:
| Kind of looks like the Psion series?
| tyingq wrote:
| Yes, they were very similar. For example:
| http://www.lowlevel.cz/log/imgs/gemini/pdas.jpg
| ekianjo wrote:
| What's that Nokia device on the top right hand corner?
| tyingq wrote:
| Nokia E90:
| https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nokia_E90_Communicator
| 1996 wrote:
| On schedule, it would have been a coin toss: no RJ45, no serial,
| so little use to techs who don't want to carry a USB adapter.
|
| It's DOA in 2021: no USBC, outdated CPU, thicker than a brick.
|
| The replaceable CPU board might have been a good idea _IF_ it had
| been in say the NVidia jetson format. As it is, it just add bulks
| without any replacement currently available.
|
| Hopefully, raspberry or odroid or someone else will popularize a
| board format, a bit like how MXM became standard for PCIe GPUs.
|
| Having M2 for the SSD, Wifi and WWAN is something else I'd want
| in such a small device - so if it's late to the market, just
| replace the boards, and you're good to go.
| geophile wrote:
| There seems to be a bunch of these pocket Linux systems lately. I
| bought the Gemini PDA a couple of years ago
| (https://store.planetcom.co.uk/collections/gemini-
| pda/product...). If you remember the Psion 5mx, (a contemporary
| of the later Palms), it had an absolutely amazing keyboard. The
| designer of that machine was involved, and the Gemini looks like
| an updated 5mx. The display is touch-sensitive.
|
| You can configure the Gemini to run Linux, which I have done. It
| took a bit of doing, but it works. Once you do that, you have a
| pocket Linux, with a surprisingly capable keyboard, considering
| the size. This appears to be far more attractive than these other
| pocket Linux systems, with their inferior-looking keyboards. So I
| wouldn't trade the Gemini for these alternatives.
|
| And I never use it. I bring it with me, but I never use it. It is
| still far less comfortable than using a laptop. Even on an
| airplane (economy seat), I prefer the awkwardness of using a
| laptop, to the compromises required by the Gemini.
| derekp7 wrote:
| I have a Gemini also, and have backed the Astro Slide. However,
| I think the Gemini fits in that very awkward space where the
| keyboard is too small to touch type on, yet too big to use in
| handheld mode. I much prefer the slide out keyboard on the
| Nokia N810 (but still wouldn't be able to "code" on it).
|
| The best micro keyboard I've ever typed on is an Apple Newton
| keyboard that I interfaced with a Palm Pilot. The key spacing
| is 90% of a regular keyboard, which is about the smallest I can
| go and still touch type. I really wish I had a modern day
| portable device with this keyboard form factor.
| [deleted]
| EvanAnderson wrote:
| Thanks for taking the time to write that. I never used the
| Psion PDAs, but the Gemini (and its successor the Cosmo
| Communicator) looked really exciting to me. I was unwilling to
| spend the money because I wasn't really sure I'd _use_ the
| thing. The number of situations where I want a computer with a
| dedicated keyboard with me but only have my phone are probably
| a lot fewer than I think.
| cstross wrote:
| If the Gemini was a Psion 5 only Android/Linux based, the
| Cosmo was aiming more at the Nokia Communicator design space
| -- it was much better at telephony than the Gemini.
|
| But neither of them worked _quite_ right, so Planet Computers
| are now prototyping the Astro Slide, for shipping this summer
| (but: expect delays -- they 're usually a bit optimistic on
| their forecasts, and that's without COVID19 on top). The
| Astro Slide is basically a fat phablet phone with a slide-out
| Psion-style keyboard (the Psion 5's designer, Martin
| Riddiford, is responsible for the keyboard design on all
| three Planet Computing machines):
|
| https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/astro-
| slide-5g-transforme...
| wastholm wrote:
| Just as a counterpoint, I do use mine. Not as much as I thought
| I would, but quite a bit. Sure, a laptop keyboard is a lot more
| comfortable, but a laptop is also so much bulkier and heavier
| to lug around. And no laptop of mine has mobile data built
| right into it.
| smetj wrote:
| Any reason to choose this over a Linux enabled chromebook?
| [deleted]
| anfractuosity wrote:
| I'm rather curious about this handheld linux computer -
| https://pocket.popcorncomputer.com/
|
| Around $200-300, but will wait to see some reviews I think.
| floren wrote:
| Hah, I went to school with Jose and Alan (on the Popcorn team).
| Great guys... seeing their names has me ready to order!
| maxbaines wrote:
| this looks pretty cool, will be watching out for this one.
| berrynice wrote:
| Given this has a cell modem could you run Mobian on it and use it
| as a chunky phone?
| amelius wrote:
| 745 dollar seems too expensive based on its parts. I'm hoping the
| rpi will at some point come in this form factor.
| nickdothutton wrote:
| The SoC is from 2011, I really wish they had got to market
| sooner.
| vzaliva wrote:
| I am curious what is the use-case for such computers. I was a
| heavy PDA user in older days, but now between very powerful
| smartphones and very slim laptops I could not come up with any
| scenarios where I would use a PDA like that.
| Brian_K_White wrote:
| For the same money, and more apparent usefulness in a much
| smaller form, I'm getting a
| https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/pro1-x-smartphone-functio...
| ogre_codes wrote:
| Years ago I learned my lesson about preordering technology
| products. It's a lot easier to create a nifty demo of something
| than it is to build something at scale. I got suckered by the
| Lilly drone and managed to get a refund before things started to
| go south and that was my last "Ooops".
|
| The biggest problem with this (and many tech preorders/
| Kickstarters) is that by the time they iron out all the
| production bugs and software issues, the product is obsolete.
| Even if the product ships in a timely fashion and isn't obsolete
| at launch, often you can just order it or a competing product for
| the same as the pre-order cost or often less.
|
| For board games and some other non-tech products, pre-ordering
| makes sense because the product is often unique and not available
| outside pre-order. For tech stuff, stay well clear.
| spijdar wrote:
| Oh man, the Lilly! Waaaay back, I preordered a UAV around the
| same time, the "Sprite" drone [0]. I was still in my mid teens
| at the time, and very ... well, stupid. I wanted something to
| help take ortho images to stitch together for maps and use
| machine learning to identify objects from aerial imagery and
| other ambitious crap.
|
| Of course, it took years and years for the project to deliver.
| The guys behind it kept laboring though, and sent monthly
| updates, which I'd usually glance over at least. Years and
| years of those (detailed!) monthly updates.
|
| I remember they had joked early on they'd "beat" the Lilly to
| production. Well, they did ;)
|
| Many years later, I'd all but forgotten about it, and was about
| to graduate college when it finally arrived.
|
| I got it set up, took it out for a test flight. Then a second
| flight -- and on the second flight, it ignored RC input and
| flew away, (thankfully!!) crashing into a tree trunk at
| probably between 30-40 MPH. Despite being "ruggedized", there
| was a single large plastic gear somewhere between the main
| motor and the rotor assembly which would essentially take the
| blunt of any lateral impact, and shattered to bits. Was a
| custom part, so no trivial repair job.
|
| The cost to ship + repair it would have been significantly more
| than a brand new DJI something or another. I can't remember.
| Much better quadrocopter, better camera, better control system.
|
| I learned then that even if an idea makes it to market, not
| only will it probably be obsolete, but even if the creators got
| the idea to market, not all ideas are great ideas in the first
| place. In this case, despite being "ruggedized", no amount of
| polymer shielding will really prevent a high drop or impact
| from destroying the drive train and sensitive electronics.
|
| Most of the public accounts I can find about it mention
| something breaking on impact or it flying away. There was a
| google plus group (hah!) of "fans" that withered out a month or
| two after release. A year or so afterwards, the company
| silently erased the product from their homepage, and shifted
| gears to selling to military/government contracts.
|
| [0]
| https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ascentaerosystems/sprit...
| ogre_codes wrote:
| Looks like many of the same ideas which made the Lilly so
| popular. For me it was the ability to follow a person.
|
| The friend who recommended the Lilly wound up getting screwed
| along with thousands of other people. I still haven't bought
| a drone, haven't found one which does the things I care about
| well enough at a reasonable price.
| spijdar wrote:
| Yeah that really sucks for everyone involved.
|
| This was the drone I remember finding (well, the older
| version back then): https://www.dji.com/mavic-air-2
|
| I'm absolutely not endorsing it especially since I never
| actually bought it (or anything else), but on paper it
| looks so, soooo much better than the various kickstarter
| drones, both failed and delivered. It's also a very real
| product and very quick searching showed people actually
| using the thing, and it appears to hold up to its marketing
| claims.
|
| If I was still as interested in getting that aerial
| photography, this seems like an obvious choice. Ah well.
| ubermonkey wrote:
| I have absolutely no use for this but I WANT IT.
| YeGoblynQueenne wrote:
| >> It was designed to be the successor of the Open Pandora (an
| excellent device that predates smartphones) which led to numerous
| innovations in the ARM space (the creator of Box86, for example,
| comes from the Open Pandora community).
|
| I remember the Pandora. I had pre-ordered one from the UK
| company. Its announcement coincided with a thing I had for small-
| form clamshells. I had a Saurus, a Viliv and a Nanonote. The
| Nanonote was open, both hardware and software, and I was
| expecting the same high quality development process from the
| Pandora as I had seen in the Nanonote team. I was _so_ excited
| about Pandora!
|
| Then of course...
|
| _In March 2013, the pre-order queue of the German OpenPandora
| GmbH company (owned by Michael Mrozek aka EvilDragon) was finally
| cleared.[18] The remaining pre-order queue of the UK OpenPandora
| Ltd. company (owned by Craig Rothwell) turned out to be
| significantly larger than originally reported, and the UK company
| has requested to be struck off.[19] This means that the original
| pre-orderers at the UK company are unlikely to ever get their
| unit from the UK company. Also because of this, buyers have lost
| their money. Although there is no legal connection between the
| two companies, the German OpenPandora GmbH company is trying to
| help those UK customers by offering them significant discounts
| (if they decide to buy a unit from the German company instead of
| waiting for the UK company) and by organizing community donations
| to get them peer-funded units.[20]_
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pandora_(console)#History
|
| ... it got stuck in development hell. I bailed early and managed
| to get my pre-order money back, but I was probably one of the
| few. I guess, if we had all held on to our faith, we 'd have
| gotten our devices right about now. Only ten years later!
|
| Unfortunately, the same thing seems to be happening with the
| Pyra.
|
| >> The DragonBox Pyra has had a difficult development process,
| with numerous hardware (and mold) related issues during its
| design. It was kind of supposed to be ready to come out a few
| years ago, but every time you'd think "hey, it's just 2 months
| away now!" it would be delayed again and again - for yet
| completely valid reasons.
| ekianjo wrote:
| > But it's all completely valid reasons. Yep.
|
| I have been following the Pandora situation with the UK at the
| time, it the mess was directly linked to the second guy who
| supported the project and bailed out with the pre-order money
| (allegedly). EvilDragon, who is now leading the Pyra
| development efforts, has always been very transparent about
| what's happening since day 1 on the development of the Pyra:
| explaining in details all technical issues found, and how long
| their suppliers would take to react with a new version of the
| board, the mold, or other parts.
|
| Hardware development takes time and they have very few people
| working on that project, and most of that work is part time. So
| any issue resolution takes 10x longer than what you would
| expect in a typical project as well.
| YeGoblynQueenne wrote:
| Hi. I removed the bit you quote because I didn't want my
| comment to come across as an attack or defamation attempt
| against anyone.
|
| I remember EvilDragon - you say he was "transparent". He was.
| He was also fundamentally incapable of finishing the project
| he took on in any reasonable amount of time, despite repeated
| assurances that everything was going to go swimmingly from
| now on. In the end of the day, you take up a project, you
| take forever to realise it, it's just a bad result and
| there's nobody else to blame.
|
| "The second guy" (Craig Rothwel, according to wikipedia)
| fucked up in a different way. Clearly, his company took too
| many preorders without having any hope to ever fulfill them.
| But that's just another nail in the coffin- not an excuse for
| EvilDragon to fuck up his own part of the project.
|
| Sorry, I'm speaking harsher words than I want to speak. These
| guys really came across as visionnairies - at least they did
| to me back then. I was very disappointed by their failures.
| ekianjo wrote:
| > In the end of the day, you take up a project, you take
| forever to realise it, it's just a bad result and there's
| nobody else to blame.
|
| I think this is a valid point to make. I am also
| disappointed, to be honest, that the Pyra took so long to
| complete.
| YeGoblynQueenne wrote:
| If you haven't already, I really wish you to hold one in
| your hands, soon.
| djaychela wrote:
| I pre-ordered a Pandora, and waited years (4?) for it.
|
| By the time it arrived, I'd moved on and wasn't really
| interested in it, so I put it on eBay the very same day. Due to
| the scarcity of them at that time (I was a reasonably early
| pre-order, but certainly not first in the queue), I managed to
| sell it for more than double my cost, which was at least nice
| for me. It was only about 18 months later when I read something
| about it and realised there were still people waiting that I
| understood how lucky I'd been!
| monkmartinez wrote:
| Cyberdecks are super cool and this reminds me of them... at least
| as far as form factor is concerned. I agree with some posters
| here that this thing is DOA. One can build a really cool
| cyberdeck with a ton more functionality for a fraction of the
| price. There are hundreds of examples on /r/cyberDeck
| mindcrime wrote:
| _There are hundreds of examples on /r/cyberDeck_
|
| Oh man, how did I not know that sub existed?? I don't know
| whether to thank you profusely for pointing that out, or curse
| at you for contributing One More Thing to the massive list of
| things I want to sink time into! :p
| Palomides wrote:
| cyberdecks are cool, but it doesn't seem like any of them are
| particularly compact, which is the hard part
|
| if you don't care about size, use a laptop, if you don't care
| about keyboard and controls, use a phone
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