this post was submitted on 14 Oct 2023
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Permacomputing
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Computing to support life on Earth
Computing in the age of climate crisis is often wasteful and adds nothing useful to our real life communities. Here we try to find out how to change that.
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Because then your device is still expensive, needs to be replaced after a couple of years, battery lasts a day only, apps need to be updated constantly, Google tracks you and if you drop it your screen breaks.
It's the worst of both worlds.
That being said, my middle ground solution is a Unihertz Atom. With its 2.4" screen you just won't use it unless you have to. But it still lets you look up info you really need on the internet or maps, use messenger apps, speech-to-text, swipe typing, second factor for banking, and a camera.
Cheap, durable, low-capability androids with user replaceable batteries exist. Install a de-googled version and google tracking is mitigated, though your carrier is still keeping tabs on you. "Dumbphones" still have software and need to be periodically updated against vulnerabilities.
That Atom actually looks really cool, thanks for introducing me to it.
There usually isn't one for cheap, low-capability phones.
Dumbphones aren't connected to the internet. The only data reaching them comes from your provider in the form of SMS and phone calls, so there is no attack vector.
If you don't need the Atom's ruggedness, but want a newer Android, the Jelly Star was just released.
I really like the rugged aesthetic and would have it on me for tunes while dirt biking.
Just for research I powered up my old ~2006 flip phone (yeah I do have a tech hoarding problem) and though it doesn't have wifi, one of its functions is a browser, so it's definitely still getting an IP address in one form or another. With the 3g discontinuation, I'm pretty sure even if a device doesn't use a data plan, it still gets an ipv6 address. Do carriers even support analog voice anymore, or is it all delivered digitally? I know AT&T priority push-to-talk traffic is digital transmission, even if the device doesn't have a data plan.