I hope they succeed, it's a very tough market.
They probably need a lot of ducks to line up in a row. But the current privacy wave and the push for digital sovereignty in Europe might help.
this post was submitted on 05 Dec 2025
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Kinda. But also kinda not. The cost of getting a phone made has decreased and there are many, many manufacturers who can make one for you these days. From that perspective, if you have small niche where people are alright with paying a bit of a premium, it may in fact be easier to make a phone for them than say in 2012.
The total device cost will be 499 EUR or 599~699 EUR as the "normal" price with the voucher deducting from the phone's cost if/when available.
This price for a low volume device would have been completely unachievable in 2012.
Get me a linux smart phone with a headphone jack and I will buy it in a heartbeat, but I don't think very many other people will.
I hope they succeed. Given Alphabet/Google's recent moves to try and lock Android's app ecosystem down and them just generally becoming more Evil every day, GrapheneOS and LineageOS etc. may be living on borrowed time.
I watched a video reviewing some phones smuggled out of North Korea a few days ago and it's truly scary what the endgame of locked mobile phones looks like and given the trends worldwide towards authoritarianism, we're frogs being boiled slowly toward the same situation.
I really want one. But I'm not buying any tech product until my existing one turns to dust and no amount of solder can put it back together. So maybe in five or six years?
Hmm... Gimme a headphone jack option and I'll try getting in on that crowdfunding, if they let me do it from the US.
Yikes, the AI computer thing gives me the ick; however, it seems that they are being a bit less nonsense with a smartphone. Though, given the market trends, it will be a tough space to break into because there are so many established brands. However, if Jolla can put their whole ass into this and make it privacy focused and consumer friendly Linux smartphone...They might stand a chance. Also, I hope they also make a larger screened device, I am tired of the smaller 6.3 inch screens. I'd love for them to make a 6.7 inch screen phone (also make it international version with a lot of carrier compatibility for maximum adoption potential).
I've looked at their Sailfish OS and honestly wished it were chosen by corporations more often...As the overall design seems quite nice, while being approachable. You are allowed to be as hands off or as hands on as you'd like to be with getting into the guts of this OS.
I am really excited. I don't think it will really have much of a market in the US but I think it could have a chance in Europe.