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While I really like the idea of a feature phone that can has some smarts, can function as a WiFi hotspot, and has battery life to allow charging only once a wee

by mikece 7y ago

While I really like the idea of a feature phone that can has some smarts, can function as a WiFi hotspot, and has battery life to allow charging only once a week, if there's no ability to write apps that are compiled to binary code then I have to wonder how much the JavaScript VM powering aps is going to drain the battery compared to an app that was written in C/C++.

celliopia 7y ago
Given the target devices for KaiOS, wouldn't AOT compiled apps have the problem of not being sure which CPU will be supported? It's probably not as big of an issue today but at the inexpensive, low-power side of the spectrum there might be a diversity of CPUs within a year or two... is KaiOS going to host compiler services in the cloud to dynamically compile apps for the myriad possible CPUs out there? While consuming more battery, using JavaScript to power the apps not only lowers the barrier to entry for app developers but creates a common target for all hardware vendors to support. That said, I do like the idea of these devices having the ability to run native code as that would get more like from the battery.
- CoolGuySteve 7y ago
  Probably more like what happened on Symbian where the market fragmented but nobody cared as most apps weren’t very compelling.
- opencl 7y ago
  Doesn't stop people from shipping native binaries on Android. Developers who care about the 0.1% of the market not using ARM just include multiple binaries.
captn3m0 7y ago
I'm very tempted to buy Nokia 8770, but I can't confirm it supports a WiFi hotspot.
- mikece 7y ago
  Did you type the number wrong? I'm not finding an 8770. GSMArena.com is the place to look for specs, in my opinion. https://www.gsmarena.com/res.php3?sSearch=nokia+8770 https://www.gsmarena.com/res.php3?sSearch=nokia+8770
  - ct0 7y ago
    must be talking about the 8110
    - captn3m0 7y ago
      Yes
    - squarefoot 7y ago
      I just did a search on Ebay for the 8110 and found a shop in the UK asking more than €200 for it plus shipping. I guess the shop owner reads HN:).
      - naraic0o 7y ago
        you can buy them on amazon uk for around £50
        squarefoot 7y ago
        The Ebay seller says they're "unlocked" for use in EU. My concern was that the cheaper ones were imported and wouldn't work on European GSM (I still use it) and 3/4G networks.
  - captn3m0 7y ago
    I was wrong. I meant the 8810 - The Banana phone.
- captn3m0 7y ago
  Update: Found the manual online and it mentions wifi hotspot support: https://www.nokia.com/phones/en_lb/support/api/pdf/nokia-8110-4g-user-guide https://www.nokia.com/phones/en_lb/support/api/pdf/nokia-811... (Page 21)
pjmlp 7y ago
There is always the option to JIT cache. It doesn't need to be always compiled from scratch. Now if they bother with such optimization is another matter.

by mikece 7y ago

celliopia 7y ago

Given the target devices for KaiOS, wouldn't AOT compiled apps have the problem of not being sure which CPU will be supported? It's probably not as big of an issue today but at the inexpensive, low-power side of the spectrum there might be a diversity of CPUs within a year or two... is KaiOS going to host compiler services in the cloud to dynamically compile apps for the myriad possible CPUs out there? While consuming more battery, using JavaScript to power the apps not only lowers the barrier to entry for app developers but creates a common target for all hardware vendors to support. That said, I do like the idea of these devices having the ability to run native code as that would get more like from the battery.

CoolGuySteve 7y ago
Probably more like what happened on Symbian where the market fragmented but nobody cared as most apps weren’t very compelling.
opencl 7y ago
Doesn't stop people from shipping native binaries on Android. Developers who care about the 0.1% of the market not using ARM just include multiple binaries.

captn3m0 7y ago

I'm very tempted to buy Nokia 8770, but I can't confirm it supports a WiFi hotspot.

mikece 7y ago
Did you type the number wrong? I'm not finding an 8770. GSMArena.com is the place to look for specs, in my opinion. https://www.gsmarena.com/res.php3?sSearch=nokia+8770 https://www.gsmarena.com/res.php3?sSearch=nokia+8770
- ct0 7y ago
  must be talking about the 8110
  - captn3m0 7y ago
    Yes
  - squarefoot 7y ago
    I just did a search on Ebay for the 8110 and found a shop in the UK asking more than €200 for it plus shipping. I guess the shop owner reads HN:).
    - naraic0o 7y ago
      you can buy them on amazon uk for around £50
      - squarefoot 7y ago
        The Ebay seller says they're "unlocked" for use in EU. My concern was that the cheaper ones were imported and wouldn't work on European GSM (I still use it) and 3/4G networks.
- captn3m0 7y ago
  I was wrong. I meant the 8810 - The Banana phone.
captn3m0 7y ago
Update: Found the manual online and it mentions wifi hotspot support: https://www.nokia.com/phones/en_lb/support/api/pdf/nokia-8110-4g-user-guide https://www.nokia.com/phones/en_lb/support/api/pdf/nokia-811... (Page 21)

pjmlp 7y ago

There is always the option to JIT cache. It doesn't need to be always compiled from scratch. Now if they bother with such optimization is another matter.