5 ms·

I'm waiting for the day we can "dock" a phone to a monitor with a mouse/kb & have a full desktop OS experience.

pjmlp 7y ago
Like Windows Phone Lumia, or many Windows tablets.
mark_l_watson 7y ago
yes! Microsoft and Android products have sort of done this in the past, but didn't do well in the market or the user/dev experience was not great.
kovek 7y ago
I want to see pen-on-tablet experience that allows working without a keyboard. Then, plug tablet to monitor and “type/write” on the tablet.
- ogre_codes 7y ago
  Why? Writing is much slower than typing and less accurate to boot. There are also a lot of problems to solve for a variant input which have long been settled with keyboard. For example code completion, jumping to the definition, showing errors where they keyboard focus is, etc. Unless someone were to come out with some kind of massive productivity gain by switching input types, people aren't going to switch and these supplemental technologies will never get built.
  - ryukafalz 7y ago
    Ever sketched a quick diagram in a notebook to try and work out a problem? Handwriting isn’t dead.
  - melling 7y ago
    Writing + voice input + Soli gestures + Selfie type would go a long way. I could live without a keyboard.
  - kovek 7y ago
    I often typo and get corrections from the text editor I used, when I write not-code text. When I write code, I don’t need to type fast. However, I like to layout things quickly: proper indentation, docstrings, spacing, order/position of functions. I think those can be solved.
MR4D 7y ago
Current iPhone has the power to do so, and can connect via ApplePlay and bluetooth. So the only holdup is software. Maybe this year's WWDC will show us something closer to that. I'm holding out hope for this, since they "added" mouse support to iPadOS in 2019. There has to be a reason for that plus Universal apps, plus SwiftUI, right?
- ianai 7y ago
  Maybe they plan to support it for iPadOS devices and either no support or stripped down for iPhone. It’d be cool if we at one point had desktop power in our pockets though. (Yes I know we do to some extent, but it’s still a bit of a stretch for a daily driver.)
- runjake 7y ago
  1. You mean AirPlay. 2. You don't need AirPlay, you could drive a monitor and keyboard/mouse directly, using an HDMI/USB dongle. But yes, as you said, software is the hold up. The rest is ready.
  - girvo 7y ago
    They might also mean CarPlay, which is closer in idea to “plug cord in get desktop UI”
    - novok 7y ago
      Yup, we need "DesktopPlay", "TVPlay" (think nintendo switch) and "CameraPlay" so you can sync photos via AirDrop on your SLR.
wvenable 7y ago
Samsung Dex is this. I can dock my phone and get a desktop experience. I have Visual Studio Code running now (though code-server[1]) and Ubuntu userland (via Termux/Andronix). Plus all other Android apps running in detached windows. It's unfortunately not even as useful as it sounds but it is a start. I'm still at the early stages of setting it up for real work. [2] https://github.com/cdr/code-server https://github.com/cdr/code-server
- ianai 7y ago
  How responsive is it? Would you mind being limited to your Dex without another desktop or laptop to use?
  - wvenable 7y ago
    It's definitely responsive enough; performance is not the problem. It is software availability that the biggest problem -- Android doesn't even really have a decent desktop-class text editor. But email, web browsing, games, etc is all fine; I can multitask all these things in a Dex desktop.
  - SyneRyder 7y ago
    I used DeX (the non-Linux version) while my main laptop was in for repairs, and it got me through. There were even positive surprises, like discovering it supported external hard drives and some of my pro audio gear. I could connect my Focusrite Scarlett USB audio interface which is connected to my JBL 305P studio speakers. If you're able to do all your work on Android or the web, it would work. But for me there's still a ton of Windows and Mac software I need to get the job done. The other problem is DeX doesn't really work in a laptop form yet, and I like to do work from cafes a lot.
    - wvenable 7y ago
      The Samsung Tab S6 with the keyboard cover would give you DeX in a laptop form factor.
      - 7y ago
ogre_codes 7y ago
What is the benefit? Most people who need a desktop OS, want a desktop or notebook that performs faster than a smartphone. Otherwise they can just get an iPad or low end laptop and it won't set you back much more than keyboard + mouse + display. Cloud sync takes care of the rest.
- rhlsthrm 7y ago
  Smartphones are probably pretty close to being powerful enough for 80% of desktop use cases. Having one device that can dock to a "laptop" shell and give me a full screen desktop OS would be amazing.
- tosh 7y ago
  current iPhones and iPads are quite powerful https://www.macrumors.com/2018/11/01/2018-ipad-pro-benchmarks-geekbench/ https://www.macrumors.com/2018/11/01/2018-ipad-pro-benchmark...
faizmokhtar 7y ago
Like what Ubuntu tried to do

Like Windows Phone Lumia, or many Windows tablets.

yes! Microsoft and Android products have sort of done this in the past, but didn't do well in the market or the user/dev experience was not great.

kovek 7y ago

I want to see pen-on-tablet experience that allows working without a keyboard. Then, plug tablet to monitor and “type/write” on the tablet.

ogre_codes 7y ago
Why? Writing is much slower than typing and less accurate to boot. There are also a lot of problems to solve for a variant input which have long been settled with keyboard. For example code completion, jumping to the definition, showing errors where they keyboard focus is, etc. Unless someone were to come out with some kind of massive productivity gain by switching input types, people aren't going to switch and these supplemental technologies will never get built.
- ryukafalz 7y ago
  Ever sketched a quick diagram in a notebook to try and work out a problem? Handwriting isn’t dead.
- melling 7y ago
  Writing + voice input + Soli gestures + Selfie type would go a long way. I could live without a keyboard.
- kovek 7y ago
  I often typo and get corrections from the text editor I used, when I write not-code text. When I write code, I don’t need to type fast. However, I like to layout things quickly: proper indentation, docstrings, spacing, order/position of functions. I think those can be solved.

MR4D 7y ago

Current iPhone has the power to do so, and can connect via ApplePlay and bluetooth. So the only holdup is software. Maybe this year's WWDC will show us something closer to that. I'm holding out hope for this, since they "added" mouse support to iPadOS in 2019. There has to be a reason for that plus Universal apps, plus SwiftUI, right?

ianai 7y ago
Maybe they plan to support it for iPadOS devices and either no support or stripped down for iPhone. It’d be cool if we at one point had desktop power in our pockets though. (Yes I know we do to some extent, but it’s still a bit of a stretch for a daily driver.)
runjake 7y ago
1. You mean AirPlay. 2. You don't need AirPlay, you could drive a monitor and keyboard/mouse directly, using an HDMI/USB dongle. But yes, as you said, software is the hold up. The rest is ready.
- girvo 7y ago
  They might also mean CarPlay, which is closer in idea to “plug cord in get desktop UI”
  - novok 7y ago
    Yup, we need "DesktopPlay", "TVPlay" (think nintendo switch) and "CameraPlay" so you can sync photos via AirDrop on your SLR.

wvenable 7y ago

Samsung Dex is this. I can dock my phone and get a desktop experience. I have Visual Studio Code running now (though code-server[1]) and Ubuntu userland (via Termux/Andronix). Plus all other Android apps running in detached windows. It's unfortunately not even as useful as it sounds but it is a start. I'm still at the early stages of setting it up for real work. [2] https://github.com/cdr/code-server https://github.com/cdr/code-server

ianai 7y ago
How responsive is it? Would you mind being limited to your Dex without another desktop or laptop to use?
- wvenable 7y ago
  It's definitely responsive enough; performance is not the problem. It is software availability that the biggest problem -- Android doesn't even really have a decent desktop-class text editor. But email, web browsing, games, etc is all fine; I can multitask all these things in a Dex desktop.
- SyneRyder 7y ago
  I used DeX (the non-Linux version) while my main laptop was in for repairs, and it got me through. There were even positive surprises, like discovering it supported external hard drives and some of my pro audio gear. I could connect my Focusrite Scarlett USB audio interface which is connected to my JBL 305P studio speakers. If you're able to do all your work on Android or the web, it would work. But for me there's still a ton of Windows and Mac software I need to get the job done. The other problem is DeX doesn't really work in a laptop form yet, and I like to do work from cafes a lot.
  - wvenable 7y ago
    The Samsung Tab S6 with the keyboard cover would give you DeX in a laptop form factor.
    - 7y ago

ogre_codes 7y ago

What is the benefit? Most people who need a desktop OS, want a desktop or notebook that performs faster than a smartphone. Otherwise they can just get an iPad or low end laptop and it won't set you back much more than keyboard + mouse + display. Cloud sync takes care of the rest.

rhlsthrm 7y ago
Smartphones are probably pretty close to being powerful enough for 80% of desktop use cases. Having one device that can dock to a "laptop" shell and give me a full screen desktop OS would be amazing.
tosh 7y ago
current iPhones and iPads are quite powerful https://www.macrumors.com/2018/11/01/2018-ipad-pro-benchmarks-geekbench/ https://www.macrumors.com/2018/11/01/2018-ipad-pro-benchmark...

faizmokhtar 7y ago

Like what Ubuntu tried to do