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People who bought a Commodore typewriter in the 1950s probably weren’t particularly interested in the C64 in the 1980s either. It would be more interesting to

by layer8 4mo ago

People who bought a Commodore typewriter in the 1950s probably weren’t particularly interested in the C64 in the 1980s either. It would be more interesting to talk about the actual merits of the product.

SwellJoe 4mo ago
There aren't any merits to talk about. A flip phone is still a nostalgia play. If someone is nostalgic about flip phones, they're nostalgic about a Nokia, Commodore was long gone by the era of flip phones. And, you can still buy flip phones from a variety of manufacturers, including Nokia, for under $100. A dumb phone, including from reputable manufacturers, is extremely easy and cheap to come by, if that's what you want. A dumb phone is a commodity with many suppliers. This product at this price is entirely about leveraging the Commodore brand, and it's leveraging the brand in an incoherent direction. If I thought they were making astronomical margins on a low upfront cost, I would think, "OK, fine, do your little experiment, though I don't like you degrading the brand for no good reason." But, I don't think they're going to make astronomical margins and I don't think the upfront cost is low. I think they're spending a lot of money on a product that will be a flop.
- AAAAaccountAAAA 4mo ago
  I don't think there are any particularly reputable brands of featurephones anymore. Nokia/HMD certainly isn't one: they have obnoxious bugs, they drop calls, and lack basic modern-day compatibility features like emoji in text messages (they display only an "unknown character" box) and group MMS. However, it does not necessarily mean there is demand for a quality featurephone: it might be that the demand is so low that it does not make sense to manufacture one.
- dotancohen 4mo ago
  > There aren't any merits to talk about. A flip phone is still a nostalgia play. Not to everybody. In my country we have a sizeable religious community which eschew the smartphone. Dumb phones sell here very well - on merit alone, no nostalgia.
  - SwellJoe 4mo ago
    And, there's no shortage of those. Do those religious folks often buy luxury products?
    - dotancohen 4mo ago
      I don't know the answer to that! I would imagine that some do. I'll try to talk to some of them, thank you for the point of view.

by layer8 4mo ago

SwellJoe 4mo ago

There aren't any merits to talk about. A flip phone is still a nostalgia play. If someone is nostalgic about flip phones, they're nostalgic about a Nokia, Commodore was long gone by the era of flip phones. And, you can still buy flip phones from a variety of manufacturers, including Nokia, for under $100. A dumb phone, including from reputable manufacturers, is extremely easy and cheap to come by, if that's what you want. A dumb phone is a commodity with many suppliers. This product at this price is entirely about leveraging the Commodore brand, and it's leveraging the brand in an incoherent direction. If I thought they were making astronomical margins on a low upfront cost, I would think, "OK, fine, do your little experiment, though I don't like you degrading the brand for no good reason." But, I don't think they're going to make astronomical margins and I don't think the upfront cost is low. I think they're spending a lot of money on a product that will be a flop.

AAAAaccountAAAA 4mo ago
I don't think there are any particularly reputable brands of featurephones anymore. Nokia/HMD certainly isn't one: they have obnoxious bugs, they drop calls, and lack basic modern-day compatibility features like emoji in text messages (they display only an "unknown character" box) and group MMS. However, it does not necessarily mean there is demand for a quality featurephone: it might be that the demand is so low that it does not make sense to manufacture one.
dotancohen 4mo ago
> There aren't any merits to talk about. A flip phone is still a nostalgia play. Not to everybody. In my country we have a sizeable religious community which eschew the smartphone. Dumb phones sell here very well - on merit alone, no nostalgia.
- SwellJoe 4mo ago
  And, there's no shortage of those. Do those religious folks often buy luxury products?
  - dotancohen 4mo ago
    I don't know the answer to that! I would imagine that some do. I'll try to talk to some of them, thank you for the point of view.