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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Gemini at CES 2018, Las Vegas

« on: January 11, 2018, 01:19:27 am »

https://youtu.be/OwhH_Xbup0U

Intersting - in this vid the journalist says "They told me it would last a couple of days with 'normal' usage." Encouraging but I suppose it depends what you consider 'normal' use is for a Gemini PDA.

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Has mass production started?

« on: January 10, 2018, 05:36:03 pm »

I thought it was also mentioned that a substantially larger battery might have required the Gemini to be stowed in checked baggage for certain flights.  I am hoping to take mine with me on an international flight in about 6 months, and if I wouldn't be allowed to keep it with me on the plane, I would be less than pleased.

It's strange because the IATA and FAA rules forbid Li-Ion in equipment or loose in checked hold baggage, they insist that they are in carry-on bags.
Their nominal limit per passenger is 100Wh which at 5V is 20000mAh for loose uninstalled, or in a device so you would be OK with 8000 or 4220.

There was a temporary restriction on devices over a certain size between particular destinations in the summer and this may have influenced the decision and the overall size of the Gemini but that restriction is mostly gone now, there are laptops on every flight I've been on lately.

Great post. There was a temporary restriction but it seemed very confused and more associated with laptops (and tablets?) rather than phones. Meanwhile some Chinese phone makers are really picking up on what some want in a phone - The latest Ulefone has a 6080mAh battery with 6inch screen 13MP camera and 9.9mm thick. £165 + taxes...
https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/ulefone-po...earbest-2874463

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Has mass production started?

« on: January 10, 2018, 05:13:02 pm »

We are still keen to cater for an even larger battery and we are considering to introduce an large battery add-on that would come with a thicker base cover to cater for the larger battery volume, making the dimensions of the device much thicker.  "

That was in September.

At the November London backers meeting I asked about this and got no warm vibes at all that anything would happen. They don't hold a comon view on if this is needed or not - or they didnt then. That said, they have been under great pressure to get the unit into production of course - higher priority one would say. That said (2), but that hasnt stoped them working on the camera add-on.

The others thing that came out of the London Backers mtg was the lack of keyboard backlighting. It took an age to actualy get to be able to play with a unit and in the gloom of the bar I suddenly found I couldn't actualy see the legends on the keycaps and do anything useful. Not a deal breaker perhaps, but an inconvience that ought to be corrected in another iteration.

We are where we are and the mobile phone reviewers will make of the Gemini what they do. I look forward to getting my unit and truly hope it is good enough to be my daily driver.

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Has mass production started?

« on: January 10, 2018, 08:55:33 am »

@BSTM
The battery is said to be replaceable, so there's hope Planet or some 3rd party might come up with a larger replacement battery that fits the form factor. Same for the external camera, since it's an add-on; the choice of 5MP might have been dictated by space constraints, which in turn might have been due to the last-minute changes done in the PCB layout. If the inclusion of the camera would have been planned from the start, a higher quality one might have been used instead.

Varti

Yep - some hope for a bigger battery. But I dont think that will help sell the device to those who will review it properly over the coming weeks or 'average users' comparing specs. Unless Planet actualy say soemthing on the subject. The reason they havnt, I think, is because thickning the underside of the case would destroy the current keyboard tilting geometry.  So it's not easy, but nothing is impossible one would hope.

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Has mass production started?

« on: January 10, 2018, 07:39:52 am »

Agree - thanks, @andrewl and good to see info from videos consolidated and thoughtful reflection.

I think its going to be quite close as to if the Gemini is long term viable (ie Gemini2 and Gemini3 updates come along) or stalls at this version. I want it to be a success, of course, but I'm not in the camp of going "rah, rah, rah, this is the only show in town with a good small keyboard and so it will naturally be a success."

A lot will depend on the reviews - I mean proper reviews with benchmarking and battery testing etc. That and day-to-day usability that reviewers find. I think the bulk of sales will be Android and it has to be a success there. I ordered back in March looking for a unit to replace my phone with something more versatile. To have it as well as a phone seems wrong - I may as well have a portable bluetooth keyboard and use that with my exiting phone. Or pack my Thinkpad in my bag as I do now - extra weight but very versatile. Anyway having 2 phone size devices, with 2 screens etc doesn't make sense to me.

I keep banging on about the battery only being half the original specified capacity. It's very much pushed as a device for creatives and it has to last lots of hours. If it can't I don't really want to be carrying around a battery power bank - more cables, another thing to charge etc. Others will be happy to, I know. Incidentally when this came up at the London backers meeting in November, somebody from Planet suggested that you could use Airplane mode to extend life and be able to type more. This is bonkers - suggesting I sit in the middle of London with a mobile device and I'm supposed to cut myself off from all comms to get decent life for the use intended. I was also told there was a division of opinion within Planet about if they needed to sort out a bigger battery option or not. My view is coloured by voting with my feet to get a mobile with a big battery - my Lenovo P2 (which cost £200 incidentally) has a 5100 mAh battery and its so liberating not having to worry about power. Performance isn't top class, but I'll take more battery every-time. Anyway I think the original spec was right and the final spec is a concern - but lets see the reality when its reviewed and we get our own units.

As a phone replacement NFC is an option in low-end devices but not high-end (and I think of Gemini as high-end). Fingerprint security is more or less mandatory on all phones - its so convenient. The lack of the latter is a big concern for usability. Both NFC and Fingerprint were originally spec'd and got dumped along the way.

Pukka reviewers might also be very concerned about the optional camera. I don't have a problem with it being an option but 5MB seems laughably crude compared to where all phones are these days. I don't think it inspires confidence and just makes you reflect even more about what you would be giving up if you replaced your existing phone with the Gemini. To be honest I think it's an option that detracts rather then adds to the marketing proposition.

At the moment I'm just not sure how it will work out as a phone replacement - it might all be a bit too crippled - great keyboard maybe, but two limited in other phone respects. We will see. Finally I say all this as Psion 5 user and loved the device at that time. Remember the earlier ones too - started with a Psion Organiser ][!

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Gemini at CES 2018, Las Vegas

« on: January 08, 2018, 01:52:43 am »

Lots more CES coverage - there are some interesting and reflective takes on the Gemini. Journos doing their proper thing.

Slashgear: https://www.slashgear.com/planet-computers-...eboot-07514066/

CNET: https://www.cnet.com/news/psion-the-90s-are...droid-ces-2018/

TechCrunch: https://techcrunch.com/2018/01/07/the-pda-r...d-is-new-again/

Verge: https://www.theverge.com/2018/1/7/16861596/...nds-on-ces-2018

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Gemini at CES 2018, Las Vegas

« on: January 08, 2018, 01:02:56 am »

"It starts shipping soon - this month actually - in January 2018"
Liliputing video feature on Gemini stand at CES. Also includes some shots of the USB C Hub which looks to have 2 x USB A, 1 x USB C (wonder if it does pass through power?) and Ethernet port. The video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu...p;v=vcBVFgrRcHk

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Misc News / Video interview with Planet at CES 2018 - questions welcomed!

« on: January 05, 2018, 02:38:31 am »

When, exactly, will units be made and then ship?

Does the Gemini PDA come with a (fast) charger? The perks for Gemini units just talk about supplying a cable only.

When, exactly, will the C HUB and HDMI extras be made and shiped?

As shiped will the unit have fixes (both in Andorid and Linux) for the Meltdown and Spectre hardware bugs?

Will Andorid come with Google Playstore access?

Have the units now been certified in all geographies?

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Gemini PDA - General Discussion / Has mass production started?

« on: January 05, 2018, 02:09:56 am »

The timeline on the 7 Nov Planet update was notable for being very precise and not overtly featuring much by way of contingency. A link to that update:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/gemini-p...087#/updates/36

The latest update, 19 Dec, has a paragraph updating us on the timeline. In that they say "we remain on track to start production in January 2018". The update is here:
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/gemini-p...087#/updates/41

It's an interesting choice of words - they choose not to say that the production was going ahead as they said (in the first week of January), but to give scoop for a slip - or introduce contingency if you like.

While I want them to be on the Nov schedule of making the units starting last Monday and finishing this Sunday I somehow don't believe it. Planet management will also be focused on CES (ends 12 Jan) and my gut feeling says that production will start in the second half of the month, and be 'slow' to get going. Some will be madein Jan but perhaps not all? Of course if a supplier really lets them down then it all slips further. Anyway I'm hoping for delivery in February, but wont loose sleep if its March. More then that and I would be concnerned.