Well, youre accurate in your sumisation that im in between keeping it or selling it.
My day to day needs are:
A fairly decent battery (android 8 equiv or better).
Maps, im a plumber so i need to have accurate maps that respond in time.
A good browser that i can watch videos on without overheating the phone.
Good quality apps are important but thats low down on my list because most apps can be used via a browser.
A decent headphone quality is essential and a good speaker. My phone is an Axon 7 which has one of the best headphone dacs ever put in a phone.
I don’t know how long Android 8 can stay alive with one charge of battery (also depends on hardware). My last smartphone had Android 4 that could sleep for over a week and is nothing L5 will ever achieve.
Purism wants to achieve 24h. Currently with standby + 4G I achieved ~18h without any activity (tested last time 1 update before suspend woke up phone on call fast enough). On normal usage (wifi enabled) I don’t think you will fall below 15h … Playing games or other heavy tasks will drop up time to few hours, but Android should not be much better for such tasks.
Suspend is still in a work-in-progress state, but I don’t know how much further usage improvement can be done. The hardware itself has a limit. We should be happy if it stay awake from morning to evening on our personal usage.
GPS for maps will get improved soon, as far as I know (short time for initial location). Maps itself are fine as far as I can say. Maybe someone else who use it more can tell further.
I’m using Firefox (ask other people for other browsers) and fixed every flickering-bug by my own (shared in another thread, where also other improvements got shared by other people). It’s easy to do with no risk. Phone gets hot, but wont get “overheated”. You still can hold it in hands without troubles and video stay stable without CPU/GPU drop lags or something similar. I think(!) there will also come an improvement some day.
Android apps are a specific topic I cannot tell a lot. Some people in community are working on this topic. Linux desktop apps are working fine in general. So we have a lot of high quality applications. However, the 3 main problems are screen space, few input actions and ARM CPU architecture.
- Screen space can often be “fixed” by an build in option to reduce specific app scale (also makes it more hard to hit buttons). But that helped me for few desktop applications to make them usable. Sometimes rotating to landscape is enough without the need to scale applications down.
- Few mouse actions and
Shift+ non-letter-key shortcuts are not supported. There are just few cases where you really have troubles with it - usually no issue. With adapter or USB hub you can plug in hardware mouse and keyboard and have access to every input method again.
The virtual keyboard can be customized. This way I also could use letters my physical keyboard has not (Greek letters for math for example). So it’s not just a downside.
- Few applications do not run on ARM CPUs. But since Linux phones are not the first Linux ARM devices its just a problem of few apps.
No deal breaker issue with default applications. Just camera needs some further improvements and Purism said they will come. But pictures are already better than my old Android 4 phone. 
Okay not that hard, but it will get even better.
Build in microphone and speakers are fine. Early phones have to be updated to get newest software that works out of the box. However, I cannot compare to Axon 7, because I don’t know its quality. I understand everything clear.
I haven’t used the headset from Purism yet, but shouldn’t be worse. I used an own more expensive headset and quality was as it is on PC. No issue here.
I hope that gave you some answers. Let me know what you think about or if you still have some questions.
I agree with you about Purism having destroyed its reputation for not giving refunds as they initially promised everyone they could get at any time. I held on for four years after paying and eventually got my Librem 5 phone just recently. You are also right about the inconvenience factors when using the phone. I do credit Purism for what they have accomplished, despite some ethical challenges. I still agree with Purism’s mission to put respect and privacy back in to computing. I don’t know if Todd and Kyle realize how important ethics are and how much poor ethics can harm a business. Purism has done what it had to do to survive. Hopefully, Purism changes their ways now. If not, they might lose too many of their customer base. In the past several years while Librem 5 was under development, the technology used by other phone makers has grown by leaps and bounds. So unless or until Purism learns how to make their phones do what Samsung and LG can do, the customer base will likely stay relatively small, with only the smaller group of individuals buying Purism products. But with a few good breakthroughs, the tide could change significantly in Purism’s favor. But it looks to me like Purism has been selling unregistered Securities to unqualified individuals for quite some time now. That alone could take them down before they can get enough momentum to go mainstream. Putting their house in legal and ethical order should come next if they want to survive and grow.
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The option I use is to disallow ssh into user purism, having added another user into which I can ssh - and then you can set a decent password on that other user. I also restrict by IP address because I have no need to ssh into the phone from who knows where in the world.
The option that you already mention (key based access) may be more popular.
While it is always a trade-off, you are not limited to having a password for user purism that is numeric.
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Android 8 was the worst experience for battery life ive had. Running lineageos, it ran out of battery before the phone could shut down; corrupting the software, which then needed to be reflashed. Sometimes half a day was all i got. Running android 7.1 on the same hardware uses very little battery, about 7mA at idle. lasts a day easily.
Reading about the ssh password problem in previous post, i dont nees this shit. Watching Bill Gates tell the world we will all pay attention when the 2nd wave of the virus hits with a gleeful smile and his wife smiled at the camera to turned me off IT for good. Its no longer a way of life for me, its a tool. Tools that are easy to use are better.
I have used Android a few times and the interface is so confusing. Way to many settings in too many places - I think Windows Mobile OS was actually better. iOS is pretty bad in that regard too, but more organized in the too many settings area. Android is like Facebook with millions of privacy setting and neither of them improves your privacy. The battery consumption is probably related to sending all your data to the mothership hah just kidding.
Don’t accept passwords in your ssh server. Keys are waaay more safe.
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The power manager for apps was changed in A8 to one that was supposed to be simpler for the user but it didnt work as well as previous A7.
I consider Rob Braxmans solution to be almost ideal for me. Lineagos waa good but customers would call me saying theyve had a missed call from them but i hadnt called them. I didnt save their no. So somehow the phone was calling from my phone call history without any interaction from me. Very weird.
Saying that, I do prefer to use PureOS on my desktop over all other OS’s and I thank Purism for giving me that option (free of charge).
But consider that depending on your usage also Rob Braxmans devices will have less than 1 day battery time. People wrote under comments. 2 days is also best he could achieve.
A power bank could help out - at least if you want to use a phone heavily without possibility to charge. Not just for Librem 5, but also for other mobile phones that have short battery time. Personal I don’t like power banks, but for some people it’s an option.
Few hours ago I flashed Librem 5 for the first time. This was super easy (expected more difficulties). Bought USB-C (m) to USB-A (f) adapter and in shop I started to prepare USB device … on the half way home it could finish this task, so that I could do the real work (flashing L5) at home without waiting until live OS is installed. That’s cool. Flashing just needs few commands and 2nd time is even faster, because I don’t need to repeat the first 2 steps. Just need to set up everything as I did before.
Depending on tasks it can be a real time saver. Preparing time consuming tasks at home and running those while buying food in supermarkets. 
We just need to watch out battery (enough before and charge after if needed). A full battery can work for some ours, but of course not endless. Power stations can extent this, but I don’t use any.
EDIT: What I was talking about is updating the phone from Amber to Byzantium. That was truly horrible. Not only was the updater all command line it was only made for Debian distributions. I use RPM distro so I had to manually compile the program from other packages only to find that it didn’t work because those packages have different name in my distro. It was just too complicated. Installing linux on regular desktop is a breeze compared to this.
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That’s interesting. I should try this. However I don’t have SSH server installed on my phone and I wouldn’t know how to set it up.
I’m not the person you are responded to but what I need is a device that can reliably make and receive phone calls with SMS. I also need a GPS navigation that works without live internet. I need the bloody contacts to show up when I stick in different SIM card into the phone. Then I need Signal, Telegram and Element to work. So far I managed to get Telegram working although I cannot see what I type because the keyboard covers the text field.
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First Telegram: have you tried to minimize and maximize the keyboard? On another app I cannot scroll below keyboard, before I minimized it at least once.
For Signal I don’t use it and cannot help you. Maybe someone else can.
SMS, phone calls and Element are working out of the box except camera access (usb cameras are working). If something is wrong, I’m sure we can help you.
GPS navigation without live internet … not sure if we already have an offline application for the maps. If not I’m sure that will come sooner or later. Maybe someone else is more up-to-date and wants to reply. GPS works so far, even if initial position needs some time to adjust (do it outside without roof over the head).
Contacts cannot read from SIM-card out of the box. But all contacts can be stored on the phone itself (manually or via import contact files you created with another device). I don’t know exactly what you mean, but that’s how it works right now. Don’t hassle to ask if I got you wrong or if you need further information.
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I agree. There is no way that regular phone users are going to want to reflash from the Linux command line on desktop / laptop in order to do a major upgrade. Not to mention that everything on the phone is then lost and has to be re-established.
However this in itself would not make the future look bleak. It just means that there is more work to do. The future looks busy, not bleak. 
Of course. But then that’s been a WIP for 20 years.
It is also worth reflecting on how the process for upgrading an iPhone has changed over the years.
In the early days, the only way to upgrade was to plug the phone into a PC via USB and the computer had to be running crappy Apple software that was only available for Windows (I mean not available for Linux).
Nowadays the phone can update itself via WiFi (mobile too? but I never do this) and is not dependent on a PC.
If you had told me 10 years ago that I would have to keep a Windows PC around forever just so that I can upgrade iPhones then, well, that’s a bleak future.
If you the Flatpak version of telegram-desktop you can go into the settings and set the interface scale to something like 160-180% and you’ll get a visible text box. The PureOS repo version doesn’t seem to have this functionality, though.
That is no joke. I can get about 2 days in standby with a normal android phone. If I flash a rom that has no google apps or services, about a week and a half of standby.
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Oh my God! These are too many posts that either pro or con in the argument of the Librem 5 operation and functionality.
All smartphones are energy guzzlers, guzzling it up no matter how you look at it from any perspective. It matters not as a phone or mini computer role. This is a fact, no more, no less.
Mobile data will definitely require some configuration. Prepare to get techy. If you do need help, I suggest to contact the proper tech support to help on their end.
GPS program seems to be a custom program from the default OS program list. It’s going to have its own rules. The call of tech support is on the burden of the GPS program developer, not Purism.
Camera use is an issue of ethics. We must all consider the safety of oneself, others, and beyond. But yes, of course there be (custom) development for personalized needs.
Don’t plug L5 to PC! L5 is not a storage drive! Instead, use a safe storage device to transfer the files offline. Couldn’t be anymore easier than that? Of course, online services can do the same function with online risks.
As for your convenience of SIM card, I must inform you of the risks of SIM card snooping. Any unauthorized person with access to the SIM card can snoop on the details. It can happen. What you need is a revolutionary innovative idea. You need secure service that can transmit a database of call/message contacts to the secure phone. Maybe, this development will happen in the future.
Your market argument against Librem 5 is unrelated to Librem 5. It’s like comparing oranges to apples.
Librem 5 is not a phone, it’s a (mini) computer in a form of a smartphone and mini operating system. Sure, it has phone and message capabilities, but it can do so more. Compared to other smart phones, Librem 5 does not have a set expiration so that consumers must purchase the next generation of phones just because the current generation is obsolete, but the main reason is the smartphone market wants more of your money. It’s just like the Microsoft Windows scheme. Can’t you feel that nostalgia again? With Librem 5’s OS (and related products and services), updates are continual than definitely finite. You don’t see the need to purchase the PureOS 10.# and up, unlike Windows versions. I would rather hold my faith in Librem 5 development than churn up hundreds, even thousands, of dollars for a few years of smartphone service. That said, I say you are taking a right step in consumer investment.
It’s true that the matter of convenience would be a good thing for the mass market, mainstream media, masses of normies (also more known as another offensive word, but that’s the definition]). Librem 5 is not one of those things. Librem 5 is for GNU/Linux, not Unix, not Android, not smartphone. It’s a being conceived with freedom in mind. I may be a fool to believe in Librem 5 with some fiber, but it is the same fiber as I believe in GNU/Linux. Surely, you didn’t buy this product without knowing the OS that is Linux. I don’t care if there are new people, this is Linux we are talking about. Linux is DIY discipline, it is not supposed to be convenient by nature or design. I don’t know a exact quote about freedom, but it won’t be freely given to you. What else is there to be said?
All I can say is that while the topic context seems to be honest in inexperience, the possibility of negative marketing by agents of competition is plausible. I also want to say that people ought to be more familiar with freedom than follow scenarios in Brave New World.
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It is very related. It was advertised as Mobile phone and Purism CEO said he wanted the L5 to compete with Iphones.
Are you trying to tell me that L5 doesn’t cost thousands today? While in the meantime you can buy normal smartphone for 150 $/£/Euros. So even If I bought new Android phone every 3 years. It would take 24 years because I would end up paying the same cost of one L5.
You are another Linux gatekeeper but I forgive you for that because you have an autism.
You know that most smartphone companies (except Samsung, Google and Apple) wont make any money with smartphones? They create them to make advertise for their main business (for example cameras) while Purism has to live with the money. They also pay much less for an all-in-one soc and much less for Android as operating system.
If you want to compare the price, you also have to compare what you will get as features - no hardware kill-switches, no privacy, no (or at least much less) security, no open source (hardware included - third party apps excluded), often not the same level of support, often not the same level of possibility to repair and much more.
You pay so much more than just the power of the CPU. So instead of comparing this phone with one of the cheapest smartphones you should compare with an android smartphone which was build at least in a similar way. But wait - there is no phone that comes even close. Even PinePhone Pro costs 400$ with much less of those features and without software development (outsourced for free) or BraX2 (de-googled Android) costs also 400$ but is even further away from that feature-set.
I mean we can speak about the fairness of L5s prices, but we should at least in a more fair way.
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