During the past year, several projects were announced for the creation of smartphones that aim to use only open source code as their main feature, projects which we have mentioned here on the blog.
Among them, one of the most anticipated is Librem 5, which promises the use of blockchain and open-source components for "total user privacy." On the other hand, we have Pine64's "PinePhone" project, and finally, a project that lets you build your own phone with your Raspberry Pi Zero and Arduino.
WiPhone, a phone for programmers and Arduino lovers
Now, another project has been announced called WiPhone, an open-source mobile IP phone.
WiPhone is designed to be hackable, modular, cheap, and open, while still remaining usable.
As a result, the Wiphone is an open-source phone project capable of making high-definition calls over the Internet by relying on nearby WiFi.
WiPhone is designed for enthusiastic programmers and Arduino lovers . Complete disassembly of the WiPhone takes less than a minute, using only 4 screws.
The operating system firmware is open and simple enough for a motivated person to fully understand.
WiPhone is not only capable of making VoIP calls, but it is also an open-source, standalone Arduino development platform.
It comes with battery, power supply, and on / off circuitry, unlike most other development boards.
Once your project is done, instead of a lot of tangled wires and stacked boards, it is compact and visually appealing.
It should be noted that the development team has chosen to forgo cellular network access components for reasons related to privacy, openness, and cost. Therefore, even though abandoning the cellular network implies a significant loss of capabilities, it is a choice that introduces several advantages.
Privacy policy
It almost completely eliminates a wide variety of questions related to private life. There are no cookies tracking you or triangulation based on cell towers.
Opening
It removes a component that acts as a black box (the baseband radio), which is closed and protected, poorly documented, runs firmware that we cannot control, and requires interaction with binary blobs.
Cost
WiPhone is a phone and people will inevitably compare its specifications and prices with those of mass market phones produced in volumes of millions of units per year.
Cellular network access modules available for low-volume products like the WiPhone cost as much as a cheap Android phone.
WiPhone Features
The WiPhone operates via IP. Therefore, it does not currently support 4G, 3G, CDMA, or GSM. The device does have expansion cards that allow you to add additional features.
In the current list, there is a radio technology called LoRa that allows data packets to be sent over kilometers.
Also, the single board computer's integrated development environment is expected to serve customization purposes.
The WiPhone is constituted as follows:
- PSRAM 4MB
- 16MB Flash
- Battery 700 mAh
- ESP32 Dual core running at 240 MHz
- External access headers for custom daughter boards, including UART, SPI, I2C, PWM, digital I / O, ADC functions
- VoIP phone (WiFi)
- 2.4 "display (320 x 240)
- 802.11 b/g/n Wi-Fi
- Micro USB for charging, serial communication and firmware updates.
- 3,5mm audio jack
- Internal microSD slot
- Size: 120 mm x 50 mm x 12 mm
- Weight: 80g
- 700 mAh battery, 8 hours talk / 1 week standby time (estimated)
- 25 button keypad, 4 reserved for user, all keys are user programmable
- System based on ESPressif ESP32, programmable on Arduino.
- MicroPython for user applications.
- 20-pin programmable header on the back of the phone
The WiPhone is estimated to cost less than $100. The device could cost twice as much as the Zerophone : a Linux phone based on the Raspberry Pi.
The crowdfunding phase begins on March 1st.