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Linux Mobile Systems: LineageOS, Fairphone, NexPhone, OnePlus, and More
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James Bottomley ☛ James Bottomley: Adding Two Factor Authentication to Android (LineageOS)
I really like the idea of using biometrics to add extra security, but have always hated the idea that simply touching the fingerprint sensor would unlock your entire phone, so in my version of LineageOS the touch to unlock feature is disabled but I still use second factor biometrics for the security of various apps. Effectively the android unlock policy is Fingerprint OR PIN/Pattern/Password and I simply want that OR to become an AND.
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The new Fairbuds XL: Everybody loves backwards-compatibility
If you haven’t heard about it yet, we launched an updated edition of our award-winning Fairbuds XL in December 2025. With new dynamic drivers in the speakers, listeners can now enjoy a more natural, better balanced sound profile that can be customized further with the Fairbuds app.
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The Upcoming NexPhone can Run Both Android and Windows, and Costs Less than Flagship Phones
Welcome back, backdoored Windows Phone?
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OMG Ubuntu ☛ 14 Years Later than Planned, NexPhone is Up for Preorder
NexPhone is available for pre-order, some 14 years after it was first announced to the world – back then it planned to ship with Ubuntu for Android. Created by Nex Computer, the company behind the NexDock laptop shells, the NexPhone aims to deliver on ambitions that Canonical’s Ubuntu Phone set out to: using your phone as a proper PC when connected to a monitor (aka ‘convergence’). In 2012, the plan was to offer the NexPhone with Ubuntu for Android as its sole OS.
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Tom's Hardware ☛ Windows Phone makes a spiritual comeback thanks to NexPhone, which can triple-boot Windows, Android, and GNU/Linux — three-in-one device is powered by Qualcomm chipset and even has external monitor support
Designed as an all-in-one computing device, NexPhone lets users switch between Android, Linux, and backdoored Windows 11 depending on the task
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Tedium ☛ OnePlus Isn’t Dead, But T-Mobile’s Salespeople Think They Are
It shouldn’t have been this way. After all, I found out about these phones by going into this specific T-Mobile store about eight years ago, when the iPhones started to feel overly expensive and less flexible. Looking at my options, I wandered to the other side of the store, and there it was: The OnePlus 6t, a genuinely good phone for about half the price, minus the iPhone’s ugly forehead.
That was my introduction to Android, and it was a lasting one; I am currently on my fifth OnePlus phone, after a brief diversion to Samsung-land that honestly couldn't have ended soon enough.
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Joel Chrono ☛ A phone case for an old phone
I ended up buying a phone case for my mime at a mall, and realized once again that the speed that technology moves at for most people is rather slow...
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Jérôme Marin ☛ “The end of an era” for smartphones
At the origin of this upheaval: the frenetic development of AI-dedicated infrastructure. This additional computing power requires not only graphics cards, but also memory, in particular high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips. To meet this exponential demand, the three giants of the sector — the Koreans SK Hynix and Samsung, and the American Micron — have redirected part of their production lines toward these more lucrative components, to the detriment of DRAM and NAND memory intended for smartphones, PCs, and game consoles.
Demand from AI is “consuming so much of the available capacity across the industry that it’s leaving a tremendous shortage for the conventional side of the industry, for phones or PC,” acknowledged a Micron executive quoted by Bloomberg. The order books of the three manufacturers are already full for 2026. According to the firm TrendForce, 70% of memory production is now dedicated to AI. The consequence: prices of other components are soaring. In the fourth quarter of 2025, DRAM prices rose by 45% to 50%, and they are expected to climb another 55% to 60% in the first quarter.
Update
More on NexPhone:
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NexPhone Might Be First Smartphone Capable of Booting Into Android, Linux, and Windows 11
The NexPhone appears to be more than simply a smartphone to say the least. Built by Nex Computer, the people behind all those docks that change phones into laptops over the years, this gadget comes with Android for day-to-day use, a full Linux environment when more power is required, and Windows 11 for the most intensive of jobs. For $549, it provides a lot of adaptability that typically requires several laptops or desktops, all in a tough tiny container that still fits in your pocket.
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Phone Arena ☛ This midrange phone can triple-boot Android, Linux, and Windows
Dual booting is a very popular concept in the Windows ecosystem, where you have two operating systems, such as Windows and Linux, installed on your computer. It ensures you don't need two separate devices to use two different environments. Wouldn't it be amazing if you could enjoy a similar concept on smartphones as well?
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Digital Trends ☛ This Android phone with Linux jumps to Windows when you need it
NexPhone, built by the people behind NexDock, is pitching an Android phone with Linux that can also switch into a Windows 11 setup when you need desktop apps. Use it as a normal phone, then plug it into a desk setup for bigger-screen work, without hauling a laptop. Think Samsung Dex with Windows 11.
It runs Android by default, with a Debian Linux option alongside a Windows 11 partition. NexPhone is selling that mix as one handset that can flex between mobile use, a Linux environment, and a Windows workspace depending on the task.
Reservations are open at $549, with a $199 refundable deposit and a Q3 2026 shipping target.
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NexPhone: A Smartphone That Runs Android, Linux And Windows 11
A U.S. company has made a smartphone that is different from most others on the market right now. The device, called NexPhone, is produced by the American start-up Nex Computer and comes with three operating systems installed from the factory: Android, Windows 11, and Linux.
According to the company, the NexPhone was made with the idea that a smartphone could be all a person needs. Based on this idea, Android is seen as the best operating system for everyday smartphone tasks. Alongside it, the device comes with Debian, a Linux distribution, and Windows 11 for ARM, providing an uncommon degree of versatility for mobile productivity.
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TechSpot ☛ This smartphone can run Android, Linux, and even Windows 11
Microsoft's Windows Phone project has long been dead, yet interest in a PC-like operating system on mobile devices appears to persist. Los Angeles – based Nex Computer is betting that enough demand exists to build a new business around this niche setup.
Nex Computer recently introduced the NexPhone, a handset that can reportedly support three different operating systems. With it, users can carry around a single phone and have access to virtually every major computer platform.
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PC Mag ☛ The Return of Windows Phone? This New Device Runs Android, Linux, Windows 11
The NexPhone is designed to work as your everyday smartphone, but it also works like a computer when plugged into a monitor. It’s a midrange device designed to switch between all three operating systems for both mobile and desktop use.
Days later:
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It's FOSS ☛ Not An April Fool's Joke, You Can Run GNU/Linux and backdoored Windows on This Android Smartphone
This $549 rugged smartphone runs Android 16, launches Debian GNU/Linux as an app, and dual-boots backdoored Windows 11.
Linux smartphones are not fading away; in fact, they are gradually getting more accessible while they try to cater to customers at different price points. But there's a long way to go before we can call these mainstream.
Nex Computer, a brand known for its NexDock product family that turns Android smartphones into a laptop workstation, is finally making good on its NexPhone concept, delivering a smartphone that runs Android 16, launches Debian, and dual-boots into Windows 11.
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New Atlas ☛ NexPhone revisits the long-running dream of combining your phone and laptop
After a decade of false starts across the industry, Nex Computer revisits the idea of replacing your laptop with a smartphone. By combining Android, Linux, and Windows in one device, the NexPhone may have made the vision a reality.