Commodore releases $500 Linux-based phone that doesn't support Slack or Instagram
The new Linux-based flip phone won’t let you scroll your Instagram feed or check Slack notifications, but it will send messages on WhatsApp.
Image by Commodore
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The new Linux-based flip phone won’t let you scroll your Instagram feed or check Slack notifications, but it will send messages on WhatsApp.
- Commodore launched the Callback 8020, a Linux-based flip phone designed to reduce screen time.
- The phone is designed as a “middle ground” between a smartphone and a dumb phone.
- It starts at $500, offers replaceable batteries, and colorful swappable covers.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
Commodore, which previously released retro computers, has now launched a new flip phone.
What may look like another dumb phone at first glance is actually something “in between,” the company explained.
Nowadays, more is being talked about the excessive use of smartphones. With that, more people are looking for alternatives to reduce their time spent online.
Considering this, the company has launched Commodore Callback 8020.
“Callback may be designed to help you spend less time staring at a screen, but when you need to capture something, it makes it count,” stated the company.
Commodore Callback 8020 flip phone specifications
The phone runs the Linux-based Sailfish OS and includes all necessary features, such as a camera and a calendar.
It also includes “99% of Android apps,” including maps, Spotify for music, and WhatsApp and Signal for messaging.
The catch here is that it doesn’t support browsers, work-related apps like Slack, or social media apps, such as Instagram.
The phone, which has a starting price of $500, doesn’t have a touchscreen to minimize “doomscrolling,” and instead of receiving notifications, the user is pinged with a “unique dome LED notification.”
The company also offers replaceable batteries and “swappable back covers” available in bright colors.
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Interested customers can now join the waiting list for the Commodore’s Callback 8020 with pre-orders starting on June 30th, 10:00 CEST.
Commodore is best known for its Commodore 64 Ultimate and Commodore 64X PC devices.
“This isn’t your granny’s flip phone:” brand addresses the device’s price
The new device sparked an online discussion, with many highlighting the price of Commodore’s flip phone.
“$500 wowza,” wrote one Redditor.
“If it was $200, then I'd get it,” added another netizen.
The company has addressed this matter in a blog post, stating what users get for this price.
This includes a device that was “designed by Commodore from the ground up,” featuring a Commodore-printed circuit board (PCB), a 48-megapixel Sony camera, dome LEDs for custom notifications, and more.
When it comes to software, the company highlighted its custom Linux-based operating system, Sailfish OS.
“This isn’t your granny’s flip phone,” the company concluded, also addressing some users’ thoughts about the phone not meeting the “expectation of the price.”
Commodore noted specifications aren’t everything, asking users to think about “the soul of the device” and what it allows us to do and how it can help us.
Short Commodore brand history
The history of the Commodore brand dates back to 1958, when it was launched by Jack Tramiel as a typewriter company.
In 1982, the company launched a desktop computer, the Commodore 64, which holds the Guinness World Records for the best-selling desktop computer of all time with an estimated 12.5 million units sold.
Despite its success, the company declared bankruptcy in 1994. After more than 30 years, the company was then bought by Christian Simpson, also known as Peri Fractic, the creator of Retro Recipes.
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