Check on features before to buy/install FP5

Escain

Hi,

I have been using FP3+ for about 4 years with Ubuntu-Touch as my main/only phone. Even through it indicates support for bluetooth, GPS and some others, I had never managed to get them fully working. I would like to check the status on them before to buy the FP5 and install UbuntuTouch.

Bluetooth
Bluetooth: Does bluetooth work for hand-free calls? (e.g. in the car, using the car microphone for calls)
GPS/Galileo/etc
GPS/similars: Does it work at all? (on the FP3, I never managed to get any position, it just wait for reception for hours).
IDLE
Does it correctly handle application in IDLE? The FP3 battery last for days with all applications closed, but battery get drained terribly with every simple application not fully closed (e.g. Call, Clock or Notes). The battery last 5-6 days normally and maybe 1-2 days with open applications.
NFC
NFC: Never managed to get it working on FP3, for example, I have a radio that uses NFC to connect the Bluetooth, it works with my wife Android phone, but not with the FP3.

I assume that other aspects of the FP3 works at least equally for the FP5, like USB connection with the PC, calls, etc.

Could I kindly ask you to confirm if this is expected to work with the FP5?

Ida_

Hi! I've been daily driving Ubuntu Touch since around March.

Bluetooth:
It has been working really well for months now. My car is too old, so I haven't tried any bluetooth stuff there, but it works well for connecting compatible smart watches, music listening on my stereo and through headphones. Calls work very well through my headphones.
GPS:
It works, but with the usual UT limitations because there is no A-GPS. Getting first fix, or getting a fix after not having used gps for a while takes some time, up to an hour, and you need to be outside or close to a window to get the fix.
IDLE:
Some power saving functions have been implemented, but app suspension seems incomplete at the moment, at least on 20.04 devel. I get around 1,5 days of battery time on moderate use, but have to charge each evening if I use the phone a lot.
NFC
I haven't tried it yet, but it seems there are few apps for UT that actually use NFC. I would not expect using NFC to connect to a radio to work.

Other notable stuff:
Calls: Works fine, including VoLTE.
SMS/MMS: I have sometimes not received every MMS sent to me.
Waydroid: Works well.
Connection to PC: Works well both for Linux and Windows for me.
Wifi/network: Sometimes disconnects from wifi, and I have to manually reconnect. If I lose Wifi connection, I have to manually turn on mobile data.

It is also worth to note that the FP5 has no stable release channel yet. Development is very active on this phone right now, and new and improved things turn up often. I am very happy with my FP5, but some workarounds are needed now and then.

Edit: I just want to add that this is my experience with the phone, with my particular installation. Refer to the device page to see a more general list.

rdfrs

@Ida_ I'm also considering to switch to FP5, but I'm curious about 5G. Do you perhaps have a subscription with 5G internet, and does that work?

Escain

Thank you for your help.

Ida_

@rdfrs I'm not sure I understand your question, but I use 5G on my FP5 for surfing the web, chat messages etc. when I'm not on a wifi network, as long as there is a 5G connection available. Sometimes I only have 4G/LTE available where I am. I can use 5G on my phone (it switches automatically between 2G, 4G/LTE and 5G depending on what's available), or I can turn on the hotspot available in the network settings menu to make a wifi hotspot to connect my computer with and share internet access. It works very well.

5G is included in my regular phone plan that I pay for every month.

rdfrs

@Ida_ thank you! That sounds perfect

kugiigi

Bluetooth experience might still be the same or slightly improved. Honestly UT's bluetooth is kind of a hit or miss. Some devices work well on certain UT devices but some don't so it'll be like a lottery and depends on your luck

GPS works but still won't have AGPS which helps getting your initial location quickly. This is a general issue in UT. Best way to use GPS in UT is to try using mobile data and get out somewhere open and without a roof. Once you get the initial fix, it usually works fine.

As for idle battery drain, FP5 has recently got proper device sleep implementation which helps on this regard however it still has some quirks because of this. For example, Wifi can be finicky coming from a sleep. Also, FP5 has a weird bug where apps don't suspend even when in the background so this still adds to the battery drain if you have apps open. Now I'm thinking maybe the FP3 also has this bug?

Lastly, NFC works but UT doesn't really have any implementation of utilizing it yet so even if it works, connecting to your bluetooth device wouldn't work. Shouldn't it be possible to manually connect though?

In any case, I personally don't daily drive my FP5 yet. In my opinion, it's not ready yet, at least compared to the FP4 which is stable and works well for me.