gerade bin ich via ProLinux [1] über das Crownfunding-Projekt [2] gestolpert, das einen Laptop mit möglichst freier Hardware [3], im Gegensatz zum Novena [4] aber im klassischen Sinn (x86, traditionelles Gehäusekonzept) bauen will.
Die einzige unfreie Komponente ist wohl eine Firmware in Coreboot und da gibt es Verhandlungen mit Intel die zu befreien.
Die Idee gefällt mir, die Hardware eher nicht (Touchpad ohne Tasten, kein mSATA/M.2, alle USB-Ports nebeneinander, Akku nicht/nur mit Werkzeug tauschbar, vermutlich keine Tastaturbeleuchtung).
Daher habe ich folgende Fragen an das Projekt gestellt und hoffe auf Antwort:
Dear Librem 15 devs,
I have some questions/proposals/critics concerning the laptop's hardware:
1. according to the photos the touchpad is a so called "clickpad" which means it has no separated buttons. This makes very precise positioning and clicking complicated since you tend to move the pointer slightly during the click.
Is there a possibility to change the touchpad? Also a track point would be nice.
2. There seems to be no mSATA/M.2 slot on the board. This is handy if you want an SSD, a HDD and a DVD drive at the same time. Would it be feasible to add one?
3. The fact that you only offer HDDs up to 1TB might indicate that there's only room for drives with 7mm height since current 2TB HDDs are 9.5mm high. Is that correct? And if so, do you see a chance to make room for 9.5mm HDDs?
4. In this review [1] a backlit keyboard is mentioned. But I see no other references (e.g. official specs). Is it backlit or is it not? If it's not, would it be feasible to make it backlit?
5. It seems to me the battery is not replaceable without tools. This is bad if you want to use more than one battery or need to replace it due to age. Could you please make it easily replaceable without tools and without opening the case of the laptop?
6. The placement of the USB ports seems rather unfortunate. All three are on the right side and close to each other. If you want to attach two bulky USB devices the third port will be blocked. And there is no way to attach periphery on the left side. This can be a problem if you are left-handed and want to attach a mouse or your environment makes it hard to use the right side (e.g. in trains, planes, etc.).
Can you please either move one of the ports to the left side or add an additional port there?
[1] http://www.linuxjournal.com/content/pur ... -15-review
[1] http://www.pro-linux.de/news/1/21887/pu ... erung.html
[2] https://www.crowdsupply.com/purism/librem-laptop
[3] http://puri.sm/products/
[4] viewtopic.php?f=1&t=148739