Negative experiences with the Pinephone revisited concerning the Pinephone Keyboard

Last Updated on August 25, 2024 by pg@petergamma.org

• The Pinephone keyboard would be a great device in principle
• Much effort has been made in it s development, review, etc:

https://xnux.eu/pinephone-keyboard

• It has an own firmware which can be modified:

https://xnux.eu/log/078.html

• A wired keyboard would be a big advantage for privacy phones
• But Pine64 does not offer the Pinephone keyboard anymore
• The answer in the Pine64 forum:

„pine org stopped producing keyboard cases because of bulk and cheap components.“

https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19400

• But what has been done up to this date with the Pinephone keyboard is everything else than cheap.
• On the opposite, the Pinephone keyboard has the potential to be a high quality component.
• It has issues, but these can be resolved.
• Even in the last version in which the keyboard was sold, it was usable.
• Peter Gamma from www.petergamma.org has reviewed about it, and showed instructions how this can be done.
• On Aliexpress a tremendous amount of keyboards are available in every size and every color.
• But Pine64 is not capable of bringing a keyboard onto the market in which many people have invested a lot of time.
• Also the support for keyboards in the Pine64 forum is poor.
• Peter Gamma from www.petergamma.org has shown in a first test, that the Rii4 worked fine over Bluetooth with the Pinephone.

https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19352

• The Rii4 could be a replacement if the Pinephone keyboard is not available anymore.