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by chooseaname 2448 days ago
This is still my holy grail of computing device. I want a portable device (phone) that gives me a phone style interface when portable, but when docked, a desktop-like experience. Yes, there have been efforts, but I want this to be mainstream and well thought out.
2 comments

Agree! Will somebody please make this!

I want to simply have a keyboard and screen that "looks like a laptop" but the brains is actually in the phone in my pocket!

And then when I have a proper dock, I just get a larger monitor(s) and larger desktop keyboard.

But the brains are still in the phone!

The key benefit (of the dumb laptop, especially) is I still want a laptop on the go, but..

1. Why manage data flow across two separate devices. My phone becomes truth, always.

2. My phone already has always-on data. Why worry about data for two devices. (To 4/5-g subscriptions, etc.) Searching for wi-fi.

3. Better power consumption for my "dumb laptop" device. (Less processing power in the laptop, hopefully space for a bigger battery)

I would buy this in a heartbeat!

I have a NexDock that I think was a kickstarter a few years ago that is a dumb laptop (hdmi in, usb for charging, bluetooth keyboard and mouse) that could be plugged into a phone. Used it for Raspberry Pis and Intel Compute sticks for a while.

I am hoping I can do this with the librem5 and a dock.

Samsung DeX is currently the most popular (only?) implementation of that, and it's decent in my opinion -- especially if what you really need is a desktop-sized browser.

https://www.samsung.com/global/galaxy/apps/samsung-dex/