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How free is my phone? (The H)
The H examines
free software in handsets at the baseband processor level.
"There are numerous hurdles that must be overcome before a practical
open source baseband firmware is a reality. Perhaps the largest of these is
concerned with gaining GSM type approval for handsets using the firmware,
without which use with public networks is probably illegal in most parts of
the world, or at least is a violation of a network's terms of service. And
it's questionable whether a handset would ever gain approval if the
baseband firmware can be modified at will."
(Log in to post comments)
How free is my phone? (The H) Posted Jul 18, 2012 12:27 UTC (Wed) by ajb (subscriber, #9694) [Link]
EU readers interested in this subject should note a consultation on revising the directive governing radios (R&TTE) was held some time back, and a revised version may soon be submitted to the European parliament.
How free is my phone? (The H) Posted Jul 19, 2012 9:37 UTC (Thu) by njwhite (subscriber, #51848) [Link]
Great article. I do hope free phones become a reality someday.
Still not sure how regulations for software that you could change could ever really work, given that presumably exercising that freedom would immediately put you out of regulation. Though even having each major release of a firmware being approved would still be great.
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