The Volla Tablet is a 12.3 inch tablet with a 2560 x 1600 pixel display, a MediaTek Helio G99 processor, 12GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and support for optional accessories including a backlit keyboard cover and a digital pen.
But what really makes it stand out from most tablets is the software: Volla will offer users a choice of two operating systems. One is the company’s Android-based Volla OS, which is a de-Googled version of Android with a custom user interface. The other is mobile GNU/Linux distribution Ubuntu Touch.
First unveiled last month, the Volla Tablet is now up for pre-order through a Kickstater crowdfunding campaign and the tablet is expected to begin shipping to backers in October, 2024.
While backing a crowdfunding campaign isn’t quite the same thing as pre-ordering a product through retail channels, there’s a little less risk than usual associated with this campaign – Volla has a track record of delivering on its hardware promises, having started shipping Android + Ubuntu-ready phones to customers in 2020.
What’s new this time around is that the company is launching their first tablet-sized device.
The Volla Tablet supports WiFi, Bluetooth, and cellular networks (with support for 2G, 3G, and 4G LTE). It packs a 10,000 mAh battery, quad speakers, and what sounds like a pretty basic set of cameras including a 13MP primary camera with auto-focus, a 5MP fixed-focus secondary camera, and a 5MP front-facing camera.
Kickstarter reward levels start at €528 (~$563) for global backers of the crowdfunding campaign, or €628 (~$670) for backers in the European Union. But global customers will most likely end up paying much more for shipping – it costs about $20 to ship the tablet to most European countries, while international shipping can be much more expensive. It costs about $85 to ship the tablet to the United States, for example.
Entry-level rewards include a power adapter, cable, and user manual. But users can pay a little more for a screen protector and/or “back protection shell.” Or you can opt for a Kickstarter Bundle that also includes the screen protector as well as a keyboard cover.
The optional pen accessory isn’t ready just yet, so Volla’s not offering it as a Kickstarter reward yet, but the company says it has confirmed that the tablet does support pen input.
Backers will be able to pick an operating system before the tablet ships.
Volla OS is the company’s Android-based operating system that’s been stripped of Google Play Services and other Google apps. Instead it ships with F-Droid and Aurora Store pre-installed. The operating system also features a custom launcher with an emphasis on text-based search features. And you can use Volla OS without any online account – Volla says there’s no data tracking built into the operating system and it includes features like tracker blocking, private speech recognition, and optional support for use with the hide.me VPN service.
Or users can opt for Ubuntu Touch, the mobile version of Ubuntu that’s been maintained by the folks at UBPorts since Canonical abandoned its efforts to port its desktop operating system to smartphones.
While there aren’t as many mobile-friendly apps for Ubuntu Touch as there are for Android, the operating system provides a touch-friendly user interface, access to at least some Linux apps that have been made for touch, and support for convergence, which is another way of saying that you can use the same operating system to run both mobile and desktop applications.
This opens the door to using desktop versions of apps like Firefox or LibreOffice on the tablet when it’s connected to a keyboard and/or external display, while using mobile versions when using the Volla Tablet has a handheld device.
Or I guess you could just buy a tablet with an x86 processor and install the desktop version of Ubuntu or another Linux distribution.
via Volla Blog
linux work with gsm, wifi, audio, camera etc? no blobs?
what bios? open bios?
It somewhat reminds me of JingPad and the Jolla Tablet.
I dunno, for me it seems the market for “Linux Gadget” is a pipedream. First of all USD $600 and up, is a lot of money, and it’s not even guaranteed to ship, or ship in the coming weeks or months or potentially years.
Had this device been finalized and shipped in 2016 it would’ve been a much bigger deal, although with specs adjusted for that era (Exynos 8890, 8GB RAM, 256GB, etc). And an even bigger deal if this device was shipping in 2012 (Exynos 4412, 4GB RAM, 128GB, etc etc) because that was around the last hurrah of Linux fans.
Now, focus shifted onto just using Linux on a Desktop PC, or tinkering with it on a SBC. Maybe using such a system on a handheld from Anbernic or the mighty SteamDeck. But many project failings over the last two decades has put Linux Gadgets on some sort of freeze, at least from my perspective.
I wish Intel or AMD would create an energy efficient x86 cpu with gpu integrated capable of handling full x86 Linux distributions and then have either Lenovo or Dell put it into a 6-7 in display tablet with relatively high end everything for a weird mini-Linux tablet monstrosity. They could even make it thicker with a large removable battery like the Unihertz Tank and I’d still want to buy it.
With free (as in beer) apps that I can read, listen and watch my files, and streaming apps for all platforms, Android is hard to beat. A VNC session that worked great on a Tablet could be a good place to start… everytime I wanted privacy I could just do things over VNC. I would pay for that.
Totally agree.
Even iPhone or iPad have been decent experiences for a long time. And if you jailbreak it, there’s a lot you can do.
Having a VNC is good option, but not a viable solution sometimes. Can have lag, performance, or connection issues. Even then there could be security concerns. For those big reasons, I understand why there has always been a demand for a Linux Gadget that ran natively on the hardware.
Still, the x86 options aren’t viable due to cost, heat, thickness and battery life. Even though they are easier to code for. Whilst ARM devices have many issues in terms of driver support, performance, and availability. It’s just this weird place with no clear solution. With the alternative being, get ready made commercial devices and hack them with the software…. and that seems a bit smarter. But still an imperfect solution. That’s why I think “the year of Linux” is basically dead and a mere pipedream.
I wouldn’t describe x86 as “easier to code for”, the issue is the fact that x86 has standardized UEFI and memory maps that require proprietary information, or a whole lot of guesswork, to write drivers and kernels (and specifically drivers and kernels) for on any device that doesn’t follow similar standards, like Systemready. Add the fact that most ARM devices have locked bootloaders and the enthusiasm for learning how to deal with them is going to be super low.
In spite of all this, I don’t think that this means it’s wrong to keep trying even if it’s not economically viable. Google and Microsoft haven’t stopped being evil even if most normal people have had the notions that might let them pick up on this fact programmed out of their heads, or have just accepted that and decided that it’s more important to be smart than to not be evil.