Upcoming Product: More PinePhone Details from TL Lim

From the PinePhone Telegram group:

Paraphrased comments from TL Lim, PINE64's founder, edited for clarity.

• PinePhone case 3D drawings have been completed and sent out for a quick prototype build
• The build will be back next week - if everything looks good, we'll start the injection molding process which takes about two weeks
• The PCB has already been sent out for fab several days ago and will be back on August 7, although we are pushing for earlier delivery
• Our production schedule was more significantly delayed, but these developments have reduced our lag to being only one week behind
• Once we have proven the PinePhone prototype design in August, we will start production on the developer batch of approximately 100 units
• The developer batch of PinePhone units will be delivered around 4-6 weeks after validation of the PinePhone prototype
• The first batch of PinePhone production units could start in October pending on the above progress
• If the production can start in October, two batches will be produced (1st - 1000 units, 2nd - 1500 units, total 2500 units)
• If production is delayed until November, only one batch will be produced (1000 units)
• Please note that whether two batches or only one batch are produced, these will be specifically for early adopters and will not have an OS preinstalled so that early adopters can try out various OS builds
• PinePhone general availability production will not start until March 2020 or later to allow time for the Linux OS distributions to mature
• If at least one OS distribution is not ready by February, this will delay general availability production
• The PinePhone back cover STP file will be released after confirmation of suitability
• The eMMC on the PinePhone is surface-mounted and not socketed
• A tricky part of the PinePhone design is the antenna arrangement
• The retail price has been confirmed to remain at $149 for the 2GB/16GB configuration
• The modem supports a single SIM
• Consider the PinePhone a libre phone, giving the user freedom to do whatever they want to do with the phone
• Indirectly, the PinePhone has been certified for the following carriers, which means these telco providers accept PinePhone's IMEI code:
• AT&T
• U.S. Cellular
• Vodafone
• Deutsche Telekom*
• Verizon*
• T-Mobile*
• Sprint*
• Rogers*
• Telus*
• In general, most GSM carriers are OK - CDMA carriers are more particular regarding IMEI approval
• Getting the FCC ID is hard, demonstrating compliance is easier
• In general, we will use lab equipment to perform an initial scan to estimate likelihood of approval
• Because we have a relationship with the lab, they normally allow us to perform a free scan
• Unfortunately, smartphone FCC and CE certifications are a different ball game compared to standard electronic devices

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