It is ridiculous. What is needed is a support for advert & bloat & forced updates free smart phone, not reinventing the wheel. Yes, someone must be first - but it is about software, not hardware.

Hacking isn’t about reinventing the wheel. This isn’t a finished product destined for a market. Even if it was, think about the small business utilities involved in local knowledge (“low-tech”): many small producers (farmers, shops, etc.) still use “obsolete” mechanisms and improvised mechanical technology. If that could reflect personal or community knowledge into real technology, even if “low technology”, that’s already a social gain for those people.

Besides that, it’s worth it for a personal project where the end goal is obtaining knowledge about how things work in the world. Not everything is about stocks, and stocks doesn’t fill all of the “market” also.

it can make calls, and send texts," LuckyBor writes of the project, which perhaps stretches the definition of “smartphone”

… And you need to remove the screen to insert a sim card. Now tell me again this is not ridiculous.

Take the first one off the shelf smartfone, wipe out the entire software, replace it with bloat free, spyware free, update free equivalent and voila!

Absolutely no need to reinvent the wheel, this is a road to nowhere.

I do not think you understand what a hobby prototype means, educate yourself then come talk amongst adults