A bike helmet made me stop using my Kompakt

MuditaOS
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I purchased a Unit 1 Aura helmet. Although the lights can be turned on with a button, most features are unavailable without the app, which requires Google services. That was my tipping point: even a @*#&!!! bike helmet requires Google @#%!!!.

Most “normal” people I communicate with either use Facebook’s messenger (which I don’t have or want) or SMS. If I must communicate via SMS, I prefer to have RCS, which isn’t possible with the Kompakt.

I rely heavily on the Android app Transit (transitapp.com) for public transit trip planning. This also requires Google services. I simply haven’t found a non-Google-dependent application that works as well for me, and yes, I have tried all the ones normally suggested. I have a terrible sense of direction and get anxious when I need to go places, so this is a must-have.

It’s a shame, because I still really love the e-ink and form factor of the Kompakt, but it gets more difficult every day to just get through basic life tasks without a stupid smartphone. I hate it, but it seems there’s no way out of that.

I’m interested in trying to get a GSI on the Kompakt, but it seems like others have run into unsolvable problems. I’d rather wait until the process is more reliable. Until then, I have to put up with this stupid shiny cracked Pixel.

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I am not understanding the problem? Are you unable to travel?

Your bike helmet app isn’t working/compatible with the Kompakt because you need Google account ?

Could you maybe put the sim in the kompakt when you aren’t using the helmet?

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The problem isn’t just the helmet; it’s a lot of things that I need on a daily basis. The helmet was just the last straw that made me give up.

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Many of us like you, feel the pain. But then I would not have purchased the Kompakt if it had Google services personally.

For navigation I reverted back to my tomtom sat nav, there is often a workaround for things, but it is annoying that we are forced to go this way, all of the so called useful apps are part of the data mining, 24/7 tracking infrastructure that’s woven into modern life. I’ recently had a pair of Bluetooth headphones as a gift, the companion app wanted access to my location and browsing history, why would a pair of headphones need this information?. All commercial apps are engineered around either advertising or tracking, so I personally keep them to a minimum

I’m not familiar with the cycling helmet you mentioned, but it seems you don’t miss much functionality through not using the app

  1. Light customization: You cannot change colors, brightness, or specific animation patterns (e.g., solid vs. strobe).
  2. Smart SOS / Crash Detection: The emergency contact and crash alert features require the app’s background processes and a cellular connection to function.
  3. Battery Tracking: You won’t get precise battery percentages; you will have to rely on the helmet’s basic LED indicator.
  4. Firmware Updates: You will miss

personally I have slowly gone through all apps I use and removed the unnecessary ones, the few I still have I have limited permissions to bare minimum.The problem I find is that granular control on the Kompakt is either not possible or difficult to do, so you end up not having the app at all.I have been fine with this, but if an app is important then it’s a problem

If we want a privacy respecting device, then it needs to be free from Google and Apple tracking, which means no google services, privacy features and the lack of Google telemetry were the reasons I bought the Kompakt, but we all have different motivations for owning this device I guess.

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Yeah this is very frustrating. I am dreading the day that we all have no choice but to go back to smartphones, I am hoping I am long gone before that happens lol

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Looking at that list, I would say you miss pretty much ALL the functionality through not using the app.

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I was buying constantly from Amazon over the years; now it’s only when I absolutely cannot get something elsewhere, maybe a couple of times a year.

I would absolutely prefer that the helmet had its own controls and didn’t need to connect to the phone. Surely they could at least do that with the lighting. I don’t change it for “customization,” but rather conditions: for example, during daylight, the light must be brighter.

Regarding convenience: I was visiting a friend this summer and someone mentioned my phones. He shrugged and said, “She always carries two phones, I dunno why.” It hadn’t occurred to me, but he was right. In my quest for simplicity at all costs, I’m often making things more complex.

And then sometimes, yes, I ragequit all of it and go full-on Luddite.

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Indeed these apps are designed to make us believe we desperately need them when in reality most of them are just gimmicks that are really privacy invasive code disguised useful apps.

When I became aware of mobile phone privacy and phone addiction, the first thing I began to to understand, was the fact that most of the functionality of a smartphone was totally futile, and that I didn’t need it.

Personally I’m prepared to trade some of the conveniences we have been sold for regaining personal privacy.

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My take would be what it is now.

When I need features I can’t get on MK or which are barely usable on MK, I reach out for a smartphone that’s normally away from me and set a hotspot for it on MK.

But I can imagine carrying two devices is a bit of pain in the neck.

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It isn’t always just “perks.” I was reminded while listening to a podcast today that in some places, personal identification issued by your government is a mobile app. Sometimes gyms require an app to open the door. Public transit issues tickets on a mobile device. I once went to the pharmacy to get a flu shot, and you were required to scan a QR code to check in. Although these may all be optional at the moment, how long will that last?

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Guess we all have different expectations of what is important, I wouldn’t personally require any of that functionality from a cycle helmet. But you maybe bought it based on those capabilities. The key takeaway is the Kompakt is a minimal device without google services, so it’s a bit of a stretch to expect it to work with a device intended to pair with a fully fledged smartphone, and retain all of the functionality, but Kompakt certainly has its limitations and it can be difficult to live with, for some quite basic needs

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I will last until everyone gives in and comply, I refuse to use these services, I would rather walk a mile into town than use a parking app. I won’t use my phone to log onto computer systems or clock into attendance systems at my workplace.

We need to push back on these things or we will all be in the same situation as those poor souls in China

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Dear @lisa Now I am convinced that the kompakt phone isn’t a good choice for you.

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I probably should have explained what motivated me to write this post.

  1. If I were a niche hardware manufacturer, I would want to know what makes customers stop using my product (especially customers who really do like the product and are reluctant to give it up).
  2. I hope that Mudita will look at use cases such as mine when building future products. Not everyone buys this phone for the same reason. I never had expectations that this phone would do everything a smartphone does out of the box; in fact, that’s the whole point. However, it is a pretty open phone, which is one of the reasons I bought it. If a device is locked down and I can’t tinker with it, I won’t buy it. Mudita has done pretty well in supporting sideloading, but they could do better for those of us who are willing to void our warranties to install custom ROMs and even modify the hardware if we want to. It’s disappointing that they did something in recent OS versions that means I have to downgrade to 1.1.1 if I want to attempt LineageOS, for example.

So, I think the Kompakt could be a great choice for me – if it were just a little more open. I will probably wind up using it for something or another eventually – or switching back when it’s time to ragequit the smartphone for a while.

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I DID HAVE expectations that I could replace my jitterbug flip phone with the Kompakt, but I can’t, because the Kompakt out of the box is missing a silly little thing like a voicemail notification - and I haven’t heard of any sideloaded app that fixes that. I think that it may be overwhelming for Mudita company, and @lisa I think you are right in sharing why customers are disappointed. It’s a hobby phone, or a niche phone, but I certainly did not find it to be as it’s advertised, maybe someone does?

I should have looked at this forum prior to placing my order - it is available online, and I just didn’t look, but now, looking at the comments that go back 5+ years, wow. There are former Kompakt users still participating here, so that’s sort of cool, unusual.

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What for. You already purchased it. It’s not like you’re sending it back to Poland. /j

You had the option of a pixel but you liked the weird niche toy (so did I). It’s a fun device and they have the marketing part down. They grab privacy cultists and misanthropic curmudgeons that might find the light phone too extreme. Personally, I use it as a secondary phone with a SIM from a different provider. I think Graphene OS might be a bit more suitable for daily life, but even that is seeing pushback by google, afaik.

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They might want to convince me to buy the next doodad.

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@lisa Thanks for sharing your experience. I totally understand the frustration because like it or not, modern life increasingly assumes smartphone dependence. Even a bike helmet now has app-dependent features.

Your post & all of the subsequent replies from all of the community members made me ask myself a very important question that I think many of us are also asking:

How much inconvenience am I willing to tolerate in exchange for privacy, simplicity, and independence from Google or other BIG TECH companies?

Different people draw that line in different places. That’s why discussions about minimalist or mindful tech often go in circles. There isn’t a universally correct answer because that question is fundamentally a personal values question, not a technical one.

For one person:

  • No Google services
  • No social media apps
  • No smartwatch integration
  • No smart helmet integration
  • No banking app

might feel liberating.

For another person, losing any one of those things might be a dealbreaker.

I always say that I’ve NEVER had a banking app on a phone. I use online banking & cards/cash to pay at places. But it would be very unfair of me to say:

“I don’t need a banking app, therefore nobody needs a banking app.”

The interesting thing about devices like Mudita Kompakt, or even the the Light Phone, or even old-school feature phones, like Nokia, is that they force people to identify where their own line actually is.

Some people discover they can live without far more than they expected. Others discover there’s one specific thing they absolutely need, whether that’s a work app, transit app, WhatsApp, a hearing aid integration, or apparently a smart bicycle helmet.

And that’s a very personal thing. There is no “correct” place to draw it. The only mistake is assuming everyone else’s line should be in the same place as yours.

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To add my 2c to this. I felt your pain 8 months or so ago when I bought into Kompakt on version 1.2. After a week it was apparent that everything in life is app based, QR codes, passkeys etc etc and I sent it back.

Fast forward to Friday when I was overwhelmed with spam calls, WhatsApp messages, emails and a tonne of customer requests for my business, and I’ve ordered another Kompakt.

Yes, the frictionless society we are evolving into where everything is on your phone (ironically my least used feature these days) is painful, but I am going to put my stick in the sand.

For my evenings and weekends, my Pixel Fold 10 that does anything and everything I need on the go is being fully turned off and put away until 8am (or Monday if it’s a weekend) and I’m embracing carrying the Kompakt, a wallet, a compact camera and going to fully inject myself into the difficulties that come with having a simpler phone but being more present with the people I love.

Sure, Kompakt (at least for most people) isn’t a single option device, but as a secondary and an escapism device, I’m fully back in once it arrives.

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Good for you!

Parking spaces in the American city where I live are increasingly populated with QR-code-adorned signs for payment by smartphone. Fortunately, these signs typically also have a telephone number to call for making payment (also by credit card).

Yes, this means that paying for parking is more difficult with a simpler cellphone, but it is not MUCH more difficult.

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