Ask the CEO: Mudita Kompakt edition

Now that Mudita Kompakt is LIVE on Kickstarter, you have an opportunity to ask Michał Stasiuk about Kompakt! Michał, our CEO, will be recording a Q&A video to answer a number of questions selected from this thread. Having steered our ship over the last years, he is THE person to shed a light on anything you may want to know.

Of course, not all questions can be answered. There’s legal, marketing, and affiliate restrictions to name just a few… but we’ll do our best to satisfy your curiosity.

To participate, simply post your question in this thread. We’ll select a number of them, and Michał will answer in a video.

Don’t forget: Kickstarter is live. Pledge early to secure the best deal: get Mudita Kompakt for just €299, instead of the retail price of €439. The early bird reward tier is limited, so act fast!

Looking forward to your questions!

PS. A lot of new information is included on the Kickstarter page. Take a look at it to see if your questions haven’t been answered already.

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What should users do to make the Kompakt battery last as long as possible? – Charge it to 100% every day? Let the charge drop to nearly 0% before recharging it? Something else?

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Would Mudita be open to offering an affiliate program after the Kickstarter campaign ends, especially one that rewards not only the owner of the affiliate link but also the person who buys through the link?

I can envisage fellow runners seeing how usable my Kompakt is in bright sunlight after a half-marathon or other race and wanting to know more about it!

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  • What is future vision for M-OS
    • Will you update Harmony and Pure M-OS (not to be confused with MorphOS) or make it free and open to changes? Both products are almost EOL
  • Will you allow easier sideloading?
  • Can you add faster e-ink screen (not necessarily bigger), 3 pic choice post processing on some
  • branded Kamera, real good Stereo speakers like one promised on Pure and improved Wi Fi options?
    • Any sensors you can add for Kompakt 2, LED lights, QWERTY?
    • How do you handle “Pure haunting Kompakt” ? Will good experience and support with Kompakt improve that? What can you tell me about LTS battery replacement and separate sale FOR KOMPAKT? (avail for Pure limited time, now nulled)
  • Will melodies, mediatation and other Mudita experiences be standardized across all prpducts
  • What can you do to improve dark theme, mp3 player and large fonts on Pure and Harmony if you wish not to open source old M-OS?
    • What do you think of selection of best 10 android apps for PDF, mp3 etc. and then making contracts with those companies to develop and maintain MOS-K Kompakt app update, bufixes etc. I beleve some shared profit model could ensure good OS
    • You are compiting to Yota and Hisense with Kompakt and some small new names.
  • What do you think of NothingOS 2.x and 3.x?
    • Can you add easy old school file transfer protocol via cable or full file acesss via App?
    • What will KOmpakt users be able to do via app and built in apps that Pure users cant?
    • Any plans for improved Pure 2 and Kompakt 2 IF Kompakt is success?
  • Any plans to have melodies, alarms, meditation and relax sound same across all products (I believe Pure and Harmiony are almost synced, is Kompakt?)
    -Other Yoga and meidtation and sleep oriented ideas for tech? Karma counter?
    Can you consider 400PPi eink screen as Kompakt upgrade or as Kompakt 2? Higher PPI is important for people with severe eye conditions and is even general case important.
  • Is there a criteria for selecting questions for CEO?
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Charge only to 80 percent (can be software limited)
Use slow charging
Use wireless charging to save USB port
Have some battery saver in OS (best extreme power saver Xiaomi)

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What has been the greatest challenge regarding development of Kompakt so far, and how did you deal with it / has it been overcome?

Development of such a product takes time and is challenging, how do you personally maintain focus and energy to complete the project?
How do you encourage these attributes within the Kompakt development team to keep the project’s energy flowing?
Can you share tips for others in the world, who may be working on long term or challenging projects?
Thankyou! :grinning:

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Are these my ideas of answers, good?

From what I know, which is as much as you do,. NOT Official answer

  • Will the battery be replaceable? If not, how many full-recharge cycles should a user expect before the battery dies?
    Likely NOT
  • Will there be an option for the backlight to adjust its brightness automatically based on the brightness in the
    Kompakt’s environment? NO such sensors, its dumb flash on off
  • Will the dual-active SIM tray allow for use of a micro-SD card in place of the second SIM?
    There is some hybrid option but 2 SIMs or 1 SIM 1 SD
  • Will the “Ebook Reader” app speak the text in an ebook?
    NO at this time, great for disabled and blind, across OS
  • What is the source of the maps in the “Maps” app?
    Unknown, but not Google Maps
  • Will the “Maps” app detect traffic conditions?
    Likely not
  • Approximately how frequently will the maps in the “Maps” app be updated?
    Unknown
  • Will the “Maps” app notify a Kompakt user when there is a new version available of a downloaded map?
    Likely
  • Will a daily alarm (e.g., to wake someone in the morning) work when the Kompakt is in Offline+ mode?
    Offline yes, turned off NO
  • What is the resolution of the E Ink display (e.g., in pixels per inch)?
    800x something but not as high as VGA 800x600 (Amiga Productivity DBPAL)
  • Will there be an option to enable a larger font, for users who might otherwise need reading glasses to read the
    Kompakt display?
    Not known, but more likely then with Pure, I am all for it too.
  • Will a user be able to pinch-&-zoom on a photo just captured by the “Camera” app?
    Likely in camera before shot, after it is all up to Photo/Gallery app options
  • Will the “Calculator” app work in traditional infix notation, reverse Polish notation (RPN), or both?
    Likely US/EU, Serbia also uses different standard
  • What are the number of grayscale levels supported by the Kompakt’s E Ink display?
    I expect 256 to 65k, if we are lucky true col. 8/16/32 bit pallette
  • Will there be an LED that gets lit when a Kompakt owner has missed a call, missed a text message, has a voicemail message waiting, or some combination of these?
    I wish but it seems NO
  • Will the Kompakt support visual voicemail?
    Not likely
  • Can ghosting appear with the E Ink display?
    YES all einks keep last inage until charged and reactivated. Seen this on Yota 2.
  • Will a case or pocket be available?
    *Likely
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How does Michal see the future of tech and is his vision utopian or dystopian? As the minimal tech world is seeing some great progress and growth, does his vision include remaining in that space and ‘helping’ those of us (growing in number) to live a more sound, simple, uncluttered and technically minimal existence? Many thanks.

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  • Will it be possible to upload music files for example FLAC and WAV without the software converts it?

  • Is it possible to use an external digital to analog converter via USB-C?

  • Is it possible to upload and play music files from the memory card slot?

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The launch of Pure attracted a diverse audience that wanted a different concept. This diverse audience includes phone addicts, individuals hypersensitive to phone radiation, and people in need of decluttering.

Kompakt has somewhat deviated from that philosophy, especially with the normal SAR levels that align it with regular smartphones, which may alienate some of that audience, myself included. Although it offers more options to a larger audience, particularly in the US, there is now a lack of products that align with Mudita’s main philosophy.

My question is: What is his vision on this, and what can we expect from future products that will cater to the initial audience that embraced Mudita’s philosophy?

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Hi Roberto,
Just a word from my perspective. We didn’t forget about EMF topic, even though we didn’t expose it that much, as, in fact, we are not that radical this time. We did our best to make Kompakt SAR as small as possible. In comparison with many top smartphones Kompakt SAR looks not that bad. But SAR is not all. Allowing Kompakt apps being fully functional offline (like maps) also decrease the total of EMF as the device doesn’t need that intensively exchange data wirelessly. Lastly our OFFLINE+ mode also support decreasing EMF. Today, even airplane modes in modern smartphones don’t guarentee that the device is not using any kind of radio transmission. When You turn on OFFLINE+ you are 100% sure that there is none of any EMF emiter working in the phone.

But of course, we were not able to make world lowest SAR phone again. In fact we failed in that mission with Pure. I mean we’ve achieved that but we couldn’t avoid doing that on the expense of compatibility with some mobile operators guidelines, or compromising range in certain areas.

This forced us to change the strategy. But in general we are still commited to keep EMF as low as possible. We do that using different strategies, depending on the each product we create.

I hope this clarify a bit,

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Low SAR antena kills good reception, that shall be possible in next 5-10 years.
I would love it suceeded, but return of Pure shows its full fail

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I appreciate your prompt response. I understand the careful considerations made following the Pure model and the strategies to reach other markets, particularly in a world where bureaucracy is often a requirement in specific fields.

Given the feedback from Pure, I was not expecting a low SAR antenna like it but rather a mid-range or more competitive option that could reach the significant present audience and others not reached yet. EMF is a significant concern that some people seem unaware of or not taking seriously enough, and I appreciate your commitment to somehow minimizing it.

As I mentioned in a previous post, I have made a decision regarding Kompakt, and SAR is not the only topic. Nevertheless, I will continue to follow its development and any potential future products with interest.

Best regards.

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Ah, audiophile :smiley:
Playing from SD card should work
What is fastest SDXC supported? (File transfer?)
Is mp3 player comparable to Dub - WinAmp except visuals? (playlist, equilizers, shuffle, fade in out crossfade etc.)
Can DAC integration be planned for Kompakt or Pure 2?
What about stranger formats like VOG Orbis audio, mp3pro, surely FLAC, Audio Books and Streams?
How do you rate Kompakt speaker to Pures?
Thanks for jack, keep banana alive!
Is there FM radio?
Is there a mic with noise reduction / noise cancellation on headphons?
Does mp3 player supports headphone BT commands? (next, back, volume?(
Is BT connectivity to headphones and speakers improved to Pure?
Can mp3pro HQ encoder be built in Cenfer SBR is great file size / quality codec even not widespread
Since it failed globally, codec should be cheap

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Hadrware choice cannot be upgraded (mostly), but software if done right, can do a lot of magic
I remember Yota e-ink apps

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Thanks for this info, I was going to suggest these questions for the Q&A video…

Can you talk about the difference between the PURE and KOMPAKT antenna and how they impact each devices SAR values?

Can you talk about how Offline+ mode on KOMPAKT impacts SAR and EMF output.

Is there anything a user of KOMPAKT can do to actively reduce SAR and/or EMF output during use, especially while hotspot tethering to a computer?
If I were going to attach my own little copper patch on the outside of the device to lower phone call SAR, where would be the best place to put it?

@Roberto I’m also concerned about SAR and EMF emissions of tech products. I would happily continue to use PURE long term if it supported VOLTE in Australia. Call drop outs and missed SMSs I experienced with 3G cellular network and Pure were the result of the network, not the phone, as confirmed by many, many others in my area using same network but different phone devices.
It’s low SAR was the main reason I chose Pure. There seem to be so few options available for EMF sensitive people…

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My 20 days exp with Pure: VOLTE Can be enabled via your provider. If it has VOLTE support just ask their tech team to enable it
SAR Antena was good idea, but terrible execution. Everytime you go indoor you loose most of signal and phone does not recover signal. I wonder how they did not see this in testing.

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Great work! Pledged and backed it. I’ve been looking into the secure and privacy phone area since way way back. Tbh pre-smartphone era. Been hardening, rooting, changing and building secure app since day one of the android release. Spend too much money to find, test and evaluate secure and privacy based phones (even got the Librem 5, it is a paper weight). Also a CEO, running my own company offering Cybersecurity and advanced TSCM services. Helping victims of domestic abuse, stalking and unwanted surveillance.
But to my questions (I don’t have a Mudita yet so if these are implemented, sorry):

  1. Will there be a firewall and app data flow restriction function? What I’m looking for is a low level OS firewall function, like the old-skool no-root Firewall. With whitelisting and blacklisting on domains, IP-addresses, ports and more, pre and post filters. Also a enable/disable function on the app level for data flow control. Like on/off mobile, on/off Wifi for every app that uses any type communication, this should also be activated for system apps.
  2. Is the SMS/MMS app pure SMS and MMS? Please keep it simple, if someone needs more secure communication, Use another app.
  3. Will Mudita offer an own secure communication app? I’m using a mix of so called secure messengers on several different devices to keep them separate. Not really keen on using apps like Signal that needs Google (RCS and notifications) and AWS for relay. Tried and using most of them (Signal, Threema, Wire, Session, Briar…) still need to find a good one.
  4. Will there be a secure/hidden partition of the OS? Suggestion: make a shadow OS partition using a special PIN. Scenario: you are forced to give your phone away and your pin to unlock it. You give the “open” Pin, and the phone unlocks to the "open "version of the OS, only open information are now available. If one use the Secure pin, the real OS version is shown.
  5. Will there be a possibility to combine pin, fingerprint as multi-factor login? Scenario: you are forced to unlock the phone by using bio-metrics. Or you are unconscious and and an antagonist uses your bio-metrics to unlock your phone. With combining a Pin or pattern with a bio-metric makes it harder to access the phone.
  6. Will there be a wipe pin or kill switch function? Entering a special pin or several wrong ones wipes the phone. Or a “kill switch”, a pin needs to be entered at a defined interval or the phone will be erased.
  7. Thank you for bringing “back the jack”. But will there be a HiRes DAC?
  8. Will there be a tool for enterprise provisioning or simmilar? Many of my customers are large enterprises and government entities, sadly many of them have “taken a bite of the forbidden fruit” and now eventually realizing they need to make a change. But there are really no alternatives…
  9. will there be an “exploration app”? Suggestion: make a simple app for compass, height, magnetometer, GNSS information, and more, Not the Map app but more raw data, Like the old “Ulysse Gizmos”.
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Great security Qs. I double firewall, safe OS backup hidden. I ve asked about DAC
I dislike bio data as potentially endangering if leaked, even it sounds and works great (using it on Nothing 2aPlus)
MMS is supported by any Android phone.
Also I like old school compass etc. like on Sagem Puma, Balmuda Phone etc.
Those who had simple and good ideas, but never went en mass

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Good ones.
I never use (or recommend) any Bio-metrics, you can change your password/pin/pattern but not your fingerprint, retina, DNA, etc. In some on-prem air-gapped real security cases bio-metrics can be considered, but not in connected personal/private devices. IMHO.
About the DAC, I might need to clarify, What I meant was a built in good HiRes Audio chip solution for the 3.5mm jack and then also a good driver/Amp.
Way back I had a Vivo Xplay3S, that one was a monster for the Hires audio, it had ESS ES9018 DAC and a Texas OPA2604 amplifier. That one sounded great. Especially with FLACs.
But +1 for the DAC, then.

The Xplay3s also had another great function (movement/gesture-control), tap the power button and shake the phone, It then turned on the flash as a torch so the double tap and long-press was able to be used for other stuff.

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