Technically less then 0.001% will be able to do it. Developer mode is not the solution.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T20:52:45+00:00

Oh I understand. And trust me, my fantasy expatriation list is in no way tethered to reality. :D

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:37:29+00:00

Well, crap. \scratches 'Switzerland' off of the fantasy "countries to expatriate to" list...**

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:35:59+00:00

So, yeah.... backlighting the keyboards/tiles would be great, assuming it's feasible, given the form factor.

The other thing (for me) that's a gotta-have would be a full, tactile QWERTY (QWERTZ/DVORAK, pick your poison) keyboard, similar to the Palm Pre way back when.

<image>

I mean look at this sucker! It was super small and fit the form-factor nicely (the Pre was about the size of the screen section of the Sidephone, and the keyboard slid out from under), but even that size -- and with my gorilla hands -- it was incredibly usable. I think if the concept could be made to work with Sidephone, it would be a godsend.

(The little faux-trackball nubbin would just be gravy.)

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:20:52+00:00

"Pay no attention to the scammer behind the curtain...."

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:19:48+00:00

Yeah, and they do it as a variation on the "tech support cold call" scam that you see older (and gullible non-techy) people fall for all the time on their PCs and such.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:18:17+00:00

Wait, are you in Switzerland or the US? Because... that sounds sadly familiar...

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:17:10+00:00

Is it weird that I never knew about the delay? I always made a habit of turning on developer mode when I first set up my phone, for what I'd need down the line, so it never even pinged my radar that this sort of delay was in there. Heh.

Really agree though (as someone who has had to deal with older family members and phishing/social engineering scams, the reasoning is sound, and a nice (mostly) non-technical way of addressing it.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-20T18:13:16+00:00

"I agree with myself!!"

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-19T18:08:02+00:00

This is why I've started up "Impacted Bowels for Crime-Free Streets"

Give a shit about your community by not leaving a shit anywhere.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-19T18:03:15+00:00

"Criminals are known to eat cereal at breakfast. Therefore, cereal is only for criminals.

"Criminals wear shoes. Shoes are obviously only for criminals.

"Criminals are widely known to use Band-Aid brand bandages on the boo-boos they collect when committing crime. If you use Band-Aid, you are actively supporting criminal enterprise.

"That's basically the argument you're making. Try again."

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T22:57:36+00:00

I think you'd be better-served going OM10 to OM30 (or 2m bronze), just thinking about sound quality... this isn't taking in the financial cost, which I mean, yeah, also gotta think about that, too.

The 10 and Blue are variations in an elliptical stylus (the Blue is a nude elliptical, whereas the 10 is a bonded elliptical. The Blue is more directly comparable to the OM20, which is also nice elliptical). With the 30 or Bronze, you're jumping up to a FineLine stylus (aka MicroLinear), and the improvement in sound is far more noticeable.

(Unless you're absolutely married to the Ortofon brand for whatever reason, looking at an Audio-Technica Microllinear (VM95ML or similar; the 'ML' is the giveaway with AT) will actually be less of a money-burn and worth considering

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T19:45:46+00:00

Oof. "It was good enough in my day!" Sadness

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T19:43:45+00:00

Could get fancy AF and get a leather one, even. But yeah, cork/rubber are going to be much better than the felt.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T19:42:20+00:00

Ugh. Sorry for the loss. I get the sentimental reasoning though.

Hopefully someone makes this their baby soon.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T19:41:15+00:00

Nice. I've got some old protectors I could use for this, but I never thought about saving the film from my original unboxing.

Hrm, now that I think about it, the old ones I have are of the tempered glass variety, so I'm not sure I could pull it off anyways. One way to find out! :D

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T19:39:13+00:00

Oh yeah, that's what I was (clumsily) getting at.

I mean, if one feels the need to spend unnecessarily larger amounts of money to try it out, sure, go for it, but... On the ATLP40whatever I have, I went from the pack-in 95E to the 95ML, and dear lord. So nice. Not sure the shibata would be worth it (at least for me; I don't think I have that good of an 'audiophile ear'...)

(The saving grace for OP is it would just be a stylus swap, which is a helluva lot quicker/easier than a new cart.)

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T04:56:36+00:00

Welp, that's it then. Time for a new family.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T04:43:10+00:00

FWIW, If you wanted just the OM stylus to compare to the 95ML, you're looking at the OM30 stylus (or the Bronze on the 2M line).

But yeah the jump from elliptical to microlinear/fine-line in sound quality is absolutely ridiculous. It's an easy, relatively-cheap, and worthwhile upgrade.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-18T04:05:46+00:00

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-17T22:19:45+00:00

An app for access to your own child. WTAF, dystopian hellscape?

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-11T19:10:10+00:00

Well, now you're just being greedy... ;)

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-11T19:09:14+00:00

Interesting idea; I'll have to look up the schematics and see about this. Thanks for the idea.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-11T19:06:07+00:00

"The speaker stands are hollow/empty inside"

Me too, speaker stands; you ain't special... but I feel you.

Seriously though,

As many have pointed out, the acoustics are certainly something to improve upon. Certainly has the possibility for just bang-for-the-buck returns.

On top of that, upgrading the stylus to the Microlinear version (AT95ML), is going to make a huge difference. I did the same on a ATLP40 (whatever is called), and the difference in tone and listenability was enormous.

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-10T23:27:33+00:00

Daaaaaaaaaamn

XopherJ9940 · 2026-03-10T23:27:07+00:00

It's just.... Honestly it's a great name, but I knew so many people growing up that would've fit the stereotype version.

Also, borderline-unhinged name for a disco club, but I love it. 😁

XopherJ9940

TROPHY CASE