Commodore Digital Detox Phone
Ranked 4 of 9 dumb phones by recommenders
Small Linux-based phone pitched as a distraction-free alternative; people like its open setup and compact size, but many find the price too high and question the Commodore brand.
Small Linux-based phone pitched as a distraction-free alternative; people like its open setup and compact size, but many find the price too high and question the Commodore brand.
25 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 14
- criticize it
- 11
- approval share
- 56%
Recommended in 1 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: not recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 14 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 1.2 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, not met.
- Recommended in 1 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Open setup, can install own apps
“I'd rather have something that respects me out of the box and spend a little time adapting to it.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “I don’t want meta apps nor Spotify preinstalled, but I would take the ability to install signal.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “This is a pocket Linux terminal with loads of untapped potential out of the box.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” Small enough to forget in pocket
“It's genuinely small. You can put it in your pocket and forget that it's there.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “I really like the general form factor and aesthetic here.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” Appealing concept and aesthetic
“I really like the general form factor and aesthetic here.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “I like the idea behind the product very much.”
Comment from 22 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb”
What people warn about
Each mark is one comment
Price too high for what it offers
“It's at most a $200 smart phone (doubling the prices for the DAC + IEMs) being sold at > $500”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “The price is steep. I'm not sure if that is going to be a problem.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “I'd be interested in this, but not at a 600$ price level”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” - Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb”
Relies on fading Commodore brand
“I have a hard time believing that market is large enough, or wealthy enough, to support the custom manufacture of a luxury dumb phone.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “The problem is that even among the commodore/amiga crowd, the reception has been pretty uninterested”
Comment from 22 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “Commodore died in the 80-90s, this is the husk of a dead horse being beaten by some YouTuber.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” - Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb”
Locked apps and sideloading restrictions
“The idea that Commodore can decide which apps go on the device, and I'm supposed to pay a premium for that, is crazy to me.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “The price doesn't really bother me as much as the side loading restrictions.”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” Needs a real keyboard, T9 questioned
“I'd go this direction as long as it had a real keyboard”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb” “t9 keyboard is workable but I disagree that it’s viable”
Comment from 21 Jun 2026 in “Commodore Made a Digital Detox Phone That Isn't Dumb”
Other dumb phones people recommend
The four most recommended other dumb phones, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minimal Phone 2 | 34 | 26 | 57% | 2 | — | — |
| Commodore Flip Phone | 31 | 16 | 66% | 6 | — | — |
| Nokia phones | 29 | 10 | 74% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Commodore Digital Detox PhoneThis page | 14 | 11 | 56% | 1 | — | — |
| Mudita Kompakt | 8 | 2 | 80% | 7 | — | — |
What people said
All 34 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“I like the idea behind the product very much.”
“The problem is that even among the commodore/amiga crowd, the reception has been pretty uninterested”
“The only thing that has prevented me from going full flip-phone so far is the lack of support for maps and QR scanning”
“Basically all the images and videos on their website are AI-generated. It doesn't inspire much confidence.”
“I can buy a 10$ new flip phone right now from Shenzhen, pay for an order of 1000 pieces and you can put your own logo on it”
“This business strategy is flawed.”
“The idea that Commodore can decide which apps go on the device, and I'm supposed to pay a premium for that, is crazy to me.”
“It's at most a $200 smart phone (doubling the prices for the DAC + IEMs) being sold at > $500”
“But you need a Meta account??”
“Battery is ancient. T9 is ancient.”
“This phone is nowhere near it.”
“The price is steep. I'm not sure if that is going to be a problem.”
“You can't do video calls on those sub $100 phones though.”
“Having WhatsApp but no email is the weirdest part about this thing”
“This is not at all fit for that purpose.”
“Why on earth would someone who isn't specifically nostalgic about Commodore products spend $500 for this specific dumb phone?”
“This product at this price is entirely about leveraging the Commodore brand”
“I'd be interested in this, but not at a 600$ price level”
“I have a hard time believing that market is large enough, or wealthy enough, to support the custom manufacture of a luxury dumb phone.”
“It's genuinely small. You can put it in your pocket and forget that it's there.”
“it's a 5 year old SOC that runs Sailfish”
“t9 keyboard is workable but I disagree that it’s viable”
“This is a pocket Linux terminal with loads of untapped potential out of the box.”
“I don’t want meta apps nor Spotify preinstalled, but I would take the ability to install signal.”
“The price doesn't really bother me as much as the side loading restrictions.”
“I'd rather have something that respects me out of the box and spend a little time adapting to it.”
“I'd go this direction as long as it had a real keyboard”
“It looks awesome but I’d need to be able to swap an eSIM easily”
“I really like the general form factor and aesthetic here.”
“the idea for new Commodore to release one is”
“excited about the inclusion of a headphone jack”
“Commodore died in the 80-90s, this is the husk of a dead horse being beaten by some YouTuber.”
“It’s as overpriced as the SpaceX IPO.”
“it seems too early to go for the smart phone”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.