Should I have received my final order eMail already?

[Serenity]

That is what I feel towards all those Anbernic or whatever gaming handhelds. For many years those release in huge quantities but still they do not offer more value than a 15 year old Pandora.
Dreamcast maybe but for everything else, the Pandora is still equal or better.

The NVIDIA Shield handheld has a better quality and performance than the Pandora - with a full android system, released 10 years ago.
Currently, for gaming and emulation, the ANBERNIC RG556 would be a better choice than the pyra: The device is faster, has an GPU and is a way much cheaper. And Wii Games are running well:

When it comes to the Pyra, I do not see it as a gaming device at all.
I personally would sacrifice 3D acceleration to advance the Kernel.
It is a portable notebook for reading, note taking, browsing and light programming and maybe music.

Like every smartphone?

Yes, the interst is decreasing.
However there are still a lot of people waiting for their Pyra.
It still is a great device.
I have hopes that once there are more Pyras delivered some dedicated fans will take up the software work and fix the major issues.
If everything would prk as intended, the Pyra would be great value

Let's see.
On software side, i wasn't really happy with the Pandora what was the main reason, why I sold it.
The situation isn't quite better now after years. But maybe, with the pyra, it will be better... maybe.

 

[ClockworkCoder]

Like every smartphone?

with a full android system

The Pyra simply isn't a device that was designed to compete with such devices. It's a niche (tinkerer's) device, and based on those reactions, I don't think it's for you.

 

[elw3]

Android is a no go on my book.

 

[Askarus]

Like every smartphone?

A smartphone has no keyboard. Good luck programming or typing more than just a few sentences on it.
I wrote about a third of my Bachelor's Thesis on the Pyra because typing is so good on it.

 

[Serenity]

A smartphone has no keyboard. Good luck programming or typing more than just a few sentences on it.
I wrote about a third of my Bachelor's Thesis on the Pyra because typing is so good on it.

Bluetooth Keyboard?
I wrote a lot of on a smartphone btw. not only "few senteces"

BTW: The Nvidia Shield has a better performance than the pyra, not only the pandora.

The Pyra simply isn't a device that was designed to compete with such devices.

Every device can be compared or compete with devices with similar functionality.
If I want to develop software or write a bachelor theses, I prefer a laptop instead of a pyra, that has only a tiny display
If you want to play games on it during traffic or just to pass some time, a smartphone is the better option
Emulation? Anbernic devices.

So, a refurbised Lenovo T460s, a HMD Pulse Pro and an Anbernic RG335M costs together less than one Pyra.
But as you said: It's a niche device.

 

[ClockworkCoder]

Every device can be compared or compete with devices with similar functionality.
If I want to develop software or write a bachelor theses, I prefer a laptop instead of a pyra, that has only a tiny display
If you want to play games on it during traffic or just to pass some time, a smartphone is the better option
Emulation?

You're stating an opinion based on what you like to use. My opinion is different, yet no more nor no less valid - I don't like using anything "smart", and Android, Windows et al, etc are not privacy respecting.

I fail to see your point, other than confirming my suspicion that you don't understand the market for the Pyra.

I agree on one point though - if the Pyra was a little more up to date, with a couple of more modern features, then it could be so much more appealing to a wider audience. And yes, it's not cheap, although I also consider it pretty cheap considering the extent of work that's gone in to it.

 

[Askarus]

Bluetooth Keyboard?
I wrote a lot of on a smartphone btw. not only "few senteces"

BTW: The Nvidia Shield has a better performance than the pyra, not only the pandora.

Every device can be compared or compete with devices with similar functionality.
If I want to develop software or write a bachelor theses, I prefer a laptop instead of a pyra, that has only a tiny display
If you want to play games on it during traffic or just to pass some time, a smartphone is the better option
Emulation? Anbernic devices.

So, a refurbised Lenovo T460s, a HMD Pulse Pro and an Anbernic RG335M costs together less than one Pyra.
But as you said: It's a niche device.

I am strictly talking about thumb typing here.
If I want portability only, I have a GPD-device.
Is there a bluetooth keyboard that lets you thumb type on a smartphone?
I liked taking the Pyra out on a walk, sit down in nature and do read/write a little.
It's all about excellent thumb typing for me.

Oh, well, and Linux of course.
It's not like I would want to set up a LaTex build environment on a phone.

 

[netcat]

It's less about other emulation hardware and more about how the retro game scene has changed. It's not novel anymore and now we have all these readily available official rehashes.

 

[elw3]

Ohwell you can also just buy a 20 bucks usb powered monitor, glue a banana pi zero and a powerbank behind it and ducttape it to some usb controller and there you have a handheld.
And whats my point here? I dont even know myself.
If you need a discussion to jusify what to spend your money on then maybe just dont spend it. I bought a pyra because its cool, not because i need one.

 

[jedi23]

The consensus is: there are so many Handheld devices out there that a Pyra doesn't have the same appeal than the Pandora had back then, but the Keyboard is sooooo good.

What if ED redesigns the Pyra serving merely as a Bluetooth Keyboard where the top cover has no display anymore and you can snap in your smartphone, like the car smartphone holders?

I bet this will sell like hotcakes!

 

[matzesu]

Craigix had this idea allready whit the I Controllpad2 but it dit not work out well.. i dont know why...

Yes if you would need something only for Emulate Stuff, the Omap5 Pyra is not that apealing these days, i mean common: GBA Playstation Dreamcast and the stuff above is something lots of these cheap 60000000 in 1 China Handhelds can run ..

The Pandora was quite allone back then, the only competition was the GP2X Wiz and the Canoo or an Hacked PSP, .. but these days you get lots of other stuff, and a good amount of these are even buyable via Dragonbox Shop

 

[Askarus]

The consensus is: there are so many Handheld devices out there that a Pyra doesn't have the same appeal than the Pandora had back then, but the Keyboard is sooooo good.

What if ED redesigns the Pyra serving merely as a Bluetooth Keyboard where the top cover has no display anymore and you can snap in your smartphone, like the car smartphone holders?

I bet this will sell like hotcakes!

We should sell it as a UMPC first, gaming device second.
As a ultra portable PC it is still one of a kind.

If the software was optimized to have some real standby and we could use the Pyra as an always on mini PC that would be so cool.
If everything worked as intended, we would still have a one of a kind device

 

[morrowmech]

We should sell it as a UMPC first, gaming device second.
As a ultra portable PC it is still one of a kind.

This is what I bought the Pyra for honestly.

 

[Null]

Would you be comfortable playing games while Bill Gates Satya Nadella is watching you?

Given the type of games I play I don't think he'd be watching for very long.

 

[Askarus]

This is what I bought the Pyra for honestly.

Do you have yours already?

 

[TrashyMG]

Craigix had this idea allready whit the I Controllpad2 but it dit not work out well.. i dont know why...

The nubs were the same as the Pandora and they went out of production post development of the iCP2 boards basically killed the project as they would have to re-design it with entirely different Nubs, the funding wasn't there, also it was a Circus already with delays and such.

 

[netcat]

I bought a pyra because its cool, not because i need one

me too. i create fake use cases to justify the purchase eg scripting from the sofa and home security system.

 

[morrowmech]

Do you have yours already?

Yes.
I was a pre-preorderer who opted for a copper color Pyra, and received it literally the last day in 2023.
Gave feedback on the copper case battery lid tightness issues and my fix for it too.

 

[PowerGod]

We should sell it as a UMPC first, gaming device second.

Seems to me that it is already advertised like that.
The gaming features are just described as additional information.

 

[oskda]

The Pyra's design is old and the connectivity is bad. Micro USB and the likes ...

All in all, so many bad circumstances...

Thank you very much for your sincerity.

However ED is financing the project at a loss and doing his best to deliver all the Pyras so that everyone who paid for it will get one.

I think ED is great doing so. On other side I think it doesn't change Pyra state or destination, because with so small units number, it won't get a minimal users base, and that implyes you can receive a hardware but sofware won't be never good or in tune because there is near no people working on it. A lot of years ago, possibly with a few thousands installed base, in successive batches and new CPU board, it could be different beacause user base and user interest on it. Now it is sure there will be no more Pyra batches, so it is dead.

It's sad for mots of us still here, because we had a lot of hopes and dreams on Pyra (of course it is worse, a nightmare, for ED).

Post automatically merged: May 25, 2024

Be that as it may, I'm so glad the Pyra exists, and I'm still excited to get one... eventually...

Perhaps I'm stupid, and/or one of only a handful of people, but I still feel the Pyra is a small wonder (and not everything needs to follow modern trends).

I don't own a Pyra, but I own a PinePhone (with keyboard) and I know how bad, really bad, is a "computer" where SO/firmware status is incomplete or faulty. And PinePhone is on market a lot of time ago, and with a more people than Pyra working on it but not enough.