On the Edge of failure: Ubuntu smartphone looks unlikely to reach crowdfunding goal

That has been expect all along. I would still say the campaign is a success. Coolest device in along time and pushing the limit.

But sure it's not a safe bet so I understand the people don't dare to open their pockets.

My guess(when the campaign launched) was on $10-11 M and seems to pretty solid.

Big support for Ubuntu so I hope they find a way to release something in the future when more "safe" user date to jump.

There's an article up on Verge backing up what I said.

The Edge will fall short of its target and will be cancelled. The only salvation is if another company decides to do a partnership over the whole project: Yahoo as some pointed out.

I learned a new thing about the Canonical Edge just then. There's no plans on making more models. Basically, once the project is completed the only way to get a unit yourself is to buy from a backer.

This means its not really a "Kickstarter" its a project on its own. I kind of understand the need to put the goal that high right now (cover R&D costs involved). But I still say its a dick move.

They should've gone with a $10M target (or 12,000 Backer units).
They should've started the pricing at $750 (sets a limit to follow) then made better "stages" based on things like Engraving, free accessories, Bootup Screen with your name, A tribute to you and other backers on X, T-Shirt etc etc.
...then make plans to produce the phone thereafter, perhaps another 38,000 units or $30 Million.

Sure its not ideal, and could be "chump change" for large companies... but this approach guarantees success and a warm place for people to hold you dear.

It also opens up the doors for a sequel, a successor, a true competitor to the Superphone race, a brand name, a contract for selling, a recipe for success... ... ...

This is a stand alone project, but... If this would have been green lighted there would probably be another similar project. Mark said that the owners would have great influence on the next gen and vote for spec and so forth. (that would have given the user a new kind of openess)

But this is a elite project and exclusive for the people who believes in it an the future of new cool tech. This is not a mass device ala Samsung or apple.

I think we will see more and more of these cool and small innovative companies trying to make small batches to the market.

Fairphone, GeekPhone, ubuntu, Kasam and possibly even jolla falls in this category as well even if they go for new software rather than cool top of the line new HW.

I happily support The small compony over the big one. But that's just me. When I think of it, I support everything I find cool.

Ubuntu Edge now $695, thanks to major industry backing

With 14 days to go, it’s time for our biggest announcement yet. From now until the end of the campaign, we’re fixing the price of the Ubuntu Edge at $695! No limited quantities, no more price changes. You wanted a more affordable Edge, and now you’ve got it.

How are we able to do this? Mainly thanks to all of you. The huge support the Ubuntu Edge has been receiving from all corners of the world has really sent a message to the mobile industry -- and that message has been received loud and clear.

Yesterday we announced that Bloomberg LP has snapped up the first of the $80,000 Enterprise bundles, and we expect more businesses to follow suit. To make it even more appealing, we’ve raised the number of phones included in the bundle from 100 to 115.

Even better, since the campaign started breaking records on day one, we’ve been negotiating with several major component suppliers who are keen to see the Edge reach its goal and drive the adoption of new mobile technologies. This is one of the key benefits of keeping some of the core specifications open: as a result of these negotiations, we can now produce the same state-of-the-art device for less than we originally estimated.

Edge for less

So of course we’re passing those savings on to you. There’s now a single unlimited $695 Ubuntu Edge perk, which comes with a year’s subscription to LastPass Premium and a place on the Founders page. At the end of the campaign, anyone who’s already pledged more than $695 for the phone will be offered a refund of the difference.

There will be no further price reductions, and we must reiterate that the Ubuntu Edge is exclusive to Indiegogo. It will not be available to buy anywhere outside of this campaign, even at launch.

The target is still $32 million, so we will need to ship a few more phones at $695 than we would at a higher price, but we believe we can do it. We have two weeks, and we have the best community out there, so let’s get to work: share this news, get the word out, and let’s get the Ubuntu Edge made!

The Ubuntu Edge team

I myself would probably also find such a phone useful (I used the N900 for a long time). But with the increase of mobile applications on iOS/Android/WP, the number of useful mobile apps that I will miss on such a phone also increases.
On a phone you really do need to have applications that are optimized for the smaller UI and touchscreen, and most currently are closed source by small developers located around the world.
With phones having so much personal information on them, I need proper sandboxing of applications or I can't use any of these closed-source applications (and all other Edge users shouldn't either).
I don't think Ubuntu Phone OS can become a viable alternative for games and mobile apps without it.

Will they be able to add these restrictions in time for a release next year? I highly doubt it, so that would limit the usefulness of the platform, but we will see. They need to raise enough money first anyway.

I think they still have a pretty good chance of making it.

What they're sitting on right now is a great story and a great publicity opportunity for those who comes out to help the project out. The project has caught more attention from the mainstream media than any other kickstarter projects and even right now they've broken quite a few records already.

Moreover, they've taken the stance of the underdog.

Everybody roots for the underdog.

Edit: those number crunchers in media placement departments will know that a positive publicity in supporting the Ubuntu edge will worth a few hundred K or even in the millions. It's just a matter of time to take advantage of this. They will come in the last minute as knights in shining armor and will be recorded in history on top of getting their free publicity along with their Ubuntu Edge order.

At this speed the goal will just be done(2 days before the end). The issue if this rate will go on during all 14 days...doubtful...

check out the graph:
http://doridian.de/edgegraph/

EDIT: At this speed it will be done almost a week before the end. People really like the Ubuntu iEdge for $695!

However, I still doubt this continue for 24 hours, let alone 14 days

Campaign:
http://igg.me/at/ubuntuedge/x/4036946

I would actually use a dual system. If click-packaging for mobile/sandboxing was transparent/low effort, and there was no compelling reason not to I would definitely package many/most software for Ubuntu Touch as 'click's.

but for me, the system turns into a closed Toy if there is no easy way to package/distribute software that does not have a cute launcher icon, and replaces or must interact with core "system" elements.

Canonicals goal is convergence, not segregation of Linux desktop and mobile/click just doesnt make sense for maintaining the core Touch distro, so again, i'm not worried.

I do appreciate your point about regular users not jumping on if a robust mobile app model isnt available. I think they're clearly going to blow past their 2013-OCT target, but building up a decent/stable/maintainable model for mobile applications by 2013-MAY sounds more realistic

If you look at how regular people are using phones and installing application on Android/iOS and WP, that is very similar to how Windows users install and use software (trusting a lot of application from a very wide variety of places)
But on windows you have anti-mall-ware and anti-virus software protection and on mobile you have limited rights because of sandboxing.

That is very different from how users should install applications on any Linux desktop. If Ubuntu Phone is supposed to be used by the same customers as iOS/Android, it should use security features like sandboxing by default.
Without proper education/warnings people shouldn't be able to install applications that can steal your data or use phone hardware without the user's knowledge.