I switched to the new Fairphone 5 for two weeks and this is what happened

The Fairphone 5 is now available. However, the test report, just in time for the start of sales, was hanging by a thread: instead of from Watson, the test device from the Netherlands accidentally ended up with a company called Watson Marlow. After some back and forth, I was able to receive the Fairphone 5 shortly before my holiday in the beautiful Glarnerland and test it extensively.

A preliminary note: We have already reported extensively about the differences between a Fairphone and conventional smartphones. I will therefore not discuss the social and ecological aspects in detail in this report. Exactly this: the Fairphone 5 is produced as socially and environmentally friendly as possible, is easy and cheap to repair, receives eight to ten years of software support and comes with a five-year manufacturer’s warranty.

So far so good. But I’m curious whether the Android smartphone, which is designed for a long service life, will also impress in everyday life or on holiday. Just to be safe, I brought my Samsung cell phone, you never know.

First impression

Older Fairphones were bought out of conviction; design and technology came second. The new model, on the other hand, looks very good and feels high-quality. That’s how it should be, after all, the Fairphone 5 costs about 600 francs. With a lifespan intended by the manufacturer of up to ten years, this is a wise investment.

The new Fairphone is almost the same size as the Fairphone 4, but about ten percent thinner than its thick predecessor. Granted, it’s still not the thinnest smartphone in the world, but it doesn’t have to be.

The reactions from friends and colleagues to my blue test device were unanimously positive. The Dutch certainly delivered when it came to design. Still, it must be emphasized: it is relatively large, and if you are looking for the smallest possible mobile phone, you will hardly be happy with the Fairphone 5 (the exact specifications can be found at the end of the article).

Personally, I like that the back is very easy to grip and can be opened without tools, for example to replace the battery.

The first steps with the Fairphone

Switching from an Android smartphone to the Fairphone is child’s play. The Fairphone is connected to the old smartphone with a USB-C cable and the setup assistant transfers apps, contacts, photos, etc. to the Fairphone 5. Alternatively, the data can be transferred wirelessly via WLAN or a backup from the Google Cloud transfers. imported.

When setting up, I was annoyed by the fact that I couldn’t activate Google Pay. Apparently this was because I have a pre-series test device for journalists. Google’s payment service should work as usual on final devices.

Once activated, you will be greeted with Google’s Android 13. Fairphone promises at least five generations of Android updates, 8 years of security updates and will refrain from bloating the system with unnecessary apps (bloatware). That’s commendable, but it should also be mentioned that Samsung and Apple’s user interfaces seem more modern, as this GIF illustrates.

On holiday with the Fairphone

After we successfully switched from Samsung to Fairphone, we drive with everything in an electric car to the Glarus Alps. Important for a carefree start to your holiday: The Fairphone connects quickly and wirelessly to the VW ID.3 and the Google Maps navigation works as usual in the car.

What also makes me positive: The speed of the new Fairphone is impeccable, I hardly notice a difference with the brand new Galaxy Z Flip 5 from Samsung, which costs almost double at 1,150 francs.

Equally important to me is the camera, which wasn’t particularly impressive in previous Fairphones. The Glarner Mountains provide the perfect backdrop to get started with the new 50-megapixel camera. And in fact, snapshots are now possible much more often. Photos and videos look a lot better than on the Fairphone 4 and worlds better than on the Fairphone 3.

Anyone switching from Apple or Samsung to Fairphone may still be disappointed, as the photos lack the saturated and warm tones that many mobile phone users have become accustomed to.

The photos in the slideshow show it: You don’t buy a Fairphone 5 because of the camera, but the decent photo quality is – at least for me – no longer a reason for exclusion.

Videos can be recorded in 4K quality, although Full HD is sufficient for me for holiday videos, which I watch on the small mobile phone display 99 percent of the time. Fortunately, the image stabilization also works well when recording videos, making shaky videos a thing of the past for Fairphone users.

The fact that the photos and videos look better is also due to the greatly improved display. For the first time in a Fairphone there is a high-quality OLED display with very good contrast, which shines so brightly that I could always see everything easily, even in the mountains in bright sunlight.

I belong to the group that likes to take 50 to 100 photos a day during the holidays. Adding a few videos will drain the average battery (4200 mAh) in the evening. This would also be the case with many other smartphones. The advantage of the Fairphone: the battery can be replaced at any time without tools. Some Fairphone users therefore always have a second battery with them.

The conclusion

With each generation the Fairphone has become noticeably better and the new Fairphone 5 is no exception: technically it is by far the best Fairphone. It runs smoothly and the screen and camera in particular have made a big leap. When it comes to repairability, fair manufacturing and software support, it is in a class of its own.

Anyone looking for the smallest possible mobile phone will hardly be happy with the Fairphone 5. Like many modern smartphones, it is relatively large.

During the holidays I also had the brand new Galaxy Z Flip 5 foldable smartphone from Samsung with me. The fact that I stopped taking the much more expensive Samsung mobile phone with me when traveling after the second day is the biggest compliment for the Fairphone camera. Please note: it cannot compete with the very best smartphones, but the majority of users can be satisfied with the photos. Anyone who has extremely high expectations of the smartphone camera will not be happy with the Fairphone 5.

For Android users, switching to the Fairphone is child’s play, while experience shows that Apple users rarely switch and probably need longer to get used to Android. The effort can be worth it, especially since the Fairphone 5 is a smartphone that you can enjoy for years to come thanks to future-proof technology, repair-friendly design and updates up to 2033.

The most important specifications