Librem

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Librem is a line of computers manufactured by Purism, SPC featuring free (libre) software.[1][2] The laptop line is designed to protect privacy and freedom by providing no non-free (proprietary) software in the operating system or kernel,[3][4][5][6] avoiding the Intel Active Management Technology,[7] and gradually freeing and securing firmware.[8][9] Librem laptops feature hardware kill switches for the microphone, webcam, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.[1][2]

Models[]

Laptops[]

Librem 13 and Librem 15[]

In 2014 Purism launched a crowdfunding campaign on Crowd Supply to fund the creation and production of the Librem 15 laptop,[10] conceived as a modern alternative to existing open-source hardware laptops, all of which used older hardware.[11][12][13] The 15 in the name refers to its 15-inch screen size. The campaign succeeded after extending the original campaign,[14] and the laptops were shipped to backers.[15] In a second revision of the laptop, hardware kill switches for the camera, microphone, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth were added.

After the successful launch of the Librem 15, Purism created another campaign on Crowd Supply for a 13-inch laptop called the Librem 13,[16] which also came with hardware kill switches similar to those on the Librem 15v2.[17] The campaign was again successful and the laptops were shipped to customers.[18]

Purism announced in December 2016 that it would start shipping from inventory rather than building to order with the new batches of Librem 15 and 13.[19]

As of May 2020 Purism had two laptop models in production, the Librem 15 (version 4, US$1,599[20]) and Librem 13 (version 4, $1,399[21][2]). The Librem 5 mobile telephone can be pre-ordered ($749).[22]

Comparison of laptops[]

Librem model Coreboot version CPU Intel ME Release Max RAM (GB)
15 v1[23] Intel Core i7 5557U Enabled July 2015 32
13 v1[24] 4.6 (2017)[25] Intel Core i5 5200U Enabled September 2015 16
15 rev2[26] 4.7 (2017)[27] Intel Core i7-5557U Enabled September 2015 32
13 v2[28] 4.7 (2017)[27] Intel Core i5 6200U Disabled June 14, 2017 16
15 v3[28] 4.6 (2017)[25] Intel Core i7 6500U Disabled June 28, 2017 32
13 v3[29] 4.6 (2017)[25] Intel Core i7 6500U Disabled October 2017 16
15 v4 4.8 Intel Core i7 7500U Disabled[30] January 2019 32
13 v4[31] 4.8 Intel Core i7 7500U Disabled[30] January 2019 16
14 v1[32] Yes Intel Core i7 10710U Disabled early Q4 2020 64

Librem Mini[]

The Librem Mini is a small form factor desktop computer,[33] which began shipping on June 2020[34]

Librem 11[]

A convertible tablet-to-laptop model, the Librem 11, was under development as of March 2018.[2][35] Purism Chief Executive Officer, Todd Weaver, stated that work on the Librem 11 would continue after the planned 2019 release of the Librem 5 smartphone.[citation needed]

Librem 5[]

Main article: Librem 5
Phosh, the GNOME mobile shell that runs on the Librem 5.

On August 24, 2017, Purism started a crowdfunding campaign for the Librem 5, a smartphone aimed to run 100% free software, which would "[focus] on security by design and privacy protection by default". Purism claimed that the phone would become "the world's first ever IP-native mobile handset, using end-to-end encrypted decentralized communication."[36] Purism cooperated with KDE and GNOME in its development of Librem 5.[37]

Plans for security on the Librem 5 include separation of the CPU from the baseband processor, which, according to Linux Magazine, would make Librem 5 unique in comparison to other mobile phones.[37] Hardware kill switches for Wi-Fi and Bluetooth communication and the phone's camera, microphone, and baseband processor are also planned.[37]

The default operating system for the Librem 5 is Purism's PureOS, a Debian GNU/Linux derivative. The operating system uses a new user interface called Phosh, based on Wayland, wlroots, GTK and GNOME middleware.[38] It is planned that Phosh/Plasma Mobile,[37] Ubuntu Touch,[39] and postmarketOS can also be installed on the phone.

The release of the Librem 5 has been postponed several times. In September 2018, Purism announced that the launch date of Librem 5 would be moved from January to April 2019, because of two hardware bugs and the holiday season in Europe and North America.[40] The Librem 5's DevKits for software developers were shipped in December 2018. The launch date was later postponed to the third quarter because of the necessity of further CPU tests.[41] and on September 24, 2019, Purism announced that the first batch of Librem 5 phones had started shipping.[42]

Librem Server[]

The Librem server is a rack mounted server, released to the public on December 2019.[43]

Librem Key[]

Announced on 20 September 2018, the Librem Key is a hardware USB security token with multiple features, including integration with a tamper-evident Heads BIOS, that ensures a Librem laptop Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) was not maliciously altered since the last laptop launch.[44] Also a one-time password storage with 3x HMAC-based One-time Password algorithm (HOTP) (RFC 4226) and 15 x Time-based One-time Password algorithm (TOTP) (RFC 6238) and an integrated password manager (16 entries), 40 kbit/s true random number generator, and a tamper-resistant smart card. The key supports type A USB 2.0, has dimensions of 48 x 19 x 7 mm, and weights 6 g.[45]

Operating system[]

Main article: PureOS

Initially planning to preload its Librem laptops with the Trisquel operating system,[46] Purism eventually moved off the Trisquel platform to rebase onto Debian for the 2.0 release of its PureOS Linux operating system.[47] As an alternative to PureOS, Librem laptops were originally announced as purchasable with Qubes preloaded,[48] but in July, 2017 Librem announced that Qubes was no longer an option for new orders.[49] In December 2017 the Free Software Foundation added PureOS to its list of endorsed GNU/Linux distributions.[50][51]

BIOS[]

In 2015, Purism began research to port the Librem 13 to coreboot[52][53][54] but the effort was initially stalled. By the end of the year, a coreboot developer completed an initial port of the Librem 13 and submitted it for review.[55] In December 2016, hardware enablement developer Youness Alaoui joined Purism and was tasked to complete the coreboot port for the original Librem 13 and prepare a port for the second revision of the device.[56] Since summer 2017, new Librem laptops are shipped with coreboot as their standard BIOS, and updates are available for all older models.[57]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b Miller, Paul; Krales, Amelia Holowaty (2017-08-23). "Librem 13 laptop review: physical security for the paranoid". The Verge. Archived from the original on 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2018-08-28.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Wallen, Jack (2018-03-26). "Purism Librem 13 review: This Linux-based laptop takes your privacy to the next level". TechRepublic. Archived from the original on 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2018-08-28.
  3. ^ Kyle Rankin. "Purism Librem 15 Review". Linux Journal. Retrieved 6 December 2016.
  4. ^ IEEE Consumer Electronics, Vol 5, Number 1, 2016 January, "Veillance Integrity by Design A new mantra for CE devices and services", pp. 33-143, By Steve Mann
  5. ^ Purism Aims To Build A Philosophically Pure Laptop, TechCrunch, Jan 23, 2015 by John Biggs (@johnbiggs)
  6. ^ Bridgwater, Adrian (2015-01-26). "Purism Librem: 100% open source crowdsourced 'high-end' laptop". Computer Weekly. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  7. ^ Armasu, Lucian (2016-08-29). "Purism Explains Why It Avoids Intel's AMT And Networking Cards For Its Privacy-Focused 'Librem' Notebooks". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  8. ^ Ung, Gordon. "Purism discovered how to make open-source software laptops even more open". PCWorld. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  9. ^ Armasu, Lucian (2017-04-12). "Purism Laptops To Use 'Heads' Firmware To Protect Against Rootkits, Tampering". Tom's Hardware. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  10. ^ "Librem 15: A Laptop That Respects Your Rights". Crowd Supply. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  11. ^ "Purism Librem 15". Linux Journal. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  12. ^ "Purism Aims To Build A Philosophically Pure Laptop". TechCrunch. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  13. ^ "Purism Librem 15 Linux laptop blends high-end hardware with totally free software". PCWorld. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  14. ^ "Purism's high-end, open software-stuffed Librem 15 laptop hits crowdfunding goal". PCWorld. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  15. ^ "Librem 15 Laptop: Shipping Update". Crowd Supply. 2015-06-09.
  16. ^ "Librem 13: A Laptop That Respects Your Rights". Crowd Supply. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  17. ^ "Purism Puts Physical Kill Switches on Latest Laptop". Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  18. ^ "Purism Librem 13 Review". Linux Journal. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  19. ^ Weaver, Todd (2016-12-15). "Growing to Ship from Inventory in 2017". Purism. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  20. ^ "Librem 15 version". Purism. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  21. ^ "Librem 13 version 4". Purism. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  22. ^ "Librem 5". Purism. Retrieved 19 June 2019.
  23. ^ "Librem 15: A Laptop That Respects Your Rights". CrowdSupply.com. Archived from the original on 30 July 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  24. ^ "Librem 13: A Laptop That Respects Your Rights". CrowdSupply.com. Archived from the original on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  25. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Coreboot". wiki.puri.sm. Archived from the original on 25 May 2019. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
  26. ^ "Librem 15: A Laptop That Respects Your Rights". CrowdSupply.com. Archived from the original on 10 November 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  27. ^ Jump up to: a b Alaoui, Youness (2018-02-22). "February 2018 Coreboot update now available". Purism. Retrieved 2019-02-18.
  28. ^ Jump up to: a b "Products - Purism". puri.sm. Archived from the original on 30 June 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  29. ^ "Products - Purism". puri.sm. Archived from the original on 10 October 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  30. ^ Jump up to: a b "The Purism Freedom Roadmap: Road to FSF endorsement, and Beyond". Purism. 2018-04-04. Retrieved 2019-02-18.
  31. ^ "Librem 13 version 4". puri.sm. Archived from the original on 24 January 2019. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  32. ^ "Purism- Librem 14". puri.sm. Retrieved 23 July 2020.
  33. ^ "Purism Librem Mini is a FOSS-Focused Linux PC". OMG! Ubuntu!. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  34. ^ "Librem Mini is Shipping". Purism. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  35. ^ Baldwin, Roberto (2016-05-19). "Purism expands its line of privacy-focused devices to include a 2-in-1". Engadget. Retrieved 2017-04-15.
  36. ^ Holwerda, Thom (2017-08-24). "Librem 5: a security and privacy focused GNU/Linux smartphone". OSNews. Archived from the original on 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2018-08-29.
  37. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Byfield, Bruce (2018). "Librem 5 and the Challenge of the Free Phone". Linux Magazine. Archived from the original on 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2018-08-29.
  38. ^ "Phosh". developer.puri.sm.
  39. ^ Verma, Ardash (2018-04-25). "Open Source Smartphone Librem 5 Will Officially Support Ubuntu Touch". Fossbytes. Archived from the original on 2018-08-28. Retrieved 2018-08-29.
  40. ^ Faerber, Nicole (2018-09-04). "Progress update from the Librem 5 hardware department". Purism, SPC. Archived from the original on 2018-10-13. Retrieved 2018-10-13.
  41. ^ Weaver, Todd (21 February 2019). "Massive Progress, Exact CPU Selected & Minor Shipping Adjustment". Purism.
  42. ^ PurismBeautiful; Secure; Laptops, Privacy-Respecting; Phones (2019-09-24). "First Librem 5 Smartphones are Shipping". Purism. Retrieved 2019-10-20.
  43. ^ "Librem Server". Purism. Retrieved 2020-08-30.
  44. ^ "Introducing the Librem Key". Purism. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  45. ^ "Librem Key". Purism. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  46. ^ Rahl, Jon (2015-05-17). "Production and Shipping Update". Purism. Retrieved 2017-01-26.
  47. ^ Weaver, Todd (2015-09-18). "Weekly Update on Librem Production 2015-09-18". Purism. Retrieved 2017-01-26.
  48. ^ Porup, J. M. (2015-12-14). "Qubes OS will ship pre-installed on Purism's security-focused Librem 13 laptop". Ars Technica. Retrieved 2017-01-26.
  49. ^ "A shipping update for Qubes-related orders". Purism. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  50. ^ "FSF adds PureOS to list of endorsed GNU/Linux distributions". Free Software Foundation. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  51. ^ "OpenNews: Фонд СПО признал PureOS полностью свободным дистрибутивом". www.opennet.ru. Retrieved 2018-10-25.
  52. ^ Moberg, Larry (2015-07-20). "Freeing the BIOS: Memory Init". Purism. Archived from the original on 2017-01-05. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  53. ^ Moberg, Larry (2015-08-14). "2015-08-14: Librem 13: Weekly BIOS Progress Update". Purism. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  54. ^ Moberg, Larry (2015-08-21). "2015-08-21 Librem 13: Weekly BIOS Progress Update". Purism. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  55. ^ Laurie, Duncan (2015-12-22). "Gerrit Code Review". review.coreboot.org. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  56. ^ Alaoui, Youness (2017-01-05). "Diving back into coreboot development". Purism. Archived from the original on 2017-01-13. Retrieved 2017-01-12.
  57. ^ "Downloading and installing coreboot on Purism Librem devices". Purism. Retrieved 2018-04-02.
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