I really wanted to be part of the "fair" revolution. I love the mission, the repairability, and the long-term support promises. But after 7 months as my daily driver, I’ve reached my breaking point. I’ve just ordered a phone from another manufacturer and will be selling my FP6.
Here is a breakdown of my experience:
The Starting Line
Before buying, I did my homework. I watched the YouTube reviews, so I knew what I was getting into.
Ergonomics: The button placement is... questionable. I find myself accidentally taking screenshots constantly.
Camera: I knew it was "okay" but not "great," and I was fine with that trade-off for the sake of sustainability.
My User Experience
The "welcome" experience was a bit rocky. When the phone arrived, it crashed immediately while trying to open the SMS containing my authentication code. Luckily, a software update was already waiting and fixed it right away. No big deal, right?
Then came the "Massive Lag" issue that many reviewers mentioned. The phone would occasionally just crawl. I got into the habit of locking and unlocking the screen every time I wanted to use it—a "double unlock" by default—just to make sure it was responsive. It took Fairphone quite a while to finally patch that.
A few weeks ago, I updated to Android 16, and things went south:
The Wi-Fi Bug: My apps simply stop loading data after a few minutes on Wi-Fi. Mobile data works fine, but Wi-Fi is broken. I checked the Fairphone forums, and it seems related to DNS over TLS/IPv6. It’s officially listed as "Under Investigation" on their known issues tracker, but that doesn't help me right now.
The Ghost Photos: This is the most painful one. I love using the "double-press power button" shortcut for quick shots. I noticed photos were missing, but I assumed I was just being clumsy and hadn't actually hit the shutter. Nope. It’s a known bug. If you use the shortcut, the photos sometimes just don't save.
Vacation Disappointment: I recently took photos of my kids during our holiday, only to find out later they were never saved. The suggested workaround is using a different camera app or avoiding the shortcut. But in a "quick" moment, you don't think about workarounds.
Comparison & Conclusion
A friend of mine has the FP6 running Lineage OS (de-googled), and he claims he doesn't have these issues. However, going full custom ROM isn't an option for my workflow.
I still believe in Fairphone’s vision. I trust they will eventually fix these bugs and support the hardware for years with parts and updates. I want to love this phone, but my 7 months have been defined by bugs that range from "annoying" to "genuinely upsetting."
TL;DR: Great ethics, frustrating execution. Android 16 brought Wi-Fi bugs and a camera glitch that deletes photos. I'm moving back to a mainstream brand.