Planet Computers Reviews 74

Ponzi scheme fraud. Stay away from Planet Computers and any other brands where you see the name Janko Mrsic-Flogel. Failure and deceit are following this name since Retro Computers (ZX Spectrum)
You've been warned: save your money, don't get scammed

promised to deliver the phone feb 2022, but still not getting anything yet so far.

feels like a scam, don't buy or pay anything.

I backed the original Gemini, which was delivered with a lower spec than promised which meant it was stuck on an abandoned version of Android.
The battery started to expand, so I sent the device back for (expensive!) battery replacement - and on return the device would only charge if powered-off. I was blamed for using the “wrong type of power cable”, and despite multiple returns (including several in person) the problem has never been fixed.

Two years waiting for a phone . Patronising coms and close to fraudulent website that continues to sell and promise delivery in a timescale that is at best fictional.

Don't part with any money.

Pretty well the most fraudulent company claiming to sell mobile devices on the planet, IMO. Has defrauded thousands of thou$ands on their Indigogo campaign (do your research), myself included. They have lied for 3 years to try to cover up their fraud, [IMO & in my experience], blaming COVID for everything their imaginations were able to concoct, as if they were the sole company to have to deal with its impact on the planet [IMO]. Proof that the UK does not enforce basic commercial law, as going after this company would be like shooting fish in a barrel; even the laziest public servant could drop a heavy legal sledgehammer on these guys and erase them from the planet without so much as lifting a finger [again - IMO] I shudder to think anyone could be so stupid as to invest or lend "Dr." J a penny after his epic crusade to make the greatest con artists in the history of commerce look like boy scouts [IMO]

I contributed to the Astro Slide campaign, all the way back in July 2021. I'm still waiting for my device. I never would have contributed if I knew it would take this long, but it is what it is.

I can accept the delays; at least some of them were probably unavoidable.

What I can't accept, is the almost complete lack of communication with backers.

These days, they post about one update a month, either repeating what they told us in the previous month, or trying to sell us something else.

Every update is followed by many questions that they knew we'd have, and only silence from Planet Computers.

I've sent many emails to the company since placing my contribution; most of them get ignored.

At this point, I don't bother trying to communicate with Planet Computers directly. I know they won't respond - so why bother?

I hope Planet Computers becomes a better company and enjoys success in the future, but personally, I want nothing to do with them going forward.

Planet Computers works via crowdfunding; everyone knows that this is different from just a shop where you can buy something. It took almost 3 years to deliver the Astro Slide, but it WAS delivered.
Reviews could have been much less negative if communication by the PC team had been better. So 3 stars for delivering a unique phone despite dealing with covid-/manufacturing issues, but minus 2 stars for lack of communication.

Update: I finally received my Astro Slide on 2023-02-22 (backed on Indiegogo on 2020-03-30). I've added one more star given it was indeed eventually delivered; but it's as plagued with issues as their previous devices (see: github[dot]com/shymega/planet-devices/issues), and all of the below is still valid.

Their Indiegogo campaign updates have been awful - infrequent and laughably devoid of data. Even after close to three years, I still have no inkling of an ETA for receiving my Astro Slide.

In addition to the terribly outdated software on their previous devices (a security nightmare!), the mid-tier hardware of this device will be completely outdated before it even arrives.

It's impossible to get a replacement battery without sending your device to them - parting with it for god knows how long. They refuse to find any way around the EU law that prohibits mailing batteries standalone. To keep my Cosmo going after its battery ballooned, I have had to cannibalise my Gemini.

They promise the devices will run Linux, but leave the necessary software development mostly up to the community.

Documenting the many bugs and finding workarounds in a scalable way has been left up to the community.

With each Indiegogo campaign being launched so soon after the conclusion of the previous one, and the lack of useful information in their updates, the company does seem to be somewhat akin to a Ponzi scheme - future orders funding the delivery of previous ones.

They are making devices with a fantastic form factor, and I would love to see them succeed. But they just keep shooting themselves in the foot with such a lack of transparency.

To be honest after my initial complaint they have sent me a replacement usb-c hub works fine so my star rating will go up even though it was a painful process to begin with...

Ponzi-scheme fraud! Stay away from PlanetComputers or any other companies linked to Dr. Janko Mrsic-Flogel or his associates.

Dr. Janko Mrsic-Flogel should be investigated by the Interpol

Having tried to purchase an Astro Slide 5G, I have been waiting for over a year now, with no real communications from PC or delivery timeline. This company is clearly a scam, and I would strongly suggest that anyone avoid it.

Planet computers provided a clear example how NOT to run a company and a campaign on Indiegogo. It took 3 years to deliver a device that is with cheaper SoC, during that time they were totally unable to provide simple information or maintain a level of transparency how is the production and shipping going. Such companies should go bankrupt and vanish from the face of Earth.

I joined the indiegogo campaign for the Astro Slide back in late 2020, with a shipment date of March 2021. With the pandemic I assumed this might be a little optimistic, and was alright to wait a little longer. They kept pushing back the date, and now my phone says October 2021. The year is 2023. They've stopped updating the investors, sell whatever products they produce on the side, and skirt around initial investors.

We were taken for a ride, and have been left out in the dark. If this were a publicly traded company, the SEC would have some heads rolling for stunts like this. But they're not a publicly traded company. So they feel they can get away with this.

Short story long, avoid at all costs. They do actually produce products, but operate much like a Ponzi scheme. Think the Escobar phone, a rebadged Samsung phone sold to the public, but the only people who received it were tech reviewers.

Totally unable to keep honest updates and provide tangeable statistics on Indiegogo campain progress. Just vague updates that really give no useful information that would give any idea as to when people could expect delivery. Even production numbers and shipped qtys would be something, but no, just talk talk talk with no substance.

If I could give 0 stars I would. Just like all the other comments. Garbage customer service, I've been waiting since September 10th. I have accepted the loss but im not over how pissed I am. Stay far away from these losers!

Like many contributors on TrustPilot I invested in the AstroSlide on Indigogo. The experience has been torrid. The phone and add ons have not arrived. There are now rumours that the company is going bust. I'm reconciled to losing my money.

I have to admit that I have lost hope for delivery from Astro Planet. I have paid 729,00 GBP on 22nd of February 2022, and .... no hope for anything so far from the company :(

Today is 16.09.2025 and I still do not have my money back! They are scammers!

I orderd astroslide phone on april 2022 to receive it in may. I tried to get in touch to know status of this until July. They answer when you ask for updates saying that they will send: they never do. I've been asking for then to cancel since then. They never respond when you ask for anything else, and lie when you ask for status. They never sent the phone, there is no shipping label. They don't refund. You order any product from them, you lost your money. This is a scam.

In 2020 I ordered an astroslide phone through the indiegogo platform. This company first referred to covid, and pulled rubber for a very long time. Now for all this time they have approximately produced 2 thousand phones. I am silent about the fact that during this time the phone has lost its relevance in many respects (even during development, the specs were lowered, plus a lot of time passed and more powerful hardware came out). Moreover, it has ceased to be relevant for me personally. The company does not issue refunds and the only solution I was offered was to resell the phone on ebay after it arrived. Moreover, the delivery dates are not clear at all, I may have to wait another year before I finally receive the phone.

Low quality is not worth the nostalgia. I was THRILLED when I got my Gemini, with its BEAUTIFUL design and ease of use. The thrill slowly died over the following months, as keys started sticking or malfunctioning and a crack in the screen turned out to be impossible to fix (but hey, they offered me a new Gemini.... for half off! I'm not paying 150% price for your dumb design flaws!), and more and more glitches became evident. I shelved the entire thing after less than two years. I recently brought it back out to be a substitute phone while my phone was being repaired, and... battery is dying (cannot be replaced), keyboard is almost useless (about 10 keys are 'uncooperative'), and it is a pain to open. Great idea, maybe even noble intentions, but HORRIBLE execution. Save your money, don't buy into their nostalgia hype!