> I could be wrong, but I recall in many developing countries phones there are many teenagers who code on their phone because laptops (even tablets) are prohibitively costly.
Yes, I see that a lot here in the far south of Morocco.
> They might be wiring their phones up to some cheap keyboards, which is technically possible but I don't know if they're doing that.
It may be $11 here in the US, but it might be harder to get and more costly in a developing nation. In which case, if it is easier to get that $2 adapter and an e-waste keyboard, that likely makes sense for them
You can get bluetooth keyboards on aliexpress for under £2.
If dealing with that type of budget then scavenging is probably the better route especially as online payments may also be out of reach.
In general, as a frugal person, buying "converter" type hardware is rarely a win because mass produced things are so much cheaper than more trivial but niche things.
However, converter type things are often unused clutter someone would happily give away. Just yesterday I came across some ps2 to usb converters. I can't imagine ever needing one again...but imagine the horror of not having one if you did! I probably didn't need to keep two though...
Pretty sure the people who have to choose between eating and a $2 adapter and not eating and a Bluetooth keyboard have a better understanding of the trade offs and what’s viable than you do. Not sure what real point you’re trying to make here
Yes, I see that a lot here in the far south of Morocco.
> They might be wiring their phones up to some cheap keyboards, which is technically possible but I don't know if they're doing that.
They do. Adapters are about $2.