Not content with ruling the mobile operating system space under the guise of Android and the upcoming (and awesome) Ubuntu for Mobile, Linux has another trick up its sleeve with the impending release of Firefox OS, an operating system based on the popular browser.
The approach is not entirely brand new as the failed Palm (then HP) WebOS attempted to deliver web-based mobile services but couldn't get traction in an emerging market but Firefox already has a strong market presence and loyal user base familiar with its HTML5 code base. Cleverly their target market is not mature ones like North America or Europe but rather emerging ones where the web is still taking root and the smartphone is not the norm. By making the OS run well on less than cutting edge spec hardware and giving the software away, they are positioning their ecosystem to take a strong run at global popularity.
The first devices hit the shelves next week via the Spain-based Geeksphone and the hardware looks robust as well as colourful. There are certainly no quad-core processors on show here but do you really need it if the software runs smoothly? In addition the Firefox browser extension gives an attractive look at the UI before the launch and interface for app creators to test their design.
It will be interesting to see how Firefox OS is received by consumers but the Linux community is already embracing it and that can only help....competition in this space is good for us end users and I do hope it proves successful.
Amazon, the world’s biggest online retailer and a stealthily quiet yet powerful technology company has announced a new raft of its increasingly popular Kindle devices. The original Kindles are e-book readers that link via 3G or wi-fi to the company’s vast online digital bookstore offering a variety of digital media including books, magazines, blogs etc. Recent innovations have included colour versions and ad-supported models that have lowered the entry price, boosting popularity further.
However, their biggest and most recent innovation is their announcement of the Kindle Fire, a tablet device running a derivative of the Android operating system. The Fire, long rumoured to be in development, takes the Kindle concept even further and sets it sights on a number of the industry’s big players. Priced at only $199 it is designed as a marginal loss leader to enable Amazon to make its money from selling digital content beyond just books. Movies, music, games etc. will all be touted through the device. It also offers a web browser (more later) that enables it to act like a pc, no doubt harnessing online social draws such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+ as well as productivity options such as Gmail and Google Docs. It will also link to Amazon’s own Android marketplace, foregoing Google’s own storefront.
The device clearly intends to undercut the iPad, especially by leading significantly on price, and looks to lure more people in to the increasingly popular Amazon ecosystem. Its 7 inch touchscreen is sized to make it more portable than existing Android and other tablets, which tend to be 10.1 inches in size, and its simplified pc concept will appeal to the non-technical.
However, the Fire’s secret weapon may well prove to be it’s Silk browser, another secret development only revealed at the tablet product’s launch. Unbeknown to many, Amazon is actually a significant player in providing the cloud-based backbone to the web. Companies such as Netflix use Amazon Web Services to power their online delivery and Amazon is looking to use it’s own capabilities to offer a whole new browsing experience on the Fire. Silk sees the bulk of the browsing processing done in Amazon’s data centres before it is delivered to the device, speeding up the process and reducing the need for powerful hardware on the tablet. It looks set to challenge other notable browsers such as Google’s Chrome, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, Apple’s Safari and mobile favourites such as Opera and will hopefully spur further innovation in these other browser makers.
Many are wondering what Google’s take on this device will be. After all, it is based on a derivative of their operating system but it seems to directly challenge a number of Google’s core services and products including Chrome, Music Beta, Books etc. The two companies have clearly not colluded on the device and it is obviously a powerful competitor to other Android tablets that are priced much higher. However, Google have always said that more web users is good for them so it shouldn’t be too destructive for them. Besides, the Fire will help get Android further established.
Personally I think this is a superb move by Amazon, building on a strong brand and utilising their already popular online services to offer a holistic and dominant route to market for content providers. By keeping the cost of entry down, they will help put capable computing devices in the hands of more people and make the web more pervasive, a goal a number of pure technology firms such as Apple and Google have held for a long time. It is curious that it is a company that is famous for its physical product retail services that is leading the way on this approach to the web. Amazon have the ecosystem, money and brand equity to make Fire a success and no doubt this first model will be a toe in the water ahead of a launch of subsequent devices that will perhaps have other options such a 3G connectivity, bigger screens, laptop form factors etc. adding variety and appeal as they come along.
The Fire may be a loss leader in terms of the actual device cost but it will undoubtedly reap high profits through digital content delivery's higher margins, opening the door to better online services and cheaper prices through strong competition. The next 6 months will be interesting times as Google, Apple and Microsoft scramble to counteract this powerplay.
