Project Ara , Google ’s pipe dream for a truly modular smartphone , has been a long parade ofexciting imagination of the futurepunctuated bydisappointing delay . But Google just made a enceinte promise that developers will be be getting their hands on a machine this free fall with a consumer variation due in 2017 . Finally !
Although Project Ara has been on Google ’s head for years now , it ’s been hinder by hardware delays . The equipment was originally supposed to be part of a airplane pilot program in Puerto Rico butthat programme was axed in August .
After a year , Project Ara did n’t have much to showfor all its talk of the future , but it surely inspired the smartphone honest-to-goodness guard to scat with the idea . This year’sLG G5 adopted the modular headphone principlewith a removable “ magic slot , ” andthe approaching Moto Xand iPhone 7 are bruit to have some sort of modular features . Because hazard what , appurtenance sell .
But where those attempt are the snug consumer version of what a modular smartphone can be , Project Ara is the rugged frontier : a hodgepodge of hardware with a number of dissimilar modules that anyone can decide how to mix and equalize . in the end , that pipe dream sound like it ’s almost ready .
AWired exclusiveon the reasons why it submit Google so damn long was that the half - dozen modular connectors really needed to not breastfeed .
Over the last year or so , the squad also work to standardize the module , so that developer could really initiate to establish them . The key bit was redesign the connectors on the back . Each one has to defend constant link up and reconnecting , charge thing when they get plugged in , and , you know , not break or fall off . They make a proprietary port , but one that uses an open standard , UniPro . The phone has six , and each one can campaign up to 11.9 gigabits of information per indorsement , in both directions . Ara top dog Richard Woolridge spits out sick edit - video - while - you - computer - visual sensation use font , but says the spec roil down to this : It can do by anything . And it only consumes a third as much power as USB 3 .
At Google I / O , the Ara team demoed its swappable module , swiping in an tv camera and break down a picture all without rebooting the headphone , for example . Google ’s also released a short teaser video showing Ara in natural action .
No Holy Writ on what pricing would be , only that it will be “ high death , ” but if you ’re feel adventuresome , you could sign up up for the aProject Ara dev unit properly here .
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