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As you already know, almost everyone uses a smartphone. Theses smartphones are mainly based on the most popular mobile platforms including Apple iOS, Google Android, Windows Phone and Blackberry OS. Do you think people will shift to other mobile operating systems in a market that seems saturated already? There are two major mobile platforms coming in the wild: “Ubuntu Touch by Canonical and Firefox OS from Mozilla“. Theses two mobile platforms can be major competitors to Android and iOS.
Now, let us have a comparison between these two new players in the game.
Ubuntu Phone – A Unique experience
It’s undeniable that Ubuntu is the most popular Linux distribution ever. Ubuntu Touch is the mobile platform from Canonical, which is expected to feature many smart devices including your smartphones and of course, tablets. Unlike Android or iOS, developers have designed Ubuntu Touch to run on low-end hardware for smartphones to compete in the low-budget smartphone market. The mobile platform boasts of the same Linux kernel used by Android and this means that majority of Android smartphones will support this operating system.
Prominent Features of Ubuntu Phone
Here are the most important features seen in Ubuntu phone:
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App Compatibility
All apps made for Ubuntu’s current and older versions will be compatible with Ubuntu Touch. Inside Ubuntu phone, there will be pre-loaded apps such as Facebook, YouTube, RSS Reader, Email client etc.
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Side Stage
Multitasking is the key feature of Ubuntu phone. Side stage is key principle of multitasking. With this feature you can open and run applications side by side by resizing windows according to the need. In this way, productivity increases. Ubuntu Touch also feature multi-finger gestures.
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Phone to PC
According to Canonical, in every dual-core phone, there’s a PC trying to get out. The principle on which this is based is that you can connect your Ubuntu phone to an external monitor and your phone will transform in to a PC. You can operate your Ubuntu phone from the monitor screen with some extra features any user would appreciate. This feature is probably the greatest feature of Ubuntu phone that even Apple could only dream about.
Hardware Requirements
Firefox OS: It’s Better
Firefox OS is trending theses days on web. Firefox OS is a product of Mozilla, which is popular for its web browser, Mozilla Firefox. Mozilla’s Firefox OS is also known as the part of their project Boot to Gecko (B2G). Many network operators and manufacturers, such as T-Mobile, LG and Sony embraced the OS. Recently Mozilla has launched its first two Smartphones based on their Firefox OS: ZTE Open and Alcatel One Touch Fire.
Firefox OS uses the JavaScript and Web APIs for enabling direct contact with hardware. The mobile OS can gain popularity due to its low-end hardware requirement. Now manufacturers can make low-priced Firefox OS Smartphones.
Prominent Features of Firefox OS
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Low Hardware Requirement
Hardware requirement for running Firefox OS is low because it uses Web APIs and JavaScript for communicating with hardware. Use of HTML5, CSS and C++ for coding the OS is light weight !
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Rich use of HTML5
Firefox OS makes rich use of HTML5. HTML5 is the main coding language used for making firefox OS. Now it is very easy for developers to build apps for Firefox OS with use HTML5.
Finally it can be said that Firefox OS is mainly built for low-end hardware but despite this, its a great OS to use on smartphones and Ubuntu phone is both for geeks and regular users. Both OS have great potentials to compete with Android and iOS. But, we still have to wait and see how the whole thing plays out.