Project Ara of Google which is that it a modular Smartphone has been suspended.
Google launched this project: Project Ara in the year 2013 and was designed in a manner that customers could buy a basic mobile and then add on various modules such as a keyboard or other sensors. It was announced by Google, in May this year at it developer conference I/O that the company intended to launch a developer version in autumn. However currently the company would focus on its other hardware’s, phones and tablets, says Reuters.
Project Ara Project delays
A number of setbacks have been faced by Project Ara since it started off as a Motorola venture which was until that time owned by Google. The objective of the project Ara however was to develop a Smartphone that could be customised by customers to their own taste by making use of modules that are interchangeable such as processors, cameras and screens.
In the year 2014, Puerto Rico was finally shortlisted as the destination for the trials to be conducted by Project Ara, where customers could buy a Smartphone frame with a range of some 20-30 clip on modules to choose from. The pilot was in the beginning delayed and then finally got called off as the team believers that there were a lot of recapitulations in the phones design.
Google in May this year stated that the modular phone – new version would not be as customisable as it was previously intended to be. In the new version, neither the display nor the processors could be altered, however Google also mentioned that the new version would offer a lot more space for parts with out of the ordinary functions.
Modular handsets of Project Ara
Customers would be benefited with Modular phones since they would not only be able to upgrade their phone without having to buy a completely new model, but also also result in reducing technological waste thus acting as a contribution towards the environment. However from a manufacturer’s point of view, it would be a lot more expensive to manufacture each component, as they would all be in the form of separate modules. Sometime earlier this year, LG launched its modular LG G5 which gained an average response. The phone supported only two additional modules –
- A high definition audio processor.
- A camera grip.
The battery of the phone could also be exchanged however that resulted in the phone being rebooted.
Ian Fogg, the senior director of mobile and telecoms at analysts IHS, believes that project Ara worked against everything the Smartphone market had learnt in the past, taking for example the elimination of the removable battery. He went on to say that the initial concept of having all modules changeable was extremely hard to do and the redesign which has only certain modules that could be changed has made the project a lot simpler. This project has broken all stereotypical wisdom of the industry.
