Jolla: Ex-Nokia Employees Launch Smartphone (MeeGo Resurrected) 141
mrspoonsi writes "A team of ex-Nokia employees has released the first handset running on a new smartphone platform. The Jolla phone — pronounced Yol-la — is powered by open-source operating system Sailfish, but can run most apps designed for Google's Android platform. The platform — originally called MeeGo — was developed by Nokia, but dumped in 2011 in favour of the company adopting the Windows Phone system. Nokia released just one handset running the software, the N9-00. Antti Saarnio, chairman and co-founder of Jolla, told the BBC in May that MeeGo — now called Sailfish — had not been given enough chance to succeed."
*sigh* (Score:5, Interesting)
Actually, as an experienced MeeGo developer, this just makes me sad because they won't sell one to North Americans. Nokia did this to us with the N9 too, but at least they sent me a developer device. These guys still haven't released the official GSM/LTE frequencies it supports for some stupid reason, so I don't even know if I should bother trying to import one.
Re:Rhythm Software File Manager with SMB support (Score:0, Interesting)
Ok, so i loaded up some audiobooks...the mp3 skips when the screen rotates! my god damn fucking iphone can play an mp3 and rotate the screen without fucking up! Linux people have been using hacked together trash for so long they don't even know what well designed technology looks like any more. So sad.
Re:*sigh* (Score:5, Interesting)
From Jolla's website:
GSM/3G/4G LTE* (Works on 6 continents).
Which doesn't answer your question, but should mean that it works unless you're living in Antarctica :)
GSM Arena says:
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
4G Network LTE
yeah, probably not trustworthy, but one would hope they have a (semi-)official source for it.
Disclaimer: Mine is in the mail... :)
Re:"but can run most apps" (Score:3, Interesting)
'just replicate the damn Android API, piece by piece, it is open is it not? '
The open parts of the API work.
The problem is that increasing parts of the android API are closed, being implemented not by open source code, but by closed source binaries with licences that do not permit redistribution by other manufacturers.
http://www.wired.co.uk/news/archive/2013-10/21/googles-iron-grip-on-android [wired.co.uk]
'Play Services is a closed source app owned by Google and licensed as part of the Google Apps package. Any feature you see move from "normal" Android to Google Play Services is also moving from open source to closed source. This app pulls off the neat trick of not only enticing users with exclusive, closed source features, but locking in third-party developers with Google's proprietary APIs as well.'
This is entirely by (googles) design, and for exactly this reason.
To make it hard for third party vendors to release devices which run android apps because an increasing fraction of them won't work as time and increasing integration into Play Services happens.
I have not investigated, but would suspect that the various APIs were designed around patents google owns or controls, in order to make implementing the backend supporting the API legally impossible in many countries.