Monday, December 15, 2014

With Ara you can build your own phone

An Ara phone user
   OK, I just bought a Moto G that will have to serve me for some time, but that does not keep me from looking at what is coming down the pipe.  Since smartphones came out we have been able to select our own apps, but we have always had to pick and choose phones with predetermined hardware, including hardware we may not even use.  We have had to compromise on phone hardware because the phones we choose does not come with what we really want.  Also as a phone needs repair or becomes outdated, why should a person throw away an expensively unrepairable phone?  Why not just replace the broken or outdated part itself?  We live in such a throw away society, the future can hold better than this for us.  I look forward to it.

    To prove that standard and lasting items can be really be made is a very interesting phone coming up in 2015 called Ara. You can not only customize it with your own apps but your own hardware. Hardware that you personally will use.  That's just the beauty of Ara.  Whether you're designing a dream phone or on a budget, you can build yours the way you want it with standardized parts.  Parts that are replacable as needed. Ara ready to build your own phone?  I would love to.

   There is a basic starter phone that Google plans to sell at stores with pre selected hardware modules. The user can then upgrade their modules as they wish.
Two Mid sized 3x6's with a small 2x5 Ara phones
   The Ara 'Grey Phone' model small size 2x5 (2 module wide by 5 modules high)
  • A basic pre-built starter phone to be available at a store near you.
  • Small Endo 2x5 'Grey Phone' $50 US 
  • Screen *(720p)
  • Processor *(1 or 2 core)
  • Battery 
  • Memory *(4GB or 8GB)
  • WiFi (WiFi calls only) - (Cell radio optional)
  • Operating System: Android 5.x Lollipop - Google Ara build
   * While we have been told what modules will be included on the grey phone we can only speculate as to what specifications they will really be.

   Or one may want to start from scratch with just an endo(basic phone skeleton) and pick your own screen, battery, processor, radio/s and whatever else you choose.

  I thought I would put together a few ideas of what kind of phone I would build for my usage.  My needs and budget are pretty basic so i won't be going wild.  After some thought and research I came up with these builds. (all subject to change as more information on available modules and pricing comes available)

    My Basic small 2x5 sized phone which could start from the pre-built Ara 2x5 'Grey Phone' model above.
  • My starter price goal: $50 US. To be upgraded over time.
  • My end price goal: To keep it less than $100 US
  • Endo size: Small  2x5 (2 modules wide by 5 modules high)
  • Display: (Screen): 4.0 inch approx. *(720p all that's needed on such a small phone)
  • Battery: 2000 mAh *(Guess size)
  • Performance: Quad core; 1-2GB of Ram
  • Memory: 16GB internal
  • WiFi (WiFi calls only)
  • Operating System: Android 5.2 Lollipop - Custom Ara build
  • Speakers: Front-facing stereo
  • Camera: 8 MP - Front 1 MP
  • GPS, Bluetooth 3 radios and antennas
  • Cell radio - I currently have US CDMA radio
  • Accelerometer, Gyro location and orientation
Back of an Ara phone showing its modules 3x6
   My Mid sized dream phone:
  • My starter price goal: $100 US. To be upgraded over time.
  • My end price goal: to keep it less than $200 US
  • Endo size: Medium size 3x6 (3 modules wide by 6 modules high)
  • Display: (Screen): 5 inch (720p)
  • Battery: 2200 mAh +
  • Performance: Quad core; 1-2GB of Ram
  • Memory: 16GB internal
  • WiFi - (WiFi calls only)
  • Operating System: Android 5.2 Lollipop - Custom Ara build
  • Speakers: Front-facing stereo
  • Camera: 8 MP - Front 1 MP
  • GPS, Bluetooth 3 radios and antennas
  • Cell radio - I currently have US CDMA radio
  • Accelerometer, Gyro location and orientation
The Mini, Medium and Large Ara Endo's
My Large Endo plan:

   It is a hard choice for me, To pick up the Mini because it is perhaps first and the least expensive or wait until the Medium Endo come out as to me it is a more usable size. To be honest, I really want the Large Endo as I already have a 4.5" Moto G. I am very curious as to how much the large size will be and how long I will have to wait for it. It is a very tough question for me. But IF it were to all come out at the same or close period of time and for a price I can afford, I would go for the Large Endo as my first choice.
  • I would set up my "phablet" as a Wifi mini tablet.
  • I would pick a nice enough screen for reading publications with.
  • A decent battery size of course.
  • A Wifi module.
  • GPS for travel although it may come with the Wifi module??
  • An audio port and speaker module.
  • I would not need a gaming direction/tilt/acceleration sensor module.
   I wonder if a down the road of time there will be a full Tablet size?

   Will I ever build one?  We will see, but it sure it a cool idea to explore. 

   The whole world will be a better place when everything is designed with standards that all worked together and to not to be wasted as throw away items when their life is truly over.  A world where things are built to last in the first place.  I look forward to such a time. Ara 'nt you?

 ~ Sources: ~
   Our community has been around for many months and pride ourselves on offering unbiased, critical discussion among people of all different backgrounds.  We are working everyday to make sure our community is one of the best.   
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    What if you could make thoughtful choices about exactly what your phone does, and use it as a creative canvas to tell your own story? Introducing Project Ara. The smartphone is one of the most empowering and intimate objects in our lives. Yet most of us have little say in how the device is made, what it does, and how it looks. And 5 billion of us don't have one. What if you could make thoughtful choices about exactly what your phone does, and use it as a creative canvas to tell your own story? Introducing Project Ara. Designed exclusively for 6 billion people.

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BY NORMAN CHAN 
   Project Ara is real, and Google has its fingers on the pulse of the technologies required to make modular smartphones a reality. After attending the first Project Ara developers conference, here's what I consider the important takeaways from what Google has revealed so far
By Dieter Bohn on April 15, 2014 11:45 am
  Paul Eremenko, says he is planning "the most custom mass-market product ever created by mankind" without a trace of irony in his voice.

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 @harrymccracken Feb. 26, 2014 
  The two-year quest to create the ultimate customizable phone, inside and out. 
   Everything you need to know about Google's modular smartphone, project Ara - including modules, price and release date rumours
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