Ubuntu, the Operating System developed by Canonical Ltd. was long lost. Some months ago, there were news circulating that Ubuntu for Android (which allowed dual-boot for the Android users) had been shut down, and now is back with a bang. Canonical, in collaboration with BQ mobiles, has recently launched a new smartphone- Aquaris E45, which will be the world’s first smartphone ever to run on Ubuntu operating system. Don’t be surprised to know that this phone already has its sibling released- which is of course a Android phone, and this one is the ‘Ubuntu edition’ which is announced the same name now.
As compared to the Android smartphones’ specs, this phone can be called a low-end device. The Aquaris E4.5 features a 4.5-inch qHD (540×960 pixels) resolution display with pixel density of 240ppi, powered by a quad-core MediaTek processor (Cortex-A7) clocked at 1.3GHz, and includes a Mali 400 GPU for handling the graphics, coupled with 1GB of RAM. Alongside, this handset will have 8 megapixel rear camera with dual-LED Flash and BSI Sensor, and 5 megapixels front camera for video calls and selfies. Featuring 8GB of inbuilt storage with microSD card expandability (up to 32GB card), the Aquaris E4.5 Ubuntu Edition also houses Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, 3G (HSPA+), GPS/ A-GPS, Micro-USB with OTG, and FM radio connectivity features.
Well, while the specs of the phone seem not to be so impressive, what is interesting are its features. As reported by BBC, it will run the apps either on HTML5 language, or Canonical’s own QML code. However, the process is different than the traditional ‘apps’ on other operating systems, and this is the innovative and most outstanding feature of this brand new Ubuntu phone. This phone uses themed cards that group together different facilities, which are called as ‘Scopes’. The scopes can be accessed by swyping either sides, and can be reconfigured. Some of the prominent scopes of the OS are:
- A Music Scope, with favourite tracks sourced from Soundcloud and other streaming music providers, as well as offering details of forthcoming concerts via Songkick
- A Video Scope, which presents clips from YouTube and other services
- A Photos Scope, which collects together images stored on the phone as well as pictures stored on Flickr, Picasa, Facebook and elsewhere
- A Nearby Scope providing location-specific details, including traffic conditions, public transport options and restaurant recommendations
- An Apps Scope, which provides access to the camera, calendar software and programs from other companies.
Both the cameras of the Aquaris E4.5 feature interpolation or picture-stitching technology that allows users to take 13-megapixel images with the rear camera, and 8-megapixel images with the front-facing camera. The phone will be available for purchase only in Europe starting from next week, and will cost about 170 euros ($195; £127), and only the unlocked version will be available. However, only the flash sales will be available, which means there will be limited stock and only the users who hurry up can buy the device.
