Sony Xperia E Gets Firefox OS
Earlier this week Sony announced they'd be testing Mozilla's Firefox OS on their Xperia smartphones to evaluate whether they'll launch Firefox smartphones in the future. Now the Japanese company have released a Firefox OS ROM for the Sony Xperia E.
Developers can now download and install Firefox OS on the Sony Xperia E so they can test the operating system and provide feedback on its performance. If everything goes well Sony are planning to release a number of Firefox Xperia smartphones in collaboration with Telefonica.
Why Are Sony Testing Firefox OS ?
All the major phone manufacturers have become increasingly concerned about Android's dominance in the operating system market. They've become even more keen to reduce their reliance on the Android platform after Google's recent move into the hardware market.
Firefox OS is one of the best alternatives to Google's operating system because it's an entirely open-platform backed by a company with a strong history in the software market. The operating system is also built-around the latest web-technologies including HTML5 and Mozilla's knowledge in the browser-market should serve them well.
Initially, Firefox OS will be aimed at bringing a better experience to affordable smartphones, but they are bound to expand the OS when it takes-off.
Why Did Sony Choose the Xperia E To Test Firefox OS ?
The Sony Xperia E is Sony's most affordable Xperia smartphone which makes it a good match for the Firefox OS. Out of the box the mobile runs on Android Jelly Bean which comes pre-loaded on a whole host of affordable smartphones.
The video above gives you a quick demo of Firefox OS running on Sony's Xperia E and everything appears to be running pretty smoothly. However, the release is likely to suffer from a number of bugs, while the install procedure isn't simple. Therefore, we wouldn't advice the general public to install the ROM. However, those still interested in flashing their Xperia E with Firefox can do so by visiting Sony's developer website.
What other smartphones run on Firefox OS ?
A couple of new smartphones running on Mozilla's Firefox OS were unveiled at the Mobile World Congress which took place earlier this week. ZTE unveiled the ZTE Open, while Alcatel also unveiled the One Touch Fire with both being affordable smartphones launching later this year.
Over the next couple of months we expect a whole host of manufacturers to adopt Firefox OS and 3G will be bringing you all the news as it surfaces !
By Simon Thomas on 28th February, 2013