Google’s Project Ara that is known for it modular smartphone will make its debut later this year. The ‘Market Pilot’ will be launched in Puerto Rico, announced Google at its Ara Developer Conference.
The company notes that it chose Puerto Rico because of its high level of mobile engagement. 77 percent of its users access the internet primarily through mobile devices and the country features both American and Latin American carriers. The devices will be available through two Puerto Rico-based carriers, OpenMobile and Claro, and will be sold through “food truck” style stores.
The first Project Ara model dubbed as “Spiral 2” sports a 720 x 1280 resolution screen and includes dual application processors like Marvell PXA1928 and the NVIDIA Tegra K1. There is also a 5MP camera on the phone which supports 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. A “Spiral 3” is also in the works and will have 4G LTE functionality and will be equipped with improved antennas.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=intua_p4kE0
Google’s Project Ara lets users upgrade the modules of a phone like camera, battery, screen and so on instead of buying a new phone altogether. For example, users can upgrade to a higher quality camera instead of replacing their existing phone entirely or add a keyboard if you are not comfortable with touchscreens. Currently, there are 11 functioning modules built but Google says that number will increase to 20-30 by late 2015.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itpO7T-LROM
Moving on, the Project Ara is also getting a dedicated app dubbed as “Ara Configurator App” that will allow you to see what your Project Ara phone will look like before you buy it. It will even give you a preview of the phone after you have bought it and let you swap out some of the current modules for newer ones. The app is built with Material Design and lets you pinch the screen to move between the three distinct layers of customization. Google Project Ara Configurator app is expected to be launched later this year after the Spiral 2 release.