Firefox OS 2.5 Developer Preview

Firefox OS is now out for people to try on their Android phones. Firefox OS 2.5 Developer Preview is known as an experimental app that lets you use Firefox OS on your Android device. The OS is a mobile operating system developed by Mozilla, which is based on Linux and Firefox’s three main components: Gonk, Gecko, and Gaia. Gonk is made up of a Linux kernel, supplied with the Android Open Source Project. Gecko is the rendering machine which is the layout engine developed by the Mozilla Project. Gaia is the final layer as it is the user interface layer, that is, this is what appears to the user. Instead of downloading a new OS and potentially wiping their entire phones, users just need to install the APK and it will appear as an app. Once the user selects the app, their phones will turn into a Firefox OS phone. This is a safe way that Firefox OS can portray what they got so that if people are actually interested, they can make an easier switch.

According to Mozilla’s website, Firefox OS is the first truly open mobile platform built entirely on web technologies. Basically if you know how to build a Web using HTML(5), CSS, and JavaScript, you can build something like Firefox OS. Since the entire user interface is a web app, it can display and launch other apps. In addition, Firefox OS web apps have access to the device hardware and services via an API.

Some interesting features included in Firefox OS 2.5 are add-ons, private browsing with tracking protection and pinning websites. In addition, since today's aesthetic focuses primarily on simplicity, right above the descriptions of what the phone includes, Mozilla’s website states, “Smart has never been so simple.” These descriptions include no home screens (all content is just in one continuous scroll), a search bar that can search on the Web or on the Firefox Marketplace, and swiping between applications.

Mozilla mentions that it employed various workarounds to provide a consistent user experience to those on Android, however, some things were out their control. Mozilla states, “For example, Android uses a back button as a primary navigation method. Firefox OS does not.”  According to BetaNews.Com, “The launcher’s UI does not “integrate” with third-party apps, which, when open, show the Android status bar at the top. But you can test the in-app experience of Firefox OS 2.5 Developer Preview by opening one of the apps included with the launcher.” Mozilla is still trying to tackle these issues along with the possibility that there are other bugs in the Firefox OS 2.5 Developer Preview, which is expected.  The app should be considered experimental and Mozilla is asking for the feedback of its users to overcome as many issues as possible.

Firefox’s strategy to introduce their new OS is smart, but is it enough for people to actually consider switching? Will Firefox be the new Google? To learn more about Firefox OS, visit https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/os/2.0/.