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Jolla Spins Off Hardware Business
New submitter John.Banister writes: Jolla, founded by former Nokia employees to continue where Nokia left off developing Linux based mobile devices, has spun off its hardware division with the intent to focus more strongly on its Sailfish Operating System.
In its press release, the company assured backers of its crowdfunding campaign that it's still committed to delivering a tablet once hardware supply issues are resolved (PDF).
I've been saving up to buy the successor to the N900. I've even gone to the point of buying a "throwaway" phone in anticipation of my current phone eventually dying so I have a backup. There's no way I'm going to put myself at the mercy of Google, Microsoft, or Apple.
Time is what keeps everything from happening all at once.
Why use Facebook anyway? The only social networking that matters is MySpace. These guys are 10 years late.
As a former N900 (which ran Maemo, which became Meego and would later be known as Sailfish) user, I really would hope it takes off. The multitasking (even in Maemo, I should assume it is better in later incarnations) is still miles better than what Android offers. Having said that, I admit being somewhat "tied" to the Android ecosystem as it is, so good Android emulation would be a requirement (and I have no idea how well Sailfish does this as of now).
I am guessing from your comment that you are based in the US. Welcome to the same experience many of us we have in the rest of the world. E.g. only a limited selection on Netflix, lots of products get released later than in the US, or you go shopping on Amazon and during checkout you are told that some of the items are not shipped to your country.
That being said, there are valid reasons for delaying or avoiding roll-out to some regions. There may be regulations or legal risks which makes the market unattractive, where e.g. US patent trolling could come into play. There are country or market specific requirements or certifications, with agreements, documentation, business support systems, etc which need to be set up to go with that - per each individual market or set of requirements.
With US normally being the first market targeted (huge market, single set of requirements), my guess would be a decision not to go there would have to do with patents or legal risks, not wanting to be pwned by one of the big players.
The only linux based mobile platform that matters is android. These guys are 10 years late.
I guess their name is their destiny... the fish has already sailed.
You're trolling right? Even if you're not you're pushing ignorance. Jolla has a bunch of interesting features that actually work.
I hope the Jolla project succeeds financially - it may break a lot of walled gardens.
Android emulation would be suicide and here is why....OS/2.
IBM sold OS/2 as "A better Windows than Windows" and what happened? Devs said "Why develop programs for OS/2 when I can just write a Windows program and it'll run on both?" and what IBM ended up with is a limited subset of Windows programs able to run and ZERO support from developers for their OS. So to the consumer you had Windows...or a bad Windows ersatz that could run SOME but not all so why take the chance the program you want may or may not run well when you could just get the real thing?
I've said it before and I'll say it again, if the ONLY thing you have to offer is some nebulous idea of "freedom" based on whatever criteria YOU decide is important? You are gonna fucking lose, just look at how flatline Linux is on the desktop. You HAVE to have exclusives, things that the users can ONLY get from you that the user can actually see and measure, be it a ton of exclusive software like Windows on the desktop, a walled ecosystem that makes everything 1 button simple like OSX/iOS, or units at every price point under the sun like Google. If all you have to sell is "it has a form of freedom...oh yeah and can run SOME Google apps" then why would I as the consumer take your product when I can get the Google units for cheaper AND have 100% playstore compatibility?
ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
As a long time Android user who has just recently moved to jolla, I suggest giving it a go. I've only been on it a few weeks and already I can't imagine myself going back to Android as my primary device. Use what works for you. I'm really enjoying my Jolla.
On a similar note, how much market share do they need to be successful? What is success?
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