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(Image source: Motorola)
BY BRIANA ALTERGOTT
Upgrading your entire phone could be a thing of the past, if Motorola has anything to say
about it.
Google-owned Motorola's Project Ara allows customers to buy a basic phone structure called
an endoskeleton then add whichever smaller pieces, or modules, their hearts desire. (Via
Engadget)
Looking for better battery life? Add an extended battery. Eying a better camera? Swap out an
image sensor module for a better one. Want a keyboard? Add one! (Via CNET)
Motorola wrote in a blog post, "A module can be anything, from a new application processor
to a new display or keyboard, an extra battery, a pulse oximeter--or something not yet thought
of!"
It sounds like a Lego-lover's dream. And it turns out, it could end up being a lot easier
on customers' wallets — and on the environment too.
Instead of buying a different phone when you want or need a new feature, Project Ara allows
you to purchase the new module and simply add it to whatever you already have. (Via
The Verge)
Other companies like Modu have brought up the modular phone idea in the past. (Via YouTube
/ Dave Hakkens)
In fact, according to GigaOM, Motorola is partnering with a modular phone community,
called Phonebloks, to develop Project Ara because, as they put it, "Why reinvent the
wheel when you can work together?"
But not everyone thinks it's such a great idea.
A principal technology analyst at the Davies Murphy Group told the BBC, "I don't see this
as being a big deal. It is not responding to any particular demand, and there is no
real benefit to assembling your own device. The days of DIY IT ... are gone due to falling
costs of hardware."
Motorola has apparently been working on the project for about a year now, and the company
plans to release more information over the next few months.