Canonical is preparing to show off Ubuntu for Android at Mobile World Congress next week. The Linux OS package will dock to a desktop and sync with Android phones' contacts and services.
Linux software
distributor Canonical Feb. 21 introduced a version of its Ubuntu Linux
operating system for Android, a platform tailored for multi-core Android
smartphones that can dock with a keyboard and monitor.
The software,
which Canonical will show off at Mobile World Congress next week, aims to let
users sync their contacts, Short Message Service/Multimedia Message Service (SMS/MMS)
and telephony services between the Ubuntu platform on their desktop computers
and their Android smartphones.
When an
Android smartphone is connected to a computer screen, it launches a full Ubuntu
desktop on the computer display,
Canonical wrote in a press statement.
The company
said this solution will provide the same desktop experience enjoyed by Ubuntu
PC users, and includes hundreds of certified applications, ranging from office
productivity to photography, video and music.
If some of
that instantiation sounds familiar, it's because Motorola Mobility (NYSE:MMI)
likes to pair some of its high-end Android smartphones, such
as the Atrix 4G, Photon 4G and Droid Razr devices, with a lapdock.
When the phone
is connected to the lapdock, it launches a full Mozilla Web browser. Users may
create and edit documents, make calls and conduct other productivity tasks
through the phone/lapdock combination.
Similarly,
Canonical said Ubuntu for Android provides corporate road warriors a
"company phone that is also their enterprise desktop."
Canonical founder
Mark Shuttleworth further expects the desktop will actually be the "killer
app" for phones powered by quad-core CPUs this year.
That's because
Shuttleworth sees quad-core phones as powerful enough to drive desktop-like
experiences when connected to monitors and keyboards.
The way
Canonical constructed Android for Ubuntu shouldn't be a surprise at all. The
company has essentially used Android as Windows in the mobile ecosystem. For
example, Ubuntu on the desktop is also designed to support Windows
applications, using thin-client and desktop-virtualization tools.
For Ubuntu for
Android, the customized version of Ubuntu shoehorns in alongside the rest of
Android. The software supports High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) and
USB, among other standard features in high-end handsets planned for late 2012.
Canonical also
said Ubuntu for Android will dock with a tablet, and will include Ubuntu TV for
entertainment aficionados.
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