Mozilla’s Firefox is ready to set up a battle of the OSes
The first Firefox phones for consumers were unveiled at Mobile World Congress but the overwhelming response was one of disappointment. Firefox, created by Mozilla, has long been one of the leading alternative browsers to Microsoft’s Internet explorer and Apple’s Safari. Until Chrome came along, Firefox’s innovation and ability to be customised made it the go-to program for many users, so when Mozilla announced that it was working on a mobile operating system, we were excited.
However, when we finally got our hands on the Alcatel One Touch Fire – the first Firefox phone – what we were met with was underwhelming. At first glance, it looks like a nice compact phone, but it doesn’t take long for the cracks to show. Physically, the phone is not a bad little device. The curved corners and soft-touch back feel good in the hand, and it’s a decent weight, but once we started to prod the screen, these positives became irrelevant.
Mozilla’s new Firefox OS is not the Android/iOS rival we were hoping for. The only way it relates to Android is in how reminiscent it is of a clunky version of Gingerbread. To be fair to Alcatel/ Mozilla, the software was still in beta, but if this phone is going to be on the market within months as planned, the huge leaps in performance needed are simply not going to materialise. The amount of lag when using the OS is horrifying, and apps take what seems like forever to open (when they don’t simply crash).
The One Touch Fire has a lowresolution 3.5-inch, 480-by-320pixel display and the 3.2-megapixel camera is grainy with serious shutter lag. The front of the phone has one physical button, but even that feels loose and ineffectual when pressed. Looking under the hood, it’s unsurprising that the user experience hands on is less-than-perfect.
There’s a 1Ghz processor, but that is supported by just 256MB of RAM. The storage space is equally stingy – the One Touch Fire packs a tiny 180MB, however this can be expanded via microSD. Alcatel is clearly aiming for firsttime smartphone users and those in developing countries, but at this point, it’s going to struggle against rival manufacturers and operating systems .
Open and shut case
The second Firefox phone on display at MWC was the ZTe Open. Alas, things did not pick up for the new OS. Upon holding the phone, the first thought is to how cheap it feels. The body is light and flimsy and feels as if its innards aren’t big enough to take up the space inside.
The screen and camera are the same as the Alcatel, as is the RAM on offer (256MB), however the storage is slightly better at 512MB. Once again, the operating system is poorly-rendered and unresponsive, and the time between swipes and on-screen action is unforgivably long. There is no firm release date for this phone yet, but if/when it does arrive in the UK, it will be firmly embedded in the budget handset camp.
Sony Offers FireFox experience
Despite the various issues with the OS so far, there is still interest from other manufacturers. Sony has thrown some of its weight behind Firefox, offering the software to developers and tech-savvy users. An experimental ROM of the platform has been made available for the Sony Xperia E, letting users have a first-hand play with the OS.
If you’re interested, tread carefully - the Firefox OS ROM comes with a warning that unlocking your bootloader and switching operating systems ‘may void your warranty’. Nonetheless, the fact that Sony is bothering at all is a sign that the Japanese giant sees something in the upstart.
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