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from the part-ing-is-such-sweet-sorrow dept.
The dream of upgrading the CPU/RAM/sensors in your smartphone using Lego-like components is dead:
It sounds like Project Ara, the ambitious modular smartphone concept birthed in Google's ATAP division, is finally dead. A report from Reuters says that Google has "suspended" Project Ara in an effort to "streamline the company's hardware efforts."
Project Ara never seemed like a particularly viable product, and after the announcement in 2013, progress came slowly. The device was delayed past its 2015 commercialization deadline when plans for a Puerto Rican "food truck" pilot launch fell through. Earlier this year, the device was delayed again to 2017, and the Ara team announced that Ara would pivot from fully modular to having a fixed CPU, GPU, antennas, sensors, battery, and display. After that announcement, Ara was watered down so much it barely had a reason to exist.
(Score: 5, Funny) by Bot on Saturday September 03 2016, @12:03PM
If Google wanted it, Google would have had it.
Modular concept are nothing more than "how we made stuff back in the 70s".
Now, a reconstruction of what likely went on:
Google> good news everyone
averageGuy> here we go again!
Google> we are developing an open, modular, repairable phone.
Samsung> WHAT?
TheChineseManufacturers> O LLY? [translated: O RLY?]
averageGuy> hey i'd actually pay for it, in fact I am still waiting for the nokia N900 successor.
NSA (privmsg)> Google, how are you going to implement our backdoors if the design is modular and user can, like, disable the modem?
Samsung (privmsg)> Google, I already told you, another screw up and we fork android, you know that we can make it a pretty decent OS. DO NOT INTERFERE WITH OUR PRODUCT OBSOLESCENCE PLANS.
TheChineseManufacturers (privmsg)>Google, what samsung just said
Google (privmsg)> TheChineseManufacturers, hey how do you know what samsung just said?
TheChineseManufacturers quit (heee heee heee)
Google> oh ok, it looks a bit difficult, maybe later
averageGuy> I FUCKING KNEW IT, Google cannot design electronics the same way everything was designed prior the 80s. This fucking sounds the same as diaspora
diaspora> ZZZZZZZZ.... hey, wat?
facebook> go back to sleep
Account abandoned.
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 03 2016, @12:32PM
Not just stuff, people too, back when we had a concept called learning. Know how to code but no experience in the language of the month? You're fired!! Now we pick up some brownskins from the github to do the shitwork.