If the high customizability of Moto X has already impressed you, then Ara, the modular hardware development platform that Motorola, a Google company, has just announced, will surely amaze you even more. Ara positions itself as "Android for hardware".
"What Ara does for hardware is exactly what Android does for software. We aim to create an active third-party developer ecosystem, reduce the market entry threshold for hardware production, accelerate innovation, and shorten the development time," Motorola said in its official blog.
Motorola said that it is currently studying the possibilities of fully customized smartphones with Dave Hakkens, founder of Phonebloks, and the Phonebloks community. In a few months, it will start inviting developers to develop smartphone function modules for the Ara platform. This winter, Moto will release the alpha version of the Ara Development Kit. Ara has now launched a feedback platform called "Ara Scout" where interested friends can register in advance.
The Ara project includes two major parts: the basic structure of the device and the modules, where the modules determine the functions of the hardware, including processor, keyboard, battery, and even oximeter are all modules. According to this logic, consumers in the future not only have the right to decide the color and material of their own phones, but also the functions. Ara is very similar in concept to the Phoneblock phone we reported before, and students who are interested can learn more about it.