Jolla’s Sailfish OS 3 heading to affordable phones
Longing for an Android alternative? Jolla’s smartphone OS is set to bring smart features to cheap handsets later this year.
At this year’s Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Jolla announced Sailfish 3, the latest version of its alternative to Android. While Android remains the operating system of choice for smartphones, that hasn’t dissuaded Jolla. On its website announcing the new version ( https://jolla.com/
sailfish3/), Jolla looks back at the journey so far, beginning with MeeGo, the Linux-based predecessor of Sailfish OS that at one point powered many of the world’s Nokia handsets.
Despite not making significant headway in the world of smartphone operating systems, Jolla is positioning Sailfish 3 for cheaper, lesspowerful smartphones. Jolla CEO Sami Pienimaki says its main aim is to function with “low-spec hardware configurations and still run selected Android apps.” This makes it a direct rival of Google’s lightweight Android Go operating system.
Sailfish 3 is set for a Q3 2018 release, and so far it’s been teased that it’ll be 30 per cent faster and be able to work with the latest Android. It’ll also offer “full cloud integration,” with bookmarks, notes and photo syncing, and a new multitasking interface and a fresh “Light” theme.
As for the handsets it will run on, we’ve heard that the Gemini PDA, INOI T8, INOI T10 and Sony Xperia XA2 will support it. It will also head to 4G-enabled feature phones, which are particularly popular in emerging markets, and will be compatible with non-touchscreen phones with good old-fashioned keyboards.
It’s always good to see mobile operating systems that challenge Android’s dominance, especially ones that are geared towards bringing more advanced features to budget, lower-spec handsets (1GB of RAM, say). We’ll definitely be keeping a close eye on this new version.