Meet ‘Ubuntu for Android’, a side-by-side pairing of Android and Ubuntu operating systems that run on the same handset.
The project is latest part of Canonical’s ‘multi-device’ future for Ubuntu.
So how does it work?
When in your pocket, your Android phone is the same as it ever was: an Android phone. But if you connect it to a monitor (by way of a nifty looking dock) a fully-featured Ubuntu desktop is launched, powered by the familiar Unity interface.
Both Android and Ubuntu OSes run on the same Linux kernel. Which is to say: this isn’t an ‘Ubuntu app’ installed on Android or vice versa, nor is it an Android VM running in Ubuntu or vice versa. Both systems run at the same time, on the same device.
The net result appears to be a super efficient workflow.
With emphasis on the super:
The two systems are not independent of each other and can share information and interaction between them:
- Send and reply to SMS notifications in Ubuntu’s Messaging Menu
- Make and receive calls via your phone from the Ubuntu desktop
- Browse the Internet using your phone’s data connection
- Search through your Android contacts in the Ubuntu Contacts Lens
Canonical says it will even be possible to run Android apps on your Ubuntu desktop, albeit in a special window.
A means to 200 million Ubuntu users in 4 years?
When Mark Shuttleworth set out a lofty goal to have 200 million people using Ubuntu by 2015 many of us scoffed.
Only once he began to detail his plan for Ubuntu’s multi-device future did a path to reaching that goal look possible.
In many countries smartphone sales now dwarf those of traditional PCs and netbooks.
“The desktop is the killer-app for quad-core phones in 2012″ said Mark Shuttleworth. “Ubuntu for Android transforms your high-end phone into your productive desktop, whenever you need it.”
Exciting stuff, though temper expectations. You won’t be able to get your mitts on an Ubuntu for Android phone any time soon.
Like the newly unveiled Ubuntu TV, Ubuntu for Android is a prototype at present. A carrot of potential dangling being dangled in front of phone manufacturers and telco carriers. They’re being encouraged to talk to Canonical to learn more about the technology and—we hope—ship it.
More details on Ubuntu for Android can be found on the official Ubuntu website, which has been updated to include a dedicated page for the project @ ubuntu.com/devices/android.
Is this something you’d use? Let me know in the comments.