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Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

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Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#61

Post by Zak »

mikeevans wrote: post #40
Zak wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not sure what part of my comment you're responding to, but I don't think the Moto X is a good response to anything I said. It doesn't have removable storage. It doesn't have a removable battery. With a 4.7" screen, it's much bigger than an iPhone.

Have you seen how big it is next to an iPhone? Pretty close in physical size, despite the screen. http://i-cdn.phonearena.com/images/reviews/142861-image/Appl...

My mother owns a Moto X, bought on my recommendation. It is much closer in width to my Nexus 5 than it is to the iPhone and barely more comfortable for me to use one-handed than my Nexus 5. The difference in width is apparent in the photograph you linked.

I commend Motorola for an excellent job eliminating non-screen area on the front of the Moto X. It's a very space-efficient device in that regard, but my complaint is about reaching all areas of a touchscreen with my thumb while holding it in one hand, and nothing fixes that like a smaller touchscreen.

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#62

Post by auganov »

kevingadd wrote: post #4

It's a little gross that they seemingly picked up the PhoneBloks project and then entirely erased any traces of the original product and its creators. Hopefully that team's still involved and getting compensated...

Was watching the live stream of the Ara conference yesterday and they explicitly talked about PhoneBloks a bit and even acknowledged that it has more public recognition. They also link to them - projectara.com/more.

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#63

Post by k-mcgrady »

adestefan wrote: post #44
josefresco wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the key is the purchasing model. A "free phone" with contract every 2 years creates a situation where the consumer doesn't value repairing/upgrading their phone. If you had to pay say $600-$800 for a phone upfront, one is upgradable/repairable and the other is not (but faster/sexier) I think some (maybe many) would choose the former.

I know people that just toss an $800 laptop like it's nothing when something goes wrong. We truly live in a disposable society.

>> "I know people that just toss an $800 laptop like it's nothing when something goes wrong. We truly live in a disposable society."

Nope. You just happen to know people who can afford to toss an $800 laptop. For most of the 'lower middle class' people I know purchasing a laptop is a big deal and only happens once every 3/4/5 years. Even then they don't spend more than £400. Even when their laptop is practically unusable through age, damaged parts, viruses etc. they continue to use it because £400/$800/a new laptop is a lot of money.

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#64

Post by mistermann »

josefresco wrote: post #21
sdfx wrote: post #8

I think John Gruber over at Daring Fireball said it best: "I remain highly skeptical that a modular design can compete in a product category where size, weight, and battery life are at such a premium. Even if they can bring something to market, why would any normal person be interested in a phone like this?" http://daringfireball.net/linked/2014/04/15/project-ara

Size matters? My Android friends have huge phones (and cases) - Clearly they don't mind a phone being big and if the phone had cheap replaceable parts, that giant "life proof" case wouldn't be needed. Weight matters? I have never heard "I wish my phone was lighter" from anyone, anywhere. In fact I've heard from several who think a heavier phone means it's "better made". Battery life - Again my Android friends (and a…

Agree with everything, especially weight and battery comments.

Wouldn't it be nice to have an easily hot swappable battery with a tiny internal battery in the phone so you wouldn't even have to turn it off to do so?

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#65

Post by qwerta »

LarryMade2 wrote: post #42

Yeah, right. I remember computers built in the 90s and 2000s, touting their modular construction and never having to buy a new system again. I wonder if those machines are still in operation? I think what would guarantee longevity is something that is rock-solid good, inexpensive, repairable, and easy to develop on. I'm thinking of track records of computers like the Commodore 64, iMac, or in vehicles like the beetle…

I think socket A was good example. Some motherboards could accommodate Duron @ 600 Mhz and Athlon XP 3200+

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#66

Post by higherpurpose »

Zak wrote: post #32
psbp wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Moto X.

I'm not sure what part of my comment you're responding to, but I don't think the Moto X is a good response to anything I said. It doesn't have removable storage. It doesn't have a removable battery. With a 4.7" screen, it's much bigger than an iPhone.

http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/phones/xperia-z...

3 mm taller than the iPhone:

http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=5753&idPhone2=...

Moto X is 5mm taller:

http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=5601&idPhone2=...

The iPhone is not the most compact phone around, and by compact I don't mean small. It is smaller, just not very compact, so less efficient screen wise.

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#68

Post by r00fus »

josefresco wrote: post #21
sdfx wrote: post #8

I think John Gruber over at Daring Fireball said it best: "I remain highly skeptical that a modular design can compete in a product category where size, weight, and battery life are at such a premium. Even if they can bring something to market, why would any normal person be interested in a phone like this?" http://daringfireball.net/linked/2014/04/15/project-ara

Size matters? My Android friends have huge phones (and cases) - Clearly they don't mind a phone being big and if the phone had cheap replaceable parts, that giant "life proof" case wouldn't be needed. Weight matters? I have never heard "I wish my phone was lighter" from anyone, anywhere. In fact I've heard from several who think a heavier phone means it's "better made". Battery life - Again my Android friends (and a…

> Weight matters? I have never heard "I wish my phone was lighter" from anyone, anywhere.

Your anecdotal evidence is about as valid as mine, and I can guarantee you that weight matters. Tactile feel matters. Looks, of course matter.

In all these cases, a modular device fares poorly compared to an integrated one. This is a handheld device - can you not imagine the amount of dirt and grime that would cake up between the module gaps if you don't have a case on the device? And if you do have a case, now you have to uncase to switch around the modules.

The era of modularity is past, or not yet ready to come back.

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#69

Post by chillingeffect »

andosa wrote: post #23
higherpurpose wrote: post #9

If you read Clayton Christensen's Innovator's Solution [1] book (sequel to Innovator's Dilemma), you'll see him talk about "integration" and "disintegration" (basically the modularization of a product or market). So in the early days of a new market/category of product, the products are highly integrated, for several reasons. One is that the market is still new, so there isn't much of an "ecosystem" to begin with. An…

> So in the early days of a new market/category of product, the products are highly integrated Not sure about this one, seems like the opposite to me. Twenty years ago, PC's were very modular, and it was very common to add/upgrade a sound card, memory, cpu, video card etc. Fast forward to now, and for the most common computing devices (think tablets and smartphones), there is almost zero modularity or upgradability.…

Interesting observations on the flux between fixed and modular here. PCs today are still modular devices with varying degrees of specialization. Macs have less modularity. What they both have in common are peripherals.

Until now, smart phones/tablets have had little in the way of peripherals. Some headsets, keyboards, memory cards, etc., but people seem to be clamoring for certain peripherals above all others. They seem less concerned about CPU types, just like the in Mac and PC world. Key peripherals seem to be camera and some kind of "geekport"/internet of things.

I don't see a need to modularize every part of the phone a la PCs, but to expand the peripherals would help. It might be as simple as adding extra USB ports.

Re: Project Ara – Google's modular phone project

#70

Post by dlp211 »

venomsnake wrote: post #56
jeez444 wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Agreed. This is yet another product that will appeal to techies and first adopters only. For instance, people could -- in theory -- build their own computers with a bunch of modular components, but instead a lot of them buy a Mac or some other variation of all-in-one solution.

And gamers ... http://www.reddit.com/r/pcmasterrace/ and with the influx of new people in PC gaming with self build rigs - the custom PC market is quite healthy right now.

And it is also very niche. The custom PC market has been, and will continue to be a "healthy" market, but it is by no means a growing market. The difference between a custom built PC, and a modular designed phone, is that for the most part, a static device, that is, it doesn't go anywhere, versus a phone, which will be abused just by the nature of the fact that it is a mobile phone (I mean the presentation is proof of this, the phone broke the day before).

Now am I saying that there is no market for this, absolutely not, but this in no way will become the standard for a variety of reasons, but the biggest one to me, is time. I used to build all my PC's, taking the time to compare parts, read reviews, check out overclockability, and look for deals and get the best bang for my buck, but as I have gotten older, I just want a machine that works, my disdain for everything Apple, has completely turned around, I absolutely love my Macs now, not because I think Apple and Steve are gods gift to computing, but because they work, they maintain resale value, and compared to PC hardware, they are superior.

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