Interesting modular smartphone concept, Motorola's Ara project could sooner or later find application in reality.
Basically it answers a pertinent question: “what if instead of buying 4 distinct types of devices (phone, tablet, phablet, watch) you could 'mount' a phone using only the parts you need from time to time?
It is an innovative but sensible vision, which could revolutionize the entire smartphone market: the tendency to renew an 'obsolete' mobile phone every year or two would be replaced by the upgrade or replacement of individual pieces, which could be resold or (why no?) recycled by the same company.
A platform on which compatible pieces made by other companies could also be grafted. A bit like Android did for software, in other words creating a 'third party' ecosystem, facilitating their access to development and speeding up the pace of innovation.
Ara would be a sort of chassis, a 'skeleton' on which to mount the various modules: extra batteries, various displays and elements that allow the most extreme customization. In the coming months, the project will leave the embryonic stage to bring to those interested a real development platform: let's see what the idea of having an “Open Source” smartphone will lead to.
