Everything You Need to Know About the Firefox OS

Mozilla will launch its very own mobile operating system “Boot to Gecko”, also known as “Firefox OS” in 2013 to compete with Android and iOS. Right now, Google and Apple enjoy the lion’s share of smartphone operating system market and being a late entrant Firefox may not get much attention from customers and app developers.

However, Firefox browser is highly popular among web users and if the company maintains the same user experience in their OS then we may witness a new revolution in the smartphone market.

Here are some facts about the Firefox OS that every web developer and programmer should know.

• Release Date and Cost – Smartphones powered by Firefox OS will come to the market in January 2013 and most probably the first device will be launched in Brazil. The company is targeting price sensitive buyers and therefore, handsets will be offered at a very cheap rate. In fact, world’s third largest cell phone operator, Telefonica said that the first handset will cost less than $100.
• Web Based HTML 5– Have you used Chrome OS? The core structure of Boot to Gecko and Chrome is almost same. The operating system is basically a HTML 5 browser that is built upon Android kernels.
• Easy App Porting – This is the greatest facility of Boot to Gecko. If you have a HTML5 app, then you can easily port it to this new mobile operating system. This flexibility can boost its app market quite fast because a research shows that 75% of Play Store and App Store applications are written in HTML5.
• Google Maps– There will be a Google Maps app. Click on it and you will be able to use all the navigation facilities.
• Social Network Integration– It will come with Facebook and Twitter integration. Users will be able to update their social profiles quite easily
• Widgets May Be Added– The demo version shows an iPhone like screen and apps, but the famous browser maker said that they may include widgets in the operating system later.

Some of the features of Boot to Gecko are really impressive. Would you buy a Firefox powered cell phone in future?