This year, with the adoption of modular design in LG's flagship G5, the prototype of Google Project Ara, which had previously led the trend, appears. In addition, Moto Z, a new motorcycle product, is also rumored to add modular elements. It seems that the future of smart phones is modular? This time, we won't discuss the advantages and disadvantages of modular design for the moment. Let's see what are the unique secrets of modern modular mobile phones.
LG G5
LG G5 is the first flagship mobile phone with modular design launched by mainstream manufacturers. Although it belongs to the G series, its appearance does not inherit the characteristics of previous models. The feature is its replaceable chin. At present, LG has launched two modules for G5, namely CAM Plus (camera) and Hi Fi Plus (audio), to improve the entertainment experience.
As the first equipment to taste new products, there are also problems. For example, the poor tooling makes the chin and the fuselage more obvious, and the primer of the metal fuselage is complained of as plastic. It is undeniable that among the Android machines currently launched, G5 is indeed highly playable.
Project Ara
Google hyped the concept of modular design for Project Ara, which was once popular, but it has not been seen until now. Fortunately, this is not a "lifetime" series. On I/O 2016, Google announced that it will launch the developer version of Project Ara in the fourth quarter of 2016, and its prototype has also been exposed through various ways.
From the exposure picture of the prototype, we can see that the original design has basically been restored. The appearance is highly personalized, giving the impression that Google wants to do art rather than simple electronic products. However, Google has not explained the relevant hardware configuration, and we don't know whether it can reach the level of the current flagship model.
Fairphone 2
Fairphone, which claims not to be a rogue business, realized the modularization of all parts earlier than Google's Project Ara. All modules of Fairphone 2 are fixed by screws, and the whole phone can be easily disassembled with a screwdriver. Does it feel like a Lego toy?
In terms of configuration, the SoC uses Snapdragon 801, 2G RAM+32G ROM, 5-inch 1080P screen+8 million pixel camera, and supports dual cards and dual standby. Fairphone 2 is only composed of 7 modules, which can replace camera, motherboard and screen module. However, the thickness of the body has reached 11mm. Such data and non top hardware configuration are also caused by adhering to modular design.
PuzzlePhone
PuzzlePhone in the same hometown as Nokia is more like a normal smartphone, which is only divided into Brain, Spine and Heart. It seems that the feasibility of the whole design is quite high. Known configurations include a 5-inch 1920x1080 screen, 5 million front and 12 million rear cameras, and 3G RAM+16/32/64G ROM. However, the most important SoC parameters are not clear. The selection range of 8-core 64 bit ARM processors is too wide.
The three dimensions are 137x69x8.9mm and weigh 170g, which is not very good. PuzzlePhone is still crowdfunding on Indiegogo, but it just depends on the situation. It's not clear whether it can successfully complete the goal.
Moto Z
Moto Z, which is expected to be released later, is also releasing relevant news. The most curious thing is naturally what the old brand motorcycle will understand about modular design.
In the news, Moto Z is rumored to have various modules customized by Moto and third-party manufacturers in addition to the common color rear cover. The first supporting module responsible by motorcycle is said to have stereo speakers, battery modules, camera modules with optical zoom, micro projectors and wide-angle lens accessories. Compared with LG, the richness of modules is even greater, but can the problem of G5 be solved well?
tail
Both traditional mobile phone manufacturers LG and Motorola have poured their ideas on modular design into new phones, hoping to roll up new waves in the tide of smart phones; The ideas of Fairphone and PuzzlePhone, emerging manufacturers, are more bold and radical; Google's Projcet Ara has skipped tickets for a long time, but it is still a model of modular mobile phones. But in terms of products, the leader G5 highlights many problems caused by modular design. The size of Fairphone 2 and PuzzlePhone reminds people of the bulky smartphone image a few years ago. The unpublished Moto Z is not clear about its performance. Can Projcet Ara reach the height of the original idea? Maybe just like the short-lived Dock, the modular mobile phone may be just a dream.
Some of the pictures are from the Internet, and they will be deleted in case of infringement
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