Is it possible to turn a smartphone into a full-fledged computer? Andromium developers think so.
In the comments to the latest 'News Digest', we talked about the hardware capabilities of modern smartphones. Its performance is growing every year, but there really isn't any special use for it. Some of the commentators even suggested that manufacturers give the opportunity to install a full-fledged Windows on a smartphone, which would make it possible to play PC games and at the same time solve the problem with drivers for peripheral devices.
In fact, the opposite situation is more likely – a smartphone installed in a special docking station can become a full-fledged replacement for a laptop when using a TV screen as a monitor. Of course, the standard interface Android is not very suitable for this, but no one bothers developers to change it.
An example is the Andromium project, which is currently raising funds on Kickstarter. The user only needs to install it on a smartphone in a special 'cradle', having previously installed the corresponding application on it. Moreover, the docking station has not only an HDMI connector for connecting a smartphone to a TV, but also two USB ports for peripheral devices. So nothing prevents you from connecting a full keyboard or your favorite gamepad to your smartphone.
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You can evaluate the appearance of Andromium OS in the video below. At first glance, everything looks quite convenient, although it is still too early to draw any final conclusions.
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There are still two weeks left until the end of the fundraising, at the moment $ 58,666 of $ 100,000 has been raised. The minimum fee to get the docking station is $ 29. True, so far, direct connection is implemented only for smartphones of the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note line, other devices will work via Chromecast.
In my opinion, this is a rather interesting idea that has been in the air for a very long time. The only question is, can a small team of little-known developers be able to adequately implement it? Moreover, similar proposals from large companies will not keep you waiting – it's a matter of time. After all, the first cautious attempts to do something like this have been around for a long time. For example, the same Motorola. And Canonical has been promising something similar for several years.
Andromium Kickstarter Page