But the devices are hard to bring to market because their interchangeable parts make them bulky and costly to produce, said analyst Bob O’Donnell of TECHnalysis Research, adding that he was not surprised to see Google halt the project.
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Is the modular phone dead forever?
There was much anticipation leading up to Google’s official unveiling of Project Ara.
According to Reuters, “axing Project Ara is one of the first steps in a campaign to unify Google’s various hardware efforts, which range from Chromebook laptops to Nexus phones”. Former Motorola president Rick Osterloh rejoined Google earlier this year to oversee the effort. The potential to prolong the life of a device and reduce electronic waste was also a big selling point for the phones. However, producing interchangeable parts was a very expensive task to carry out, said TECHnalysis Research analyst Bob O’Donnell.
While the company will not be releasing the Project Ara phone that was to have been easily customizable, it may bring the phone to market through licensing deals with partners, Reuters reported late Thursday. The Advanced Technology and Projects team (ATAP) within Motorola Mobility, while it was a Google subsidiary, announced Project Ara in October 2013.
In 2011, Google acquired some patents related to modular mobile phones from Israeli cell phone company Modu. An Ara smartphone prototype was presented at Google I/O in June 2014, but the phone got stuck while booting and failed to start.
Google then made a decision to dial back on the options in an attempt to lower costs. Although the company has not thrown Ara out the window just yet, the project is definitely shelved until further notice.
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Speaking with the tech publication 9to5Google, Project Ara founder Dan Makoski said he was saddened at the lack of courage to take it across the finish line. The design of the base plate featured six interchangeable slots for modules that could make Ara phones more flexible and future-proof, as well as easy to use, he noted.
