Android is a geek’s dream; the open-source OS from Google is the most popular mobile operating system in most major markets and offers near-limitless customisation and tinkering to enhance the UX.
Now the team at Jolla want to use their China-focused Sailfish OS to build upon that foundation.
Whereas the widely-used social network in the majority of regions is Facebook; in China it’s Qzone.
The most popular Microblogging service around the globe is Twitter; China’s citizens prefer to use Tencent Weibo.
Social networks are huge in China; with 91% of the population having an account on one of the many services, compared to just 67% in the USA. (Taken from Go-Globe’s Infographic)
This relates directly to how the Jolla team designed and catered Sailfish to the Chinese market. In fact, a swipe-down to reveal the (now ubiquitous) notification centre prominently displays a “feed” of all the user’s latest updates. The Messaging app is set-up with unified support for the various services as you’d expect.
Of course any mobile OS is only worthwhile these days with a great app ecosystem. Jolla’s previous native-only development wasn’t gaining much traction; so today the team has added support for applications developed for (and devices running) the OS with 66% Chinese marketshare – Android.
Critics are quick to point out the inclusion of Android applications will reduce developers specifically creating applications natively for Sailfish – reducing efficiency, and also reducing fitting in with the unique design theologies between Android and Sailfish.
On Twitter, user NMShenoy says: “Good to see SailfishOS has achieved Android compatibility… I hope Devs create native apps though…”
To which Jolla replied: “Definitely, native apps are the only way to utilize the Sailfish UI to the full.”
Having the best of both worlds is a no-brainer for the company, and a great step forward in appealing to a wider-audience. Due to the ability to install on existing Android devices; many users will at least give the new OS a try…
What do you think about Jolla’s Sailfish OS?
