The Verge - Ubuntu Touch: a Linux OS breaks onto smartphones and tablets

Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview for Nexus devices now available

2013-02-21T16:06:08Z

As promised, the Ubuntu Touch Developer Preview for smartphones and tablets is now available for download. The Developer Preview is the precursor to the full launch, pencilled in for early next year, and is likely to be unstable at times. We previewed the phone UI last month, and more recently had a look at the tablet UI running on a Nexus 10 tablet.

Ubuntu for tablets hands-on: an intriguing mix of Windows 8, Android, and Kindle Fire

2013-02-20T22:02:55Z

Canonical unveiled its Ubuntu phone OS last month, and a tablet friendly version this week. The company is betting on creating an operating system that will mimic its desktop OS on mobile platforms. Tomorrow, a developer preview will be released for Galaxy Nexus, Nexus 4, Nexus 7, and Nexus 10 owners to install and try out. I got the chance to take a closer look at the operating system today, and it's clear Canonical is mixing together the best bits from its rivals.

Multiple user support and some unique notification management

The OS supports multiple users and switching between them on the lock screen will switch wallpapers and relevant notifications. The early developer version won't support these notifications straight away, but...

Ubuntu phones won't ship till 2014, might be locked down by carriers

2013-02-19T19:45:06Z

Earlier this month, The Wall Street Journal reported that smartphones running Ubuntu Linux would ship in October of this year. Ubuntu boss Mark Shuttleworth says that's a mistake. Today, the founder clarified that while a smartphone friendly version of the operating system — Ubuntu 13.10 — will be widely available in October with developer preview builds available this week, phones likely still won't ship until early 2014. Though the OS will be ready for phones this year, he explained that the devices themselves would probably still need months of carrier testing.

As we've discussed, that's a long time to wait for a new operating system given how fast the mobile industry moves, but timing might not be the only thorn in Canonical's...

Ubuntu Touch Preview coming to Nexus tablets this Thursday with Windows 8-like multitasking

2013-02-19T16:00:07Z

After unveiling its phone OS last month, Canonical is today launching its new tablet-ready Ubuntu interface. Like the phone experience, Ubuntu for tablets is optimized for touch, relying on edge gestures for navigation — there are no physical buttons required. If you've seen our hands-on with Ubuntu for phones, everything will look fairly familiar: the main interface itself is similar to the phones OS, with the same focus on a universal hub for search, apps, and content, while the notification center utilizes sideways swipes to give you quick access to things like settings, mail, and tweets.

The tablet UI is based on the same OS and code — albeit optimized for ARM and x86 Atom chips — as the regular and phone versions of Ubuntu,...

Ubuntu Developer Preview for Nexus 4, Galaxy Nexus arrives February 21st

2013-02-15T18:38:44Z

As was promised, enthusiasts and developers will be able to flash Ubuntu onto their Galaxy Nexus' before the end of the month. Canonical has announced that the Developer Preview of the new operating system will be released on February 21st. The surprise, however, is that the company has added support for the Nexus 4, and users with the latest Nexus phone will be able to download and flash Ubuntu onto their devices on the 21st as well. Additionally, the source code for the operating system and the tools needed to flash phones will come out on that date.

We used the mobile version of Ubuntu on a Galaxy Nexus last month when it was first announced, and we found the gesture-heavy operating system attractive and unique — if a bit sluggish....

Ubuntu phones coming in October, promising 'a leap' ahead of current interfaces

2013-02-07T03:31:20Z

It's the year of Linux — on mobile, at least. Canonical aims to have its new Ubuntu OS in developers' hands in late February with phones available to consumers in "two geographically large markets" this October, reports The Wall Street Journal. The mobile version of the popular open-source operating system was announced last month, sporting no buttons and a gesture-heavy interface similar to what we're seeing on BlackBerry's new Z10. We don't know who will be making Ubuntu devices, but Canonical says that it will be easy for Android phone manufacturers to convert to its platform.

Canonical discussed its design philosophy for the new operating system with Co.Design, describing an almost zen experience for the user inspired by...

The Ubuntu phone has a speed problem, and I'm not talking about lag

2013-01-03T14:06:50Z

As software launches go, yesterday's announcement of Ubuntu for phones was quite the success for parent company Canonical. Having already promised to deliver their Linux operating system to mobile platforms, Ubuntu's makers weren't really breaking any new ground, yet their small-scale event stirred imaginations and conversations among mobile phone users. Perhaps it's a sign of our growing discontent with the iOS-Android duopoly that has gripped the market, or maybe it's a symptom of Ubuntu's own popularity as the leading Linux OS on the desktop, but the Ubuntu phone has quickly become a lightning rod for refreshed discourse on the future of mobile software.

It's a shame, then, that it appears to be tracking a terminal trajectory into...

Hands-on with Ubuntu's brand-new, gesture-based phone OS

2013-01-02T18:54:57Z

Our top London agent Vlad Savov just got his hands on the new Ubuntu phone OS and was able to get a quick look at some of the new OS's trademark features, including its new gesture-based interface. There's a bit of lag while swiping through the phone's different panels, but overall it looks to be quite the attractive and intelligent interface. Unlike nearly all of the major phone operating systems, there's no "home" button to speak of in Ubuntu — it's all based on gestures.

There's also no "lock screen" to speak of; users can just swipe in from the edges to access their content any time, rather than having to get past a gatekeeper sort of screen before accessing their apps. Swiping down from the top can bring up a variety of menus,...