As the telecoms industry still waits for
Google to announce products based on its Android mobile
platform, a rival telecoms consortium, The LiMo Foundation, has
stolen a march with by unveiling a range of handsets covering a
number of mobile applications.
The mission of the LiMo Foundation is to
create an open,
Linux-based software platform to produce mobile devices through
enabling an ecosystem of differentiated products, applications, and
services from device manufacturers, operators, ISVs and
integrators.
Founding members include Motorola, Orange, Vodafone, NEC,
Samsung and NTT DoCoMo and the new launch features seven new
devices from Motorola, NEC and Panasonic Mobile Communications
which are designed to address a number of different mobile
applications and services.
There are already 21 mobile handset models that use the LiMo
Platform and the new commercially available new range includes the
MOTOZINE ZN5 from Motorola; The FOMA N906i, FOMA N906iμ, FOMA
N906iL and FOMA N706i from NEC; the FOMA P906i and FOMA P706iμ from
Panasonic.
Functionality offered by the devices includes international
3G/High-Speed Downlink Packet Access
(
HSDPA) roaming capabilities, Global Positioning System (GPS),
mobile TV and advanced video streaming, secure payment and advanced
mail functionalities—all presented through higher-resolution
displays and intuitive user interfaces.
“LiMo was founded on the notion that fragmentation of the mobile
industry among dozens of proprietary, closed operating systems was
inhibiting innovation,” said Kiyohito Nagata of NTT DoCoMo chair of
The LiMo Foundation. “With such a variety of industry players
cost-effectively adopting the LiMo Platform for non-differentiating
handset middleware, more development resources are being devoted to
enhancing the consumer experience.”