Google's ambitious Project Ara has been canned

02 September, 2016
A Reuters report says that the move is "part of a broader push to streamline the company's hardware efforts."

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  • Soapy
  • vgN
  • 21 Jun 2019

Itkillsme, 03 Sep 2016I believe their current module format added to its failure.... moreI agree with you. I find myself rooting for the project the first time I hear about it, without knowing much. battery for each modules!? wtf...

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    • Winforthewin
    • m{7
    • 05 Sep 2016

    They couldn't decide on how to make sure all hardware parts from all third party manufacturers helped mine information that Google could sell.

    The Ara project itself was a big threat to Googles smartphone monopoly which is why they were so eager to buy it and "keep working on it" to make sure the bad will wouldn't hurt their mining operations.

      • D
      • AnonD-357946
      • utZ
      • 03 Sep 2016

      hahaha. this has to be happend with google.

      you think snatching project era from motorola helps or u can stop motorola .
      no one can stop motorola .
      Motorola is the father of inventions . rest of all follows .

      even apple standing on current position just because of ex motorola team

        • I
        • Itkillsme
        • q{2
        • 03 Sep 2016

        I believe their current module format added to its failure. I think adding batteries to each module was dumb in the first place. They should have used an exoskeleton(frame) that had a place for one large battery that sits in the middle of the exoskeleton (frame). In other words be sandwiched in between therefore making it a little thicker. They could make it removable as well. So this one battery would be sandwiched in between both the front and back modules. The idea of batteries in each module that needs them was just dumb. By eliminating the power from each module, this now has an added benefit of giving more space back to the actual modules themselves.

        Not to mention the bus speed was too slow. It was only 10 gigabit, and that is for the display, sound, camera(s), USB ports, processor module, storage, or anything else. If they would have used Fibre optics instead for all the communication between the modules. Then you could easily bump it up by 10 times, if not more than the current speed of Ara. The wired bus was also susceptible to outside interference which could lead to transmission degradation using a wired bus with exposed pins. If Fibre optics was used, then you would only need wires and pins to provide power to the modules. All communication would run on the Fibre optics.

        Google should have hired me for Ara. I would have made it happen, and it would be correct the first time.

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          • AnonD-5197
          • Yij
          • 02 Sep 2016

          I wished it could work... but I also didn't think it could possibly be competitive.

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            • Anonymous
            • ajP
            • 02 Sep 2016

            AnonD-188372, 02 Sep 2016Er,the American version of the HTC hd2 had 1.4gb of ram,the... moreWhat ? Htc hd2 had only 448MB of RAM,and it was released in 2009...

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              • AnonD-579802
              • ICZ
              • 02 Sep 2016

              Anonymous, 02 Sep 2016Well even with the current tech they still can put at least... moreThe problem with the higher capacity batteries in a smaller size is that they are much more unstable and tend to swell much much more easily. This is one of the main reasons why phone makers have not switched to a more compact battery and why you can find 3rd party batteries with ~200 more mAh available for purchase. Technically...there is still a technological standstill with batteries with several seemingly promising technologies coming up here and there.

                Khrist, 02 Sep 2016If this report is indeed true, it would be very upsetting. ... moreNah! A few key points to tell that it came too late or it is still ahead. Why? First of all, price, the parts, manufacturers, etc. The idea isn't bad but the problem are OEM/manufacturers, tell me who would want to make alot of mobile CPU, camera, batteries etc modules to sit there and wait for someone to buy it? And what about the shapes and sizes of the modules and their function? Also does all of them work/compatible fine with others? Unless all modules size are fixed( but how could they since there's small phone and big phone), then there'll be problem.
                Example: you have a 5inch screen, now the back of the phone need to fill with modules altogether to equal the front size of the phone. And let's say you take out a small battery and switch a big one into it. Does the size of the battery stay the same of different( if the size is same then why capacity is different?) And the same problem can relate to all other parts too. Also would any OEM/manufacturers willing to make all different kind of mobile CPU, batteries, camera etc?

                  • z
                  • zodiacfml
                  • p{q
                  • 02 Sep 2016

                  not surprising even from the first announcement. the thing with devices is integration of components to make smaller and cheaper. Project Ara is opposite of this.

                  yet, i see this useful for multiple industries where they require sensors/components that are replaceable and can be upgraded while retaining typical smartphone components.

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                    • Optional
                    • 2Au
                    • 02 Sep 2016

                    Anonymous, 02 Sep 2016Well even with the current tech they still can put at least... moreTechnopolitics, to be exact.

                      • r
                      • rakib hasan
                      • uNV
                      • 02 Sep 2016

                      nice phone wow

                        If this report is indeed true, it would be very upsetting. Project Ara had so much potential to be something great & new.

                          • e
                          • ejrome05
                          • fxN
                          • 02 Sep 2016

                          Herodroid, 02 Sep 2016oh my god... after all these years... after google promises... moreit has been coming all along. so many subtle signs like changing the design, delays, updates going silent. even the people who applied for the developer edition didn't get any word at all.
                          but a lot of people were hoping, and keeping the hype alive for a long time.

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                            • Angry Mobile Nerd
                            • X$H
                            • 02 Sep 2016

                            Good. I knew it would never make it to market. The best everyone can wish for is Google actually learned something tbey can apply to future hardware and/or software as a result of all the money spent on r&d.

                              • ?
                              • Anonymous
                              • 0BG
                              • 02 Sep 2016

                              AnonD-188372, 02 Sep 2016Er,the American version of the HTC hd2 had 1.4gb of ram,the... moreYea the truth is technology is always many years ahead of what they offer. Everything is a hug scam. 2016 and they still make phones with 1GB ram or with no ambient light sensor. And not to mention batteries...

                                • D
                                • AnonD-188372
                                • LaT
                                • 02 Sep 2016

                                viveksubhash, 02 Sep 2016the battery tech has not improved in proportion to the rest... moreEr,the American version of the HTC hd2 had 1.4gb of ram,the 'normal" hd2 had 768mb,that was TEN years ago..there have been various small run devices since then that had 1gb+..

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • 0BG
                                  • 02 Sep 2016

                                  viveksubhash, 02 Sep 2016the battery tech has not improved in proportion to the rest... moreWell even with the current tech they still can put at least 5000-6000mah without making the phone too thick or heavy. They just don't want to. The technology is not the problem (Not to mention many new technologies came up and they are always suppressed), it's the politics, as always.

                                    the battery tech has not improved in proportion to the rest of the cirsuitry that goes into gadgets..i think thats the core problem...just 5 years ago a 1gb ram phone was unthinkable..now they have 6gb ram phones...there are laptops that have less

                                      • ?
                                      • Anonymous
                                      • RIE
                                      • 02 Sep 2016

                                      There goes Project Ara. Just another Google Glass. Everything they invented never work out well. Stop inventing anything Google! Too much false hopes.

                                        • ?
                                        • Anonymous
                                        • 0BG
                                        • 02 Sep 2016

                                        Nechan, 02 Sep 2016With cheap price of Chinese Smartphone and Samsung Mid Rang... moreNo, they can't last 3 years with those non-removable batteries. And the point is not even how often you change it - current smartphones just suck, with no exception. Project Ara would have been a gem for everyone who wants something more than a fashion toy - a smartphone for your own needs and taste that you actually like and don't own just because there is nothing better.