Remember the Motorola Atrix? It was a smartphone that doubled as the guts of a desktop PC when you popped it in a dock. It was a neat idea, but didn’t really take off. Now a new start-up is having another crack in the form of Andromium.
The phone in your pocket is probably about as powerful as a desktop PC, so the theory goes. So why not harness that power and not waste money on separate machines? Instead, just dock your smartphone and it’ll handle all the tasks of a desktop.
You’ll need to download the Andromium app too.
The dock features three USB ports, so you can plug in accessories, and a power cord, so your phone will always be charged.
It runs its own operating system called Andromium OS. When in desktop mode, your handset can still take calls, text messages and push notifications, so you won’t miss out because you’re browsing on the big screen.
It’s designed with the Samsung Galaxy S and Note lines in mind, though the S5 doesn’t fit at the moment because of the USB port cover. But the company is looking into how to make it work.
It’s also adding support for the HTC One (M7 and M8), Nexus 4, 5, and 6.
The company has raised over $12,000 of a $100,000 goal on Kickstarter. If successful, it should start shipping in January.
It’s a good idea, especially now the likes of the Galaxy Note 4 pack 3GB of RAM. But we’ll reserve judgement until we see it in the flesh.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
