back to article Firefox OS update adds performance, polish to Mozilla's webby mobes

The Mozilla Foundation has released Firefox OS 1.1, the first significant update to the web-based smartphone platform it launched in July. "Just weeks after the first Firefox OS phones hit the market, an update is being made available adding new features, support for a number of new languages and significant performance …

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  1. jonfr

    No MMS?

    So they released an mobile OS without an MMS support in the first version. That is not a good sign in my view. Mostly since it's too fast and possibly too buggy to be realised into the public jungle.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: No MMS?

      Actually I've never used MMS - so I wouldn't have noticed it was missing, hell for all I know it doesn't even work on my S3.....

    2. AlanS
      Pint

      Re: No MMS?

      I rarely use MMS ... because of the cost! I've had phones with O2, 3 and Vodafone and they all charge approx US$1 per photo. Better to wait for a WiFi signal and email.

    3. Dave Fox

      Re: No MMS?

      iOS had to wait until V3.0 until it got MMS!

      Yes, that was now 4 years ago, but the point is that when iOS launched, it was missing a great many features that were considered de rigueur at the time (e.g. it didn't support 3G) yet it still sold by the millions.

      I can't remember the last time I sent an MMS, and in my life I've probably sent less than 20. Simple facts are that where I might want to use MMS today, there are other superior options - such as email, Facebook, WhatsApp etc. YMMV of course, but any one of the 3 phones I currently use (Nexus 4, HTC One, Note 3) could've dropped MMS support I wouldn't know because I don't use it.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: No MMS?

        MMS has always been a PITA. Expensive, ugly and oft times I experienced incompatibilities between different phones.

    4. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: No MMS?

      This is deader than Blackberry 10...

      1. Adam T

        Re: No MMS?

        No MMS sounds like a deal-maker to me. Wife is constantly sending me flicking kitten pictures and crap.

    5. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: No MMS?

      MMS is a bit of an old hat thing now. There are better ways to share photos, unless of course you're sending stuff to someone with a dumbphone.

    6. Neil Lewis

      Re: No MMS?

      Well, it was released as a 'developer' phone, not as a consumer item. It wasn't intended for normal use, but as a means of testing and improving the system. In the free software world, the mantra is 'release early, release often' because that way more people find and report the bugs and shortcomings, and they get fixed.

  2. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Interesting

    It has wifi hotspot, so now I only need to find one with dual sim support. Like that I am set until Nellie manages to kill roaming charges...

  3. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Re: Re: No MMS

    Hardly even use SMS these days. Prefer Hangouts as you can do photo/video sharing from one place. That's with a ton off free SMS in my bundle.

    1. stuff and nonesense

      Re: No MMS

      I've used MMS twice in 15 years.. emailed photos sent lots.

      SMS daily..

      I'd not miss MMS if it was removed.

      What is interesting is that Mozilla are getting updates out there. If they can keep the code efficient and not bloated there should be a viable new competitor to the dominant 2 in a year or so.

  4. Greg J Preece

    Man, I really need to get my hands on one of these! Mozzy, please encourage someone to make one with a physical keyboard. You could totally get away with it while the phones are still niche.

    1. Graham Dawson Silver badge

      Second! Touchscreen keyboards are the bane of my life.

  5. Dabooka
    Mushroom

    Maybe it was designed with T-Mobile / Orange / EE in mind anyway...

    in which case MMS is irrelevant as the fuckwits can't ever get it working properly in the first place.

  6. ilmari

    Let's see...

    ... if manufacturers do any better with firefox os, or if they leave it rotting on ancient versions like with android devices..

  7. Splodger

    Really hope Moz get this right.

    ..It might even tempt me away from my dumber-than-a-rock, steam powered Nokia into the world of smartphones.

  8. Andy Watt

    What no bias? No spittle?

    Shurely a mobile phone launched without features, and with some which didn't work very well, should be roundly derided using as many derogatory buzzwords as possible?

    Or is this still the register? Oh no, hang on, this piece isn't clickbait...

    1. Z80

      Re: What no bias? No spittle?

      You don't think it was derided in the review of the ZTE Open (linked in the article)? You did take the time to read it, right?

  9. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    It's all about the updates, stupid!

    If Mozilla follows Google's strategy of letting the carriers control updates (by allowing them to heavily customize the O/S for their devices), then customers will wind up with the same steaming pile of vulnerability that exists for Android -- thereby destroying any competitive advantage Firefox O/S might have over Android except very marginally on price. It's analogous to startup Internet media outlets that bury themselves by signing restrictive contracts with cable TV providers (remember Current?). I think we're fast approaching the point where the lack of O/S updates for Android devices will lead to their being banned from corporate networks due to security concerns. For me the inability to get O/S updates is a deal breaker.

  10. Tony Rogers

    Yes the ommission of MMS is/was, a problem to be placed alongside a

    "Dead Sea Scroll" interpreter interface.

    Runic Keyboard enthusiasts are also not catered for it seems !

  11. This post has been deleted by its author

  12. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    V1.01 works great for me.

    I swapped my Nokia Asha for a ZTE Open.

    It's the best phone I have ever used on a daily basis.

    Also because it was so cheap it's not a disaster if I lose or break it.

    So as far as I am concerned the update is just a bonus.

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