中國手機(jī)芯片設(shè)計(jì)業(yè)者展訊(Spreadtrum Communications)與 Firefox 操作系統(tǒng)(OS)開發(fā)商 Mozilla 連手，打算以25美元廉價(jià)智能手機(jī)席卷新興市場；據(jù)了解其驚人的低成本是拜網(wǎng)絡(luò)云端技術(shù)之賜。而兩家公司表示，已經(jīng)完成了 Firefox OS 與數(shù)款展訊 WCDMA / EDGE 智能手機(jī)芯片組的整合。 第一代 Firefox OS 智能手機(jī)在去年問世，供貨商包括Alcatel、中興(ZTE)與LG等，主要是透過電信營運(yùn)商的通路銷售；包括Telefonica等營運(yùn)商已經(jīng)開始供應(yīng)Firefox OS智能手機(jī)，但大多數(shù)分析師并未看到該類產(chǎn)品在市場上發(fā)揮什么影響力；Strategy Analytics資深分析師Scott Bicheno即表示，F(xiàn)irefox OS機(jī)種在整體智能手機(jī)市場的占有率連1%都不到。 但展訊與Mozilla的25 美元廉價(jià)智能手機(jī)策略有可能改變此局面。展訊企業(yè)策略副總裁Diana Jovin表示，它們所開發(fā)的方案將在公開市場銷售，鎖定“首次使用智能手機(jī)的消費(fèi)者”。在展訊的智能手機(jī)開發(fā)平臺內(nèi)整合對Firefox OS的支持，是其中的關(guān)鍵；這種所謂的“一站式解決方案”包含了一支手機(jī)所需的所有軟硬件，包括芯片、電路板以及顯示器，因此可以很快地打造出成品。

2013年全球智能手機(jī)操作系統(tǒng)銷售量 (單位：千支)
Source：GartnermRVesmc

有不少中國手機(jī)廠商──它們能提供比西方手機(jī)業(yè)者更佳的成本結(jié)構(gòu)──預(yù)期將在今年開始針對新興市場推出多款搭載Firefox OS的入門款智能手機(jī)；那號稱僅25美元(約154元人民幣)的標(biāo)價(jià)吸引了眾家分析師注意，不過IHS資深分析師Wayne Lam質(zhì)疑，25美元是否為制造成本：“一支智能手機(jī)的成本結(jié)構(gòu)通常包括30%的顯示器、45%的核心電子組件，以及25%的電池、顯示器、外殼…等等 其他零件?！? 但根據(jù)EETimes 美國版編輯詢問展訊的Jovin，確定25美元指的是零售價(jià)；他表示，F(xiàn)irefox OS手機(jī)所需的內(nèi)存大概只要其他智能手機(jī)──通常為1Gb嵌入式DRAM以及2Gb擴(kuò)展NAND閃存──的一半。顯然其成本大幅降低的關(guān)鍵在于 低內(nèi)存用量，因?yàn)镕irefox OS利用了許多所謂的“云端”技術(shù)。 IHS的Lam同意了以上說法：“Firefox OS對處理器以及內(nèi)存的需求較小，因?yàn)樵摲N操作系統(tǒng)以及其服務(wù)，大部分是在云端；舉例來說，為Firefox OS撰寫的多數(shù)應(yīng)用程序是采用HTML5格式，能在行動(dòng)瀏覽器內(nèi)執(zhí)行?！? 展訊在全球移動(dòng)通信大會(huì)(MWC)前夕(2月23日)發(fā)布了WCDMA 智能手機(jī)芯片組SC6821，也就是25美元廉價(jià)智能手機(jī)芯片；該公司表示，此款芯片能讓手機(jī)供貨商推出配備3.5吋HVGA觸控屏幕，整合Wi- Fi、藍(lán)牙、FM與攝影機(jī)等功能，并擁有Firefox OS先進(jìn)的電話與瀏覽器支持的產(chǎn)品，并能取得豐富的網(wǎng)絡(luò)與HTML5應(yīng)用程序資源。 本文下一頁：鎖定“智能手機(jī)首次使用者”

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• 少了WebOS，多了Firefox，手機(jī)界會(huì)不會(huì)不同？
• 新興智能手機(jī)OS，誰最有望晉級前五？
• 太注重硬件性能，Android低端市場恐受傷mRVesmc

{pagination} 鎖定“智能手機(jī)首次使用者” 根 據(jù)IHS的Lam表示，第一代Firefox OS手機(jī)的價(jià)格約在60~100美元，與低階的Android產(chǎn)品相當(dāng)；而展訊與Mozilla連手打造的25美元廉價(jià)智能手機(jī)，則是以從來沒用過智慧型手機(jī)的消費(fèi)者為目標(biāo)──該市場過去主要是以功能最小化的低價(jià)產(chǎn)品來供應(yīng)。 Gartner的統(tǒng)計(jì)數(shù)據(jù)顯示，雖然功能型手機(jī)市 占率已經(jīng)逐漸衰退，去年整體手機(jī)市場仍有46.4%的出貨量為功能型產(chǎn)品；這意味著全球仍有8.38億功能型手機(jī)用戶，而它們將會(huì)是超低價(jià) Firefox OS智能手機(jī)的銷售目標(biāo)。展訊的Jovin表示，F(xiàn)irefox OS是非常適合該銷售目標(biāo)的操作系統(tǒng)：“智能手機(jī)的首次使用者會(huì)發(fā)現(xiàn)它的運(yùn)作非常直觀，從瀏覽器到各種應(yīng)用程序，所有功能都在一個(gè)無縫的網(wǎng)絡(luò)平臺上?！?不需要由手機(jī)應(yīng)用程序切換到網(wǎng)絡(luò)。 此外，低內(nèi)存容量的Firefox OS環(huán)境能讓25美元手機(jī)獲得Android KitKat等級的操作系統(tǒng)支持，這是入門款A(yù)ndroid手機(jī)無法做到的。IHS的Lam表示，25美元零售價(jià)的智能手機(jī)產(chǎn)品，能把智能手機(jī)體驗(yàn)帶 到過去是由低價(jià)功能型手機(jī)所服務(wù)的新興市場：“試想，20美元的諾基亞(Nokia) 105功能型手機(jī)將直接受到威脅?！?

Nokia 105是一款售價(jià)20美元的功能型手機(jī)，采用諾基亞的Symbian Series 30操作系統(tǒng)，支持簡訊、鬧鈴、FM收音機(jī)、備忘錄以及簡單的游戲，無上網(wǎng)功能
mRVesmc

本文下一頁：眾芯片業(yè)者支持Firefox

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• 少了WebOS，多了Firefox，手機(jī)界會(huì)不會(huì)不同？
• 新興智能手機(jī)OS，誰最有望晉級前五？
• 太注重硬件性能，Android低端市場恐受傷mRVesmc

{pagination} 眾芯片業(yè)者支持Firefox Mozilla 獲得了越來越多電信營運(yùn)商、手機(jī)廠商以及芯片業(yè)者的支持；Strategy Analytics資深分析師Sravan Kundojjala表示，除了展訊，高通(Qualcomm)也支持Firefox OS：“最近我們還看到一款支持Android/Firefox雙操作系統(tǒng)的手機(jī)產(chǎn)品GeeksPhone，內(nèi)建英特爾(Intel) Z2560處理器；所以應(yīng)該是有三家手機(jī)芯片業(yè)者支持Firefox OS。” 為 了將Firefox OS裝置的使用體驗(yàn)維持在某一個(gè)程度，Mozilla在去年12月聯(lián)合了多家電信業(yè)者以及芯片廠商成立“開放性網(wǎng)絡(luò)裝置互操作性審查委員會(huì)(Open Web Device Compliance Review Board，CRB)”，成員包括Deutsche Telekom、LG、Sony、Mozilla、高通、Alcatel、Telefonica、 Telenor、KDDI、中興以及展訊。 在 CRB成立時(shí)，Mozilla在一篇新聞稿中表示，該組織目標(biāo)為“推動(dòng)API兼容性以及確保具競爭力的裝置性能”，并“為使用者與開發(fā)商提供完整的開放性 網(wǎng)絡(luò)體驗(yàn)”；透過驗(yàn)證一系列規(guī)格在硬件上的正常運(yùn)作，CRB期望協(xié)助裝置供貨商與電信營運(yùn)商縮短產(chǎn)品上市時(shí)間，并節(jié)省廠商在兼容性測試方面的成本。 預(yù) 期未來將會(huì)有更多芯片廠商投入對Firefox OS的支持。Strategy Analytics的Kundojjala表示，F(xiàn)irefox OS是建立在HTML 5格式上，因此能采用最小化的硬件架構(gòu)，例如單核心應(yīng)用處理器以及256MB的RAM。Firefox OS 的程序代碼與Firefox網(wǎng)絡(luò)瀏覽器的程序代碼有許多共通點(diǎn)：“Firefox網(wǎng)絡(luò)瀏覽器已經(jīng)能在Android平臺運(yùn)作，取得許多芯片廠商的支持，因此我 認(rèn)為在芯片方面對Firefox的支持并沒有什么障礙?！? 此外Kundojjala也指出，由于Firefox鎖定低階市 場，較適合擁有高成本效益、高整合度芯片的廠商投入，例如展訊、高通、聯(lián)發(fā)科(MediaTek)等等。到目前為止，展訊與Mozilla已經(jīng)完成 Firefox OS與展訊WCDMA智能手機(jī)芯片SC6821、SC7710 的整合，下個(gè)月預(yù)計(jì)完成單核心WCDMA芯片組SC7715參考設(shè)計(jì)；展訊Jovin表示，雙方合作將擴(kuò)展至全產(chǎn)品線。 本文下一頁：仍有待克服的障礙？

相關(guān)閱讀：
• 少了WebOS，多了Firefox，手機(jī)界會(huì)不會(huì)不同？
• 新興智能手機(jī)OS，誰最有望晉級前五？
• 太注重硬件性能，Android低端市場恐受傷mRVesmc

{pagination} 仍有待克服的障礙？ 不 過也并非所有人都看好Firefox OS能輕松打入智能手機(jī)市場。CCS Insight美國市場研究副總Geoff Blaber即表示：“Firefox OS需要定義一個(gè)甜蜜點(diǎn)(sweet spot)，能以Android產(chǎn)品無法達(dá)到的價(jià)格點(diǎn)，提供一定水平的使用體驗(yàn)?！? Blaber指出，Android陣營的降價(jià)能力以及提升低階產(chǎn)品使用體驗(yàn)的能力很強(qiáng)，這會(huì)對Firefox OS帶來不少障礙；他還看到Firefox OS的另一個(gè)挑戰(zhàn)：“Android生態(tài)系統(tǒng)已經(jīng)如此多樣化，電信營運(yùn)商是否需要另一個(gè)新平臺？” 而無論如何，Blaber仍認(rèn)為展訊與Mozilla的聯(lián)盟是一個(gè)重要之舉：“這提供了透過新興市場的開放通路所創(chuàng)造的商機(jī)動(dòng)力；如果Firefox OS市場確實(shí)出現(xiàn)成長，開放性零售通路將會(huì)是其中最主要的催化劑?！? 編譯：Judith Cheng 參考英文原文：$25 Smartphones on Firefox OS to Rock MWC，by Junko Yoshida

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• 少了WebOS，多了Firefox，手機(jī)界會(huì)不會(huì)不同？
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• 太注重硬件性能，Android低端市場恐受傷mRVesmc

{pagination} $25 Smartphones on Firefox OS to Rock MWC Junko Yoshida Spreadtrum and Mozilla target first-time smartphone users Spreadtrum Communications, China's leading mobile chip supplier, and Mozilla, Firefox's OS designer, have teamed up to storm the world's emerging markets with a $25 smartphone -- its startling low cost enabled by web technologies. The two companies said they have completed the integration of Firefox OS with several of Spreadtrum's WCDMA and EDGE smartphone chipsets. The first-generation Firefox OS smartphones, which were launched last year by companies such as Alcatel, ZTE, and LG, have been made available primarily through operator channels. Carriers like Telefonica have deployed Firefox OS smartphones, but many analysts see little impact so far on the smartphone market. Scott Bicheno, senior analyst at Strategy Analytics, told us Firefox OS handsets make up "less than 1% of total global smartphone shipments." The Spreadtrum/Mozilla strategy for $25 smartphones is to change that narrative. Diana Jovin, vice president of corporate strategy at Spreadtrum, told us the devices will be "sold on the open market" and will target "first-time smartphone users." Worldwide smartphone sales (in thousands of units) to end users by operating system in 2013. (Source: Gartner) The integration of Firefox OS support into Spreadtrum's smartphone development platform is likely to play a key role. The Chinese vendor's so-called turnkey solution incorporates literally every piece of software and hardware necessary to build a finished handset very quickly, including all the chips, boards, and a display. A number of Chinese handset ODMs -- with a much better cost structure than Western mobile handset vendors -- are expected to start flooding emerging markets this year with Firefox OS-based entry-level smartphones. $25 price tag at retail? That $25 price tag, predictably, has raised a few eyebrows in the analyst community. Wayne Lam, senior analyst for consumer and communications at IHS, wonders if $25 is the manufacturing cost. "A smartphone has a cost budget that usually looks like 30% for display and 45% for core electronics and 25%" for things like the battery, camera, and enclosures," he told us When we asked about this, Spreadtrum's Jovin made it clear that $25 is the retail price. Obviously, a critical element of the price is the low memory configuration of the web-based nature of Firefox's OS. Jovin said a Firefox OS-based smartphone needs just half the memory of other smartphone, which typically require 1 Gbit of embedded DRAM and 2 Gbit of extended NAND. Lam agreed with that assessment. "FireFox OS has less processing and memory requirements, since the OS and the services live mostly in the cloud. For example, most of the apps written for Firefox OS are written in HTML5 and can be run within a mobile browser." Spreadtrum unveiled the SC6821 WCDMA smartphone chipset Sunday, Feb. 23, at the Mobile World Congress as the industry's first chipset for $25 smartphones. With this chipset, the company said, handset makers will be able to bring to market smartphones "with 3.5-inch HVGA touchscreens, integrated [with] WiFi, Bluetooth, FM and camera functions, the advanced phone and browser features of Firefox OS, and access to a rich ecosystem of web and HTML5 applications." First-time smartphone users The price points of first-generation Firefox devices are "at the $60-$100 level, on par with low-end Android devices," as Lam said. However, the $25 Firefox phone pitched by Spreadtrum and Mozilla is aimed at people who have never used smartphones before -- a market segment traditionally served by low-cost devices with minimal features. Though the marketshare is gradually decreasing, 46.4% of mobile phones sold to consumers last year were still feature phones, according to recent figures from Gartner. That translates into roughly 838 million feature phones for consumers, who could be persuaded to try a very low-cost, Firefox OS-based smartphone. Mozilla's Firefox OS is "an operating system well suited for this segment," Jovin said. "First-time smartphone users find it intuitive to have everything -- from a browser to apps -- on a seamless web platform." No switching from apps to the web is required. Moreover, the low-memory Firefox OS environment enables $25 Firefox OS phones access to Android KitKat-level of applications -- which are out of reach for entry-level Android phones. Lam also said a $25 smartphone (at retail) would bring the smartphone experience to developing markets traditionally served by the ultra-low-cost segment. "Think of it as direct competition to the $20 Nokia 105 feature phone." The Nokia 105, a voice-and-text feature phone, is priced at $20. It runs on Nokia's Symbian Series 30 OS and offers support for text message, an alarm clock, an FM radio, reminders, and a few simple games, like Sudoku. But it can't surf the web. Chip vendors supporting Firefox Mozilla is gaining support from a number of operators, handset companies, and silicon vendors. Sravan Kundojjala, a senior analyst at Strategy Analytics, told us both Qualcomm and Spreadtrum currently support the Firefox OS. "Recently, we have seen a dual OS (Android/Firefox) Geek Phone based on Intel's Z2560, so [there are] three vendors now supporting Firefox OS." To maintain a certain level of experience on Firefox OS-based devices, Mozilla banded together with a number of operators and chip companies to launch the Open Web Device Compliance Review Board (CRB) in December. Its members include Deutsche Telekom, LG, Sony, Mozilla, Qualcomm Technologies Inc., Alcatel, Telefónica, Telenor, KDDI, ZTE, and Spreadtrum. When the CRB was launched, Mozilla said in a press release that its goals were "encouraging API compliance as well as ensuring competitive performance" and providing "a full open Web experience to both users and developers." By validating that a set of specs works properly on hardware, the CRB is meant to help device OEMs and carriers decrease time to market and the OEM costs associated with compatibility testing. Challenges ahead More chip vendors are expected to get into the Firefox OS fray. Kundojjala said the Firefox OS is built on HTML 5 and likely to have minimum hardware specs such as a single-core apps processor and 256 MB of RAM. Firefox OS code shares many commonalities with the Firefox web browser code. "The Firefox web browser is already supported on Android by various chipset companies, so I wouldn't see any barrier in supporting Firefox from a chipset point of view." Firefox "is focusing on low-end, so it would suit chipset companies that have cost-effective, highly integrated chips," he said. "Companies such as Spreadtrum, Qualcomm, and MediaTek are well positioned to address this kind of price points." So far, Spreadtrum and Mozilla have completed the integration of Firefox OS with Spreadtrum's SC6821 and SC7710 WCDMA smartphone chipsets. Next month, they expect to complete a turnkey reference design for the SC7715, Spreadtrum's single-core WCDMA smartphone chipset with integrated connectivity. Jovin said her company's collaboration with Mozilla will extend across Spreadtrum's full chipset portfolio. Not everyone believes the Firefox OS plunge into the smartphone market will be easy. "Firefox OS needs to identify a sweet spot where it clearly offers an experience at a price point that Android can't address," Geoff Blaber, vice president of research for the Americas at CCS Insight, told us. Android's price erosion and an improving low-end experience have made it difficult for Firefox OS. "It's difficult to see those dynamics fundamentally changing." Blaber sees another big challenge for Firefox OS: "whether operators actually need another platform, given the diversity of the Android ecosystem." However, the partnership with Spreadtrum is "an important move." It provides an opportunity to build momentum through open channels in emerging markets. "If Firefox OS is to grow, then open distribution is likely to be a major catalyst."