Sub-$100 3G Linux mobile phone designed with NXP Nexperia
The phone is based on Purple Magic, a reference design that couples the NXP Nexperia Cellular System Solution 7210 for 3G with the Purple Labs Linux suite.
By Suzanne Deffree, Managing Editor, News -- EDN, January 31, 2008
Betting that Linux will accelerate 3G mass-market penetration in emerging and developing markets, NXP Semiconductors and embedded Linux maker Purple Labs today jointly announced a 3G Linux reference feature phone a transfer price below $100.
The phone is based on Purple Magic, a reference design that couples the NXP Nexperia Cellular System Solution 7210 for 3G with the Purple Labs Linux suite. Production of an initial quantity of fully working phones has allows Purple Labs to conduct testing and validation, reducing investment and time to market for OEMs and ODMs that leverage the Purple Magic design, the company said.
“NXP believes in Linux as the basis for the next generation of mobile handset innovation," said Dan Rabinovitsj, senior VP and general manager of NXP’s cellular business, in a statement. “We’ve been working closely with Purple Labs to develop Linux-based mobile terminals that meet the cost and performance requirements of the mass market. Our joint achievement is to bring the advantages of an Open OS environment to the mass market based on industry leading silicon and software.”
The companies specifically noted Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America, three of the emerging markets that are behind the mobile-phone-industry push toward lower-cost handsets. At the same time, the mobile-phone industry has had to balance the demand of 3G, as consumers continue to look for data-capable smartphones with support for video telephony, music playback, Internet browsing, and video streaming.
“During the recent holiday period, mobile operators were purchasing entry-level 3G phones for $120 to $145,” Simon Wilkinson, CEO of Purple Labs, said in the statement. “While the mobile Linux industry has largely concentrated on high-end devices, the Purple Magic is the first 3G Linux mass-market reference feature phone available today.”
The Purple Magic phone will be exhibited at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, on February 11-14 in the NXP booth.
