An in depth look at Project Ara at MWC 2015
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Project Ara is Google's revolutionary modular smartphone that will allow owners to build their own smartphones by snapping together components such as screens, cameras and processors, much like with Lego.
The first country to see Project will be Puerto Rico later this year, and the reason Google chose it was due to it being a highly connected country with over 75% of the population owning a mobile phone.
Puerto Rico is also a US territory with a free trade zone which will make it easy for Project Ara modules to be brought in from around the world.
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Although Google wasn't showing off Project Ara at MWC 2015, the US company Yezz mobile did show off a number of prototype modules that it was working on.
These modules will easily clip on to the exoskeleton of Project Ara, and although the company has only been making mobile phones for three years, Google chose Yezz to be one of its partners for the launch.
This is because Yezz is a US company with sales around the world, and has what the company terms 'freestyle mobile spirit', a philosophy that states that your mobile phone should fit your lifestyle, which fits in well with Project Ara.
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Yezz told us that it currently has over 100 concepts for Project Ara modules. These modules include screens, cameras, phone antenna, batteries and more.
Yezz has been working closely with Google to ensure that each module it creates confirms to the standards that it has set for Project Ara, known as the MDK.
This will allow owners of Project Ara handsets to add and remove modules no matter what company makes them, so you shouldn't have to worry if it is compatible with your handset.
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Google produces the reference designs for the modules, then allows the companies freedom to make their own, and as you can see from the photo above there are a variety of shapes and sizes that the modules can be. The metal exoskeleton has a number of ports that match the size and shape of the modules, letting you snap in and build your own smartphone.
This combines the flexibility of upgrading a desktop PC with the simplicity of creating with Lego, and if Google and its partners can pull it off, then Project Ara could be a revolutionary smartphone.
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Quite a few smartphones come with dual SIM card slots which allow you to conveniently switch between networks without turning off your phone and swapping SIM cards manually. It's a particularly handy feature if you have personal and business mobile contracts or if you travel a lot.
One of the prototypes Yezz displayed at MWC 2015 was a dual SIM module that would be able to snap in to the Project Ara exoskeleton, bringing this handy feature to Ara owners.
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This prototype appears to show a fingerprint or NFC module, giving us an idea of what sort of add-ons Yezz has planned for Project Ara. Although Yezz has over 100 concepts prepared for Google's modular smartphone, not all of them will be released at the same time as Project Ara goes on sale.
The best thing about Project Ara is if you're not interested in NFC then you don't have to buy the module for it, instead putting your money into other modules that match your needs.
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If you're an avid mobile gamer then you could build your Project Ara smartphone around that passion, for example investing in a game pad module that can clip on to your handset for better control.
You could also buy a more powerful graphics processing unit and an improved screen to make the Project Ara the ultimate smartphone for playing games on. If you tire of games, you can easily swap out the modules for more standard add-ons.
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Another prototype module for Project Ara shown off by Yezz shows a headphone port and speaker combination.
If you're a big fan of listening to music on your smartphone then Project Ara will allow you to swap out and upgrade the speakers and headphone socket for higher quality audio components.
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As with all the other parts of Project Ara, the screen is also swappable. Yezz is making a screen module that is 1080p high definition and 4.7-inch in size.
Yezz is also working on a flip cover that includes a second screen, this time using E-Ink technology, making it ideal for reading eBooks on. Yezz is also working with Suncore to create a flip cover that includes solar panels to charge the device in sunlight.
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All of Yezz's modules, as well as modules from other manufacturers, will be sold through a dedicated web store that will work in a similar way to Google Play.
For the moment this will be the only way to buy modules, however at the launch of Project Ara in Puerto Rico, a number of 'food trucks' will be deployed to sell Project Ara modules on the street.
- Check out the rest of our MWC 2015 coverage
Matt is TechRadar's Managing Editor for Computing and Entertainment, looking after two of the best, and most exciting, channels on the site. Having written for a number of publications such as PC Plus, PC Format, T3 and Linux Format, there's no aspect of technology that Matt isn't passionate about, especially computing and PC gaming. Ever since he got an Amiga A500+ for Christmas in 1991, he's loved using (and playing on) computers, and will talk endlessly about how The Secret of Monkey Island is the best game ever made. He's also a huge film and TV fan and Marvel geek, and his favorite recent film is Dune.