Mozilla’s Firefox OS software is already mostly found on low-cost smartphones. But next year we may start to see it on even cheaper phones.

At Mobile World Congress event in Spain this week, Mozilla announced it’s working with wireless carriers Verizon, KDDI, LG U+ and Telefonica to bring Firefox OS to devices the kind of device that we currently thin of as feature phones rather than smartphones.

orange klif

That includes flip phones, sliders, and slates. Firefox OS will bring features including web browsing, maps and navigation, music and video playback, camera functionality, and third-party apps to the kinds of phones that might otherwise only support phone calls and text messages.

We should start to see Firefox OS devices in these new form factors in 2016.

Other Firefox OS-related news from MWC includes announcements that:

  • Alcatel OneTouch is launching the Orange Klif, a $40 dual-SIM 3G phone with a MediaTek processor, a 3.5 inch screen, and microSD card slot
  • Wireless carrier Orange will be offering Firefox phones in 13 new markets
  • Future versions of Firefox OS will offer better support for multi-core processors, support for NFC payments, and privacy enhancements

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9 replies on “Firefox OS coming to low-end flip phones, sliders”

  1. We’ve been hearing about those “just around the corner” new Firefox OS phones for two years, and they’re still impossible to find anywhere. Colour me skeptical.

    1. I agree. Firefox OS is vapor-ware. It has taken FAR too long. Makes me sad. I so wanted it to take off.

      1. until FFOS 3.0, i won’t recommended because it still choppy, laggy with limited app

  4. interesting idea. i wish they had these out sooner; my grandma probably could have gotten one instead of an iPhone.

    1. I don’t know if I should get my grandma another flip phone or a moto g and install a simple launcher on it. She has the original moto razr with att

      1. Really depends. If it is cheaper for you to get your grandma a smartphone, buy her a decent cheap one, and if there’s a minimal data allotment, shut off mobile data.
        If not, try looking into the Nokia Asha feature phones on eBay. There are some touchscreen models that have Wi-Fi and third party apps.

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