Mobile Ubuntu Linux Coming To A Smartphone Near YouMobile Ubuntu Linux Coming To A Smartphone Near You

After years of waiting for a usable mobile version of Linux, it looks like Linux is finally on its way to a cell phone near you thanks to some Ubuntu developers and Intel.Ubuntu programmers will build a mobile version of their Debian-based Linux OS through a partnership with Intel. Intel plans to use the OS with a new low-power processor and chipset in smartphones.

The new Ubuntu mobile Linux is scheduled to ship in October this year, along with a new version of the regular Linux OS. How can they get this OS to market so soon? It could mean a couple of things. The first is that this OS is more than three-fourths finished. The second is that the Ubuntu community and Intel have underestimated the challenges in developing a new mobile OS, especially when it comes to issues like hardware and battery life management.

To date the story around mobile Linux has been more hype than reality. Mobile versions of Linux account for only 6 percent of the global handset OS market.

What do you think? Can Ubuntu make Linux work on smartphones?