Experimental Firefox OS for Xperia E available for developers

Earlier this week, Sony and Telefónica announced in a joint press release that they are evaluating the Firefox operating system for mobile phones, and now an experimental build is available for Xperia E devices!

You can flash Firefox OS on your Xperia™ E by performing the following steps:

• Unlock the boot loader using their unlock boot loader service. Note that the possibility to unlock a device can sometimes be restricted due to operator restrictions. Also note that once you’ve unlocked your phone, you will not get any official software updates from Sony.
  
• Download and install the flash tool for Xperia.
  
• Start the flash tool and connect your phone as described in the flash tool instructions. When you connect your unlocked Xperia™ E, the Firefox OS software will be available to flash. There is also a standard Sony software version that you can flash, if you want to go back to Android™ from the Firefox OS software.

The Xperia E costs £159 at  Sony Mobile's Online Store, if you want to have a play with Mozilla's web-centric OS then this is a low cost way to do so. Beware however that if you do this you will invalidate your warranty!

Some of the features are not switched on or implemented in Firefox OS, such as:

• No radio connectivity available, due to that this software has not passed certification and type approval. This means that you cannot make any phone calls or use Wi-Fi or Bluetooth.
  
• The functionality of the SD card might be unstable.
  
• The touch sensitivity is not fully calibrated.

Finally, Firefox OS is built on top of a Linux Kernel, so dear Sony, where is the kernel source?

Full information on this experimental rom is available on the Sony Developer Blog, I cant imagine seeing Firefox OS coming to the United Kingdom anytime soon, Telefónica have advised they will be launching the devices in Brazil, Colombia, Spain and Venezuela during mid-2013.

[via: Sony Developer Blog]