At the 2013 Mobile World Congress, Sony and Telefonica announced a multi-year partnership that will see the two evaluate the mobile Firefox operating system for its phones. The two have already made some significant progress, and now they're offering an experimental version of Firefox that can be flashed onto the Xperia E smartphone.
Sony claimed that it's offering the Firefox OS for advanced developers to toy around with and give feedback on, but it's available to pretty much anyone interested enough in installing it on their Xperia E. Since Firefox OS is developed fully around open Web standards, it offers anyone with knowledge of HTML5, CSS, or JavaScript a chance to develop apps for it.
Before flashing Firefox OS to the Xperia E, here are some things Sony said to take into consideration.
- Before unlocking the boot loader, understand that doing so might void the warranty on your phone.
- If you don't have advanced knowledge of flashing and switching between ROMS, you might damage your device.
- This process will only work on an unlocked Xperia E.
- Some features haven't been incorporated or turned on yet.
- There's no working radio connection, so it's impossible to use Wi-Fi or Bluetooh, or make phone calls.
- Touch sensitivity hasn't been fully calibrated, and SD card functionality could be unstable.
According to Sony Mobile, "this software can be flashed on an Xperia E that has similar hardware specifications as the initial scope of the first version of Firefox OS and is therefore a natural candidate."
Remember: iTech Post will not be held responsible for any damages to your device. Perform this operation at your own risk.
If you're still willing to continue, here's how to flash Firefox OS to the Xperia E. Directions courtesy of Sony Mobile.
1. Using Sony Mobile's unlock boot loader service, go ahead and unlock the boot loader. It might be the case that operator restrictions remove your ability to perform this task. After the Xperia E has been unlocked, software updates from Sony will cease.
2. Download and install the Xperia flash tool.
3. Use Sony's flash tool instructions to start the flash tool and connect your phone. Once the unlocked phone is connected, the Firefox OS will be available for you to flash. If you're looking to go back to Android from the Firefox OS, there's also a Sony software version available for you to flash, too.
4. Turn the power on after the first booting sequence, and you're good to go! You're running Firefox OS on your Xperia E.
If you're interested in developing apps, click here to read more about doing so.
