Alongside the regular monthly update to the Sailfish OS, Finnish smartphone manufacturer Jolla today released two replacement back covers for the Jolla smartphone. 'The Other Half' system is a 'quick-change' system that allows users to customise their Jolla smartphone. The 'Keira Black' and 'Aloe' are smart covers, both of which retail at 29 euros, use NFC technology to allow the Jolla handset to know which cover is being used and to theme the smartphone with matching wallpapers, sounds, and ringtones.
If you want to change the handset to suit your mood, just switch out the covers and let the handset take care of the new look.
This early in the life of the Jolla platform, The Other Half concept has not had a chance to fly. There is the promise of and the facility peripherals, extensions, and manner of useful additions. I could easily see a ticket dispenser on public transport or a barcode scanner in a warehouse being part of an extended Other Half that the Jolla smartphone would clip into, making it an attractive and potentially cost effective business device.
But the community of hackers living on the cutting edge with their Jolla do not have to wait to find out what can be down with The Other Half - they can go ahead and do it themselves.
Jolla and The Other Half (picture: Ewan Spence)
Jolla has also released an SDK for The Other Half, which includes the modelling files required to 3D print your own covers. Add in the details about the NFC chip, the dedicated hardware pins, and notes on which areas must be left clear for operational reasons (camera, flash, and antennas), and the only limit left is your imagination (and DIY powers).
I suspect that many Jolla users, already happy to live in an experimental frame of mind, are out looking for the nearest 3D Printing outfit close to them to fashion their own case in a suitably striking colour so everyone knows they have printed their own case. I also think that rather a lot of them will end up with a transparent case and a hint of purple in the colour... or is that just me?
Jolla spent much of 2013 focused on the first iteration of both their software platform, and the flagship handset to show what the OS can do. The OS is still being polished (as the regular update illustrates) but they have also promised a much more open and almost collegiate system. By releasing details to 3D print The Other Half for personal use, Jolla is continuing to illustrate their commitment to an open source platform of hardware and software.
