Everyone’s needs are different, and that’s true with just about anything in life from what someone needs for food to what tools they need to get their job done. The computing market can be just as diverse as the spectrum of people on this planet, or at least, it can feel that way, and this is in no small part due to the Android operating system which comes in many, many forms. One of those forms is known as Remix OS, an Android-based software which gives people a PC-like experience with Android backbone. In an interview with XDA Developers this week, David Ko who is one of the Co-Founders of Jide, the company behind Remix OS, shared the details of Remix OS’ origin and their vision for the future of computing using the Remix OS platform to make it a reality.
Although Remix OS is still in its early stages in the hands of the consumer today, it began a few years back in 2013, when one of Jide’s Co-Founders Jeremy Chau was inspired to create Remix OS to give people a better way of computing than what was already available at the time. While the idea of Remix OS may have started with the notion of bringing people a better way of computing, Jide has a long-term vision that looks beyond just offering up a product that lets people interact with PC-like functions in an Android environment. For Jide it’s also about bringing people online. The next billion people online will, according to Jide, come from emerging markets, which Ko admits he had the pleasure of working with during his time working at Google on various projects. Ko states that working at Google gave them some valuable principles to work off of, one of those being to “keep the long-term vision in mind.” That’s another part of why Remix OS has formed into what it is today. A platform that can help Jide bring people online in the long-term, and that’s made all the more possible with low-cost devices like the Remix Mini or the downloadable version of Remix OS that can be installed on existing Windows PCs for free.
Remix OS is arguably the most accessible way for people to experience the platform, but it didn’t start with Remix OS in just the software form that is now available, as the Remix Ultra tablet and the Remix Mini hardware kicked things off. Even with a long-term vision to connect emerging markets though, hardware can be expensive, and Jide had to come up with a way to market Remix OS in an early form which could lead to making the software available as an installable download at no cost. That’s where Kickstarter came in, allowing them to display what Remix OS was capable of on hardware that would cost much less than comparable devices and could garner interest from interested people willing to back the project.
Fast forward to now and Remix OS is alive and well in three different forms, including two that are hardware-based and one that is software only. Beyond these options, Jide also plans to continue making their own hardware to showcase Remix OS in addition to supporting the software-only download and their licensing partners for the OS, who could choose to develop their own hardware running on the platform. Jide was quiet on any specifics in regards to plans for 2016, but they did state they have an exciting year ahead and they have “exciting news and announcements planned.”