Firefox For Android on ARMv6
Written by Ian Elliot   
Wednesday, 21 November 2012

Mozilla has widened the reach of Firefox for Android - making Firefox seems a much more viable platform for developers. Adding support for ARMv6 processors potentially brings Firefox to millions of devices.

Firefox for Android already supported phones running Android versions 2.2 and higher, but only on phones equipped with ARMv7 processors.

Now Version 17 of Firefox for Mobile has been fully released this situation has changed. Its big new feature is support for phones with older architectures. At first this seems backward looking - but when you take into account the continuing popularity of the devices involved, including the HTC Status, HTC ChaCha, Samsung Galaxy Ace, Motorola Fire XT and LG Optimus Q, and the number of those already using them, you realize why this is actually a big step forward for Firefox.

According to the Mozilla blog:

At Mozilla, our mission is to bring the Web to as many people as we can. Given that roughly half of the nearly 500 million Android phones in use today run on ARMv6 architecture, this is an important step toward making the open Web free to all.


firefox

 

An important new accessibility feature in this version is integration with TalkBack, the Android screen reader, with no need for additional configuration or installations. This makes browsing the Web on a mobile phone easier for the visually impaired.

It also supports JellyBean's Explore by Touch, a feature that makes it easier for the visually impaired to browse the Web using speech output, sounds and vibrations, and Gesture Navigation.

For developers this release provides an incentive not only to develop for Firefox on mobile devices but also for Firefox OS. Firefox is now in an even better position to be a dominant force in the mobile market.

More Information

Mozilla blog

Download Firefox for Android

Release Notes

Related Articles

Try Firefox OS On the Desktop

Firefox 17 Available In Beta

Firefox 16 Has Developer Goodies

 

espbook

 

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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 21 November 2012 )