14 DAY TRIAL // Ubuntu Edge is both a success story and a failure, which might seem odd, but it's also one of the best ideas Canonical put forward. The truth is that Canonical still needs that phone or an idea just like it.
The crowdfunding campaign for Ubuntu Edge didn't come through, but it galvanized the community in a way that no other project managed to. There are very few projects out there that fail but remain in the public's mind for years on end.
Ubuntu Edge proposed a phone with insane specs, designed for people that wanted top-of-the-line in every department. Canonical had talked about sapphire screens long before Apple got the idea to use them for iPhones, and the hardware was way ahead of its time. It was a dream phone, and it still is. A new idea like that one is still needed.
The community wants the Ubuntu Edge to happen
Every once in a while, people remember the $32 million (€29.5 million) Ubuntu Edge crowdfunding campaign and they imagine what could have been. Canonical didn't gather the funds it needed for research and development of that phone, but they did put an idea into people’s minds.
Yes, Ubuntu Edge will not happen, not now and not ever, but the influence of that imaginary device still lingers. It's like announcing you're going to the moon, and for the next decade, everyone is dreaming about it. Moreover, the best thing about it is that it spawns an industry, and it changes the way programmers and engineers think and act.
A computer in our pocket
The main idea that captured the interest of the potential Ubuntu Edge users was that you are walking with a small PC in your pocket that you're never using. It was a great idea for 2013, and two years later it's still not happening, but the PCs are getting smaller and smaller.
We're now using PCs that are as small as a Wi-Fi dongle, and we're still carrying 6-inch devices in our pockets that are just phones with internet capability. That could have changed, and it hasn't. Canonical is also working on that, but it doesn't seem to be a priority.
An "Ubuntu Edge" idea is needed
Canonical might not be actively working on making your phone act like a PC, and they have other priorities right now, but this should be their focus. They are now doing what everyone else is doing, an OS for mobile devices, but they are no longer dreaming big.
Having an almost impossible target, like the Ubuntu Edge, is important when you want to make people dream, even if it's not going to happen. Sure, having a working mobile OS is important, and it's a first step, but the company should also make it clear that they want to give people something that no one can.
If the Ubuntu Edge taught Canonical anything, that should be it. Set a seemingly impossible task and help people dream. The rest will follow.
