Millions More Can Now Use Firefox for Android
Mozilla made it possible for millions more Android-powered phones to be able to run its Firefox browser by adding support for devices with an older processor architecture – ARMv6 processors.
There are some 500 million Android phones out there and about half of them run on the ARMv6 architecture.
The bad news, until now, was that all these devices could not run the properly good and incredibly popular Firefox browser. Firefox for Android was available for ARMv7 and not for ARMv6 devices.
The good news is that as of this week, this unfortunate situation has changed.
The Mozilla Organization is dedicated to making the web a better place and to bringing the best of the mobile web to everyone. Millions of Android phones not being able to access the web because of an older processor architecture went against Mozilla’s core beliefs. That is why the latest Firefox for Android release adds support for a number of ARMv6-powered phones, including the HTC Status, HTC ChaCha, Samsung Galaxy Ace, Motorola Fire XT and LG Optimus Q.
If you have an Android phone with an ARMv6 processor (at least 800MHZ) and a minimum of 512MB of RAM memory, you can run Firefox for Android.
Firefox for Android is available for download for free on Google’s Play Store here.
The Firefox app also makes it easier for the visually impaired to browse the web. Mozilla explains:
“Firefox for Android also adds new accessibility features to make browsing the Web on a mobile phone easier for the visually impaired. Firefox for Android integrates seamlessly with TalkBack, the Android screen reader, with no need for additional configuration or installations.”
And speaking about accessibility features, it must be mentioned that Firefox supports Explore by Touch and Gesture Navigation, new features recently introduced to the Android mobile operating system.
There are some 500 million Android phones out there and about half of them run on the ARMv6 architecture.
The bad news, until now, was that all these devices could not run the properly good and incredibly popular Firefox browser. Firefox for Android was available for ARMv7 and not for ARMv6 devices.
The good news is that as of this week, this unfortunate situation has changed.
The Mozilla Organization is dedicated to making the web a better place and to bringing the best of the mobile web to everyone. Millions of Android phones not being able to access the web because of an older processor architecture went against Mozilla’s core beliefs. That is why the latest Firefox for Android release adds support for a number of ARMv6-powered phones, including the HTC Status, HTC ChaCha, Samsung Galaxy Ace, Motorola Fire XT and LG Optimus Q.
If you have an Android phone with an ARMv6 processor (at least 800MHZ) and a minimum of 512MB of RAM memory, you can run Firefox for Android.
Firefox for Android is available for download for free on Google’s Play Store here.
The Firefox app also makes it easier for the visually impaired to browse the web. Mozilla explains:
“Firefox for Android also adds new accessibility features to make browsing the Web on a mobile phone easier for the visually impaired. Firefox for Android integrates seamlessly with TalkBack, the Android screen reader, with no need for additional configuration or installations.”
And speaking about accessibility features, it must be mentioned that Firefox supports Explore by Touch and Gesture Navigation, new features recently introduced to the Android mobile operating system.
