Remix OS Plays Android on The Desktop

With software giant Microsoft still desperately trying to win the favour of mobile users with the latest Windows 10 – which launched in late July last year – Android, the world’s most used mobile OS, is looking to encroach on the company’s coveted PC market. And this time it is not Google at the helm, writes Tom Wilson.

Jide Technology Ltd, a Beijing based software and hardware company founded by three ex-Google employees (Jeremey Chau, Ben Luk and David Ko) has developed Remix OS, their own version of Android with a focus on adapting the familiar touch screen interface. This is to bring 'simplicity to productivity', shaping the software to become more user friendly to those wishing to make use of traditional PC peripherals such as a mouse and keyboard.

After an initial release of Remix OS on its own hardware, the Jide Ultratablet, Remix OS has now been made available to 64-bit PC architectures, with an official alpha release available from the company's website.

Although Android has been shown to run, in some cases fairly well, on x86 PC architectures through the Android-x86 open source project, Remix OS marks the first time a dedicated hardware and software company have delivered an x86 version of Android in an official release.

By adding a task bar, implementing multi-window app functionality and offering a full file manager built into the OS, Remix does begin to feel distinctly familiar to any PC user.

Along with these additions, familiar Android features such as a notification centre (see right) and access to Google's Play Store may make this variant of the OS an attractive option to many consumers wishing to get that little bit extra from their tablet.

Having personally trialled the software on my Microsoft Surface Pro over the past week, Remix OS is a refreshing change from the mainstream variants of Android, offered by the likes of Samsung, Sony and LG.

The addition of multi-window app functionality is particularly welcome, and the tweaked interface is slick and easy to navigate using a mouse and keyboard.

There are of course a number of shortcomings. The software is still in Alpha and hardware support is patchy (in my trial both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth were absent) and apps do take getting used to when navigating the interface with a mouse. However, Jide themselves seem focused on Remix OS and have offered a number of updates to the software since its official release on Monday 12 January.

Furthermore, their Android-on-PC efforts do not simply stop with Remix OS as they recently announced the Remix Mini, a palm sized desktop device, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas earlier this month.

The official version of Remix OS can be downloaded free of charge from the company's

website: www.jide.com/en/remixos-for-pc