Mark Shuttleworth has announced that his company, Canonical Ltd, has built an Ubuntu Linux system for smartphones. It will work as a full desktop operating system (OS) when connected to a monitor, keyboard, and mouse.

According to Shuttleworth, this new version of the OS is appealing to two markets: entry-level smartphone consumers, as well as enterprises that want to give employees just one device instead of two or three.

While Apple and Microsoft have developed separate operating systems for desktops and phones, Canonical is pushing a single operating system that can adapt to different devices. For example, touchscreen apps developed for the phone OS will also work on the desktop version of Ubuntu.

Shuttleworth says they are confident that Ubuntu will ship on phones from large manufacturers in 2013. Ubuntu already runs desktops, servers, and even TV’s.

We think these things can converge both on the front end and under the hood. One of the core visions is complete convergence of the platform from phone to supercomputer. A version for tablets is also coming soon.

We’re sanguine about the challenges that we face, but we know this is an industry that turns itself over every couple years.

[Source: Wired]