Google aims for January 2015 for its Project Ara modular smartphone

We're beginning to hear more and more about Google's modular smartphone, Project Ara, as we get deeper into 2014. But when will we see the super-cheap, modular smartphone arrive in our hands? January 2015.

Google announced the news at its Project Ara developers conference, with modular smartphones beginning at just $50. Paul Eremenko, Project Lead on the modular smartphone said: "It's called the Gray Phone because it's meant to be drab gray to get people to customize it". And while Project Ara supports Android - of course - Android itself doesn't have the required drivers for the modular smartphone to work.

Eremenko continued: "It's true that Android does not support dynamic hardware today. The good news is that we're Google". The Mountain View-based search giant wants to stay "as hands-off as possible" once the modular smartphone launches in January. Eremenko will be finished with the project by April, leaving it to third-party developers and manufacturers to develop the components. Google will, from behind the scenes, support the ecosystem.