Ubuntu Touch developer preview goes live

Bang on schedule, the Ubuntu 12.10 Touch developer preview is up and available for download. Budding developers who have been impressed with Ubuntu Touch can now freely install it on their Nexus devices and begin tinkering around with the Linux goodness.

The Galaxy Nexus “maguro”, Nexus 4, 7, and 10 are all supported devices, but you’ll notice that Verizon and Sprint Galaxy Nexus’ are sadly missing from the list.

It can’t be stressed enough that this is a released aimed for developers, and certainly shouldn’t be consider a replacement for your everyday ROM. Installing Ubuntu will totally wipe the data from your handset or tablet, so don’t plan on quickly checking it out and swapping back to Android either.

The good news is that all the basic stuff is working; phone calls, SMS messages, WiFi networking, web browsing, and front and back cameras will all function properly (most of the time). But other apps are pretty much placeholders, so be prepared for stuff to break fairly regularly.

If you really want to check out Ubuntu Touch then you’ll need to grab the appropriate download for your device’s code name, “manta” for the Nexus 10, “mako” for the Nexus 4, etc. There’s also a step by step guide on how to flash your device, which includes resources for restoring Android if you need to.

We won’t be seeing any Ubuntu powered handsets on the market until 2014, but it’s sure to shake things up when the finished version finally arrives.

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