A modular phone from Facebook in the works?

​New Delhi: Facebook is exploring a device with interchangeable parts that could be used as a smartphone or a speaker, a patent filing has shown. A patent application filed by Facebook talks about an "modular electromechanical device" that can incorporate a speaker, microphone, touch display, GPS, and even function as a phone, reports Business Insider.

Google's Project Ara intended to make a modular phone that can be assembled using different units on to the "frames" provided by the company. A user swappable component would mean any particular part of the phone, be it cameras, display, chipset or speakers can be upgraded without the need of purchasing a new device altogether, which would not only save money but provide a longer product lifecycle and reduce electronic waste.

Most smartphones have few replaceable components, but modular technology allows users to update the phone in parts, rather than upgrading to the latest device. "From a consumer prospective, the life cycle of conventional consumer electronics is expensive and wasteful," the patent said.

The patent, filed last year, shows a main chassis and a series of modules that would be made using 3D printing. The device would change its function by downloading new software depending on the modules it is using.

The design follows Google's modular smartphone Project Ara. The project was delayed and ultimately abandoned in 2016. Several former members of Google's Project Ara team now work for Facebook, according to Business Insider. Facebook files thousands of patents each year, many of which will not result in new products.

However, it would not be Facebook's first smartphone project. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has previously said it doesn't make sense for the company to make a smartphone.

"If we did build a phone, we’d only reach one or two per cent of our users. That doesn’t do anything awesome for us," Zuckerberg said on the launch of Facebook Home.

LG became the first leading smartphone manufacturer to produce a flagship phone based around modular technology last year. The LG G5 had modular battery packs, cameras and Hi-Fi systems.

Apple has also been exploring a modular device, according to a patent filing released in March. The device would combine an iPhone into a Macbook body, slotting the phone into the keyboard of the laptop body.