NordOS

NordOS is a multitasking-based operating system developed by the Salerian technology company Nordtec to run seamlessly on personal computers, smartphones and tablet computers. Originally launched as an operating for the Nordphone family of smartphones (beginning with the Nordphone 2 on 23 October 2017), it later became available on personal computers and tablets starting with the release of NordOS 2.

History
The development of NordOS dates back around the release of the Nordphone One in 2015 when Nordtec's founder Alfonso Jönsson told Techradar that the company would plan to create an operating system that would work seamlessly across PCs, smartphones and tablets under the codename "Project Galdhøpiggen." He stated that the operating system will be designed from scratch, but it would also be compatible with the majority of Android applications and games that are available on the Google Play Store. The operating system would eventually be unveiled to the public as NordOS for the first time at the 2017 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain and was released to the general public on 23 October 2017.

Although it was only available on Nordphone-based smartphones when it was first launched, it was later released on personal computers starting with the release of NordOS 2 in 2019.

Applications
Applications for NordOS can be installed on the operating system, either by downloading them via the NordOS Market or by installing them directly from a .npkg file (the package file used by NordOS). Most of these apps are written using the NordOS Software Development Kit, which they are done in either C, C++, or other languages (such as Java or Kotlin). Additionally, Android applications can be installed on NordOS either via an app store (such as the Amazon Appstore or the Google Play Store) or via sideloading.

Multimedia and gaming
NordOS features playback support for a wide range of audio and video codecs, such as H.264, HEVC, FLAC, VP9, and AV1, which these files formats can be decoded using the built-in NordOS Media Player and other media players that are developed for the operating system (such as the VLC Media Player and others). The operating system also supports playing back of DRM-protected content through DRM technologies, such as Widevine.

NordOS includes support for the following graphics APIs, which include OpenGL/OpenGL ES and Vulkan. A third graphics API, nGX (NordOS Graphics Extensions), is currently being developed and it will be included in NordOS 4. The nGX API will be developed from scratch and it will be designed as a low-level, low-overhead hardware-accelerated 3D graphic and compute shader API, similar to DirectX 12, Vulkan and Metal in terms of features and performance.

User interface
The user interface of NordOS is designed to be scaled and adapt based on the type of device being used (such as a personal computer, smartphone or tablet) and available input methods. The status bar (which includes the signal of the WiFi or cellular data connection, the speaker icon (which indicates the volume level), the Bluetooth icon, the battery icon, the current time, and the menu icon) are located at the upper right of the screen.

On smartphones and tablets, the Wi-Fi/cellular data signal and the carrier's name are located on the upper left of the screen, while the battery icon and the current time are located upper right of the screen. On personal computers and tablet computers, the taskbar is centered. However, on mobile phones, a favorites bar is used instead, while the applications menu icon (the logo of Nordtec in color white) can still be seen.

Minimum

 * Processor: A 64-bit dual-core processor (either Intel or AMD) with hyperthreading
 * RAM: 8GB of system memory
 * Storage: At least 8GB of hard disk storage. Additional disk space is needed for installing applications and system updates.
 * Graphics Card: A minimum of 1GB video memory with OpenGL hardware acceleration
 * An internet connection is required for some features and services. A Nordtec ID account is needed for purchasing/downloading applications and games from the NordOS Market. Additional features or services might require different accounts.

Recommended

 * Processor: A 64-bit quad-core processor (either Intel or AMD) with hyperthreading
 * RAM: 8GB of system memory
 * Storage: At least 16GB of hard disk storage. Additional disk space is needed for installing applications and system updates.
 * Graphics Card: A minimum of 2GB video memory with OpenGL or Vulkan hardware acceleration
 * An internet connection is required for some features and services. A Nordtec ID account is needed for purchasing/downloading applications and games from the NordOS Market. Additional features or services might require different accounts.

Smartphones

 * Nordphone 2
 * Nordphone 3
 * Nordphone Lite
 * Nordphone Lite 2
 * Nordphone Go
 * Nordphone 4
 * Nordphone Go 5G

Tablets

 * Nordpad One
 * Nordpad 2

NordOS 1
The first version of NordOS was unveiled at the 2017 Mobile World Congress and was released for the Nordphone 2 on 23 October 2017. During the first week of release, initial reviews reveal that the operating system had a buggy start. This is mainly due to the operating system's power management-related issues (most notably the device's battery being drained quickly, even when running on power saving mode), as well as performance-related issues when running Android applications. These issues would later be patched out in a software update two weeks later. Despite this, the operating system was largely praised by critics due to its user-friendly interface and its native support for Android applications.

NordOS 2
NordOS 2 was announced to the public at the 2019 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain and was released to the general public on 1 September 2019. It was the first version of NordOS to feature support for x86-64 based devices, as well as the first version of the operating system to feature a user interface when running on desktop, laptop or tablet-based computers. Notable changes include an improved user interface, support for audio and video codecs (such as AV1 video codec, the HDR10+ video format and the Opus audio codec), Vulkan 1.1 support, WiFi 6 support, and performance and stability improvements, as well as the addition of a JIT-based (just in time) dynamic recompiler when running ARM64 applications on x86-64 hardware.

NordOS 3
NordOS 3 was announced in a YouTube livestream on 2 April 2021 and was released on 15 May 2021. The update is largely focused on performance and stability improvements, as well as a new and improved user interface and other bug fixes. It includes a new ahead-of-time based, dynamic binary translator for running x86-64 based applications on ARM64 hardware.