[4][5][6] Its user interface is written in Qt, and is designed primarily for touchscreen mobile devices such as smartphones and tablet computers.

However, the original goal of convergence was intended to bring Ubuntu Touch to laptops, desktops, IOT devices and TVs for a complete unified user experience.

Mark Shuttleworth announced on 31 October 2011 that by Ubuntu 14.04, the goal was that Ubuntu would support smartphones, tablets, smart TVs and other smart screens (such as car head units and smartwatches),[12] but to date has only been supported by vendors on a few smartphones, one tablet and a number of third-party devices which hobbyists have ported the operating system to.

[34] A phone running Ubuntu for Android has to meet several requirements such as a dual-core 1 GHz CPU, video acceleration through a shared kernel driver with associated X driver; OpenGL, ES/EGL, 2 GB storage, HDMI for video-out with secondary frame buffer device, USB host mode and 512 MB RAM.

It was to include features such as Web browsing, email, media, camera, VoIP, instant messaging, GPS, blogging, digital TV, games, contacts, and calendars, with regular software updates.

[47] When Ubuntu Touch is turned on no lock screen immediately appears, as applications will prompt the user to unlock if necessary when they are opened.

It shows the user's status and recent events on the welcome screen, completed with a design around the circle which reflects activity on the phone over the preceding month.

[48] Ubuntu Touch includes core applications such as a calculator, an e-mail client, an alarm clock, a file manager, and even a terminal among others.

[49] Several Ubuntu Touch applications work on the desktop as well, including Morph Browser, Calendar, Clocks, Gallery, Notes, Reminders, Terminal, and Weather.

Swiping up from the bottom is used to show or hide tools specific to the app being used, which gives Ubuntu Phone the ability to run applications with a large, uncluttered canvas by default.

[62] In 2023, UBPorts argues that "Halium has 95% contributions from us only"[63] Adrian Covert, writing for CNN on 2 January 2013, predicted that the operating system will not gain wide use, stating, "carving out a niche in the seemingly unshakable mobile space—ruled by the Android-and-Apple duopoly—still requires a critical mass of users and a lively ecosystem of app developers.

At best, Ubuntu seems like a sandbox for the most enthusiastic early adopters and a cheap enterprise solution for companies on a tight budget.

During his keynote address earlier this week, Mark Shuttleworth continually referred to 'emerging' markets as the battleground on which an Ubuntu Phone would fight it out for impact [...].

"[66] Jason Jenkins, writing for CNET on 27 February 2013, MWC Awards 2013, "[...] Lots was said about the impressive number of carriers and manufacturers Firefox OS has lined up behind it.

The team thought that Ubuntu Touch, the tablet version of which we got our hands-on for the first time at MWC, feels more like the complete package at this point.

[...]"[67] Jesse Smith from DistroWatch Weekly reviewed the Ubuntu Phone in Meizu Pro 5 lauding the price, interface, responsiveness and frequency of updates, calling it a "pleasant phone and communications experience" and distinguished it as a user-oriented device as opposed to Android's application-oriented nature and noted that it would be more likely to appeal to those interested in technology—Linux fans in particular—but was too new to appeal to the public at large.

[73] During this time period, BQ was also working on the first 'Convergent' Ubuntu Phone and the planned launch date was initially 2015 then pushed back to 2016.

[75] With the release of OTA-15[76] in December 2020, Ubuntu Touch began supporting the FX Technology Ltd. F(x)tec Pro1 (2019)[citation needed] and Pro1 X (2022)[77][78] phones.

[78][79] The Volla Phone from Hallo Welt Systeme UG launched with official support for Ubuntu Touch in December 2020 as well (identical with Siemens GigaSet GX290).