Let me address some misconceptions in this article and why I think it is misguided but first lets be sure that we're all on the same page and that people are entitled to their own opinion, even if we disagree.
Firefox OS is not made to fight mid-range and high-end Android devices. Firefox OS was created with the following main objectives:
- Create a Free and Open mobile source operating that is developed in the open. Android does not fit this bill because Google only release Android source code once the job is done and is not keen on accepting contributions from third-party. Firefox OS is on github from day one and everyone is encouraged to contribute.
- Create a system based on web technologies where using nothing but HTML/CSS/JS you can access all phone features. The mobile ecosystem was becoming a closed market where each vendor had their own proprietary system and walled garden. Firefox OS is open and use open standards for development. Apps made for Firefox OS can be used in other systems with minimal fiddling.
- Create devices that were cheaper than the usual low-end Android device. The market is not the U.S. the market is Latin America, East Europe, Asia where people don't have the same budgets as U.S. In Brazil an iPhone costs USD 1000 at least where Firefox OS costs about USD 80 without contract. The Moto G device quoted on the article costs about USD 350 here.
Now with this objective in mind, lets review some parts of this article.
The phone does not have two marketplaces. There is the adaptative search that displays web apps based on a search query. You can use those apps once (open the page) or save them (add a link to them) to the launcher. The Firefox Marketplace will provide you with apps. Saying that the adaptative search is a marketplace is saying that because Google Now can search the web it rivals Google Play.
On the current version of Firefox OS being shipped you can add contacts from SIM Card, Facebook and GMail. There are apps on the marketplace to import vCards and other contact sources.
You can add email accounts from many popular providers and from scratch using IMAP or POP. There is an issue with self signed certificates meaning that on some special cases, people hosting their own email can't add the server because the certificate is not recognized. This is being addressed in the open.
Apps are made by their developers, not by Mozilla. If the Twitter or Facebook app does not work as well as it should is because those developers are not doing the necessary effort. When I say necessary effort is because its so damn simple to pick a mobile web site and just add it as an app that some developers forget to optmize the experience to be more app like with things such as appcache. The Twitter app when first launched was pretty bad, these days after some updates it became quite decent. The Facebook app still basically their mobile web version and has a lot of room for improvement. Anyway, this is responsability of the developers.
The fact that there are apps that the author considers embarrassing is a good thing, it proves how easy it is to develop for the system. Do an exercise, imagine if the world wide web instead of using HTML/CSS/JS used 6502 Assembly language and that to code for it you would need to do it in that language. How many web developers we would have? How open and accessible the web would be? One of the cool things about the web is that it is really easy to cook something that is usable. To build great experiences in the web requires a lot of knowledge but to build something that works it is quite easy. Because of this Firefox OS is approachable by hackers and new developers alike and this is reflected in the current marketplace. Another thing is that Mozilla doesn't charge you anything to be able to place apps in the marketplace and there is no SDK or special computer/OS (Apple I am looking at you) required to build apps for Firefox OS. Anyone can do it. This is good, democratic and pays well in the long run, just look how popular the web is today.
Nokia Here maps has navigation. Also, criticism about Here maps should not be directed at Firefox OS. Its like blaming Mac OS X for the lack of triple A games.
There is no fragmentation in Firefox OS. Just like you can browse the web in Firefox 25 or Chrome or Firefox 18. You can use the apps in different versions of the OS. The companies that build Firefox OS are required by contract not to wait more than six months before updating the phones. This means that in the worst case scenario, it updates at double speed than the usual competitors that have yearly updates. The vendors are updating it more quickly though. It took just some months from Firefox OS 1.0 to 1.1. Also Firefox OS is divided in three components (gonk, gecko, gaia) and updating Gaia is pretty easy.
Anyway. The article missed the point which is an open system for a cheap device aimed at emerging markets. This is not a competitor to iPhone 5 or Galaxy S4. The main competition is dumb phones and very low end Android devices that have crap performance.