Android One Phone Launched In India
Google finally launched first Android One running phones in India. Google aims to bring high quality Andoird smartphones at affordable price to as many people as possible.
The first three phones to be launched are the Sparkle V. Micromax Canvas A1, and Spice Dream UNO. The Dream UNO is the cheapest at INR 6,299, while the Sparkle V priced at INR 6,399 and the Micromax Canvas A1 priced at INR 6,499.
At this time all three phones are being sold through online retailers. The Micromax CAnvas A1 through Amazon, and the Karbon Sparkle V will be sold on Snapdeal, and the Spice Dream UNO through Flipkart.
Android One platform is specially designed for low cost budget phones under $100. Android One platform phones run on stock Andoird. So users will get pure Android experience and the best thing is that all Android One platform phones run on KitKat 4.4.4. And the phone will get OS updates directly from Google for two years. These phones also first in line to get Android L, and any future updates of OS.
In terms of specification, all three Andoird One phones come with 4.5 inch 854x480 resolution IPS display, 4GB storage space with card slot, MediaTek MT6582 Soc with 1.3 GHz quad-core Cortex-A7 CPU and Mali 400 MP2 GPU coupled with 1 GB RAM, 5 megapixel rear camera with 2 megapixel front camera, FM radio, dual SIM, and 1,700mAh battery. All these phones are based on Google's reference design, that are pretty much identical.
Google also announced that Airtel is offering a promotion to reduce data costs for those who buy Android One phones. With an Airtel connection, Android One users will get free over-the-air(OTA) updates, and 200MP per month worth of app downloads from Google Play for the first six months - all without counting towards their mobile data plan.
Another very good thing is that Android One users will be able to download and watch YouTube videos offline, something not yet available on any Android device. Andoird One user will also get a 1 year subscription of Google Play Newsstand.
Android One is a great initiative by Google to bring smartphones to the masses. But the competition is already getting hot with devices like Xiaomi Redmi 1S and Motorola Moto E.
