TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Google has unveiled its first Android One phone with affordable price at US$105 or Rp1.2 million. The phone was launched in India. It has 4.5-inch screens, 1GB of RAM, 5-megapixel main and 2-megapixel front cameras, 1.3 GHz quad-core MediaTek processors, dual-SIM slots, microSD expandable storage and FM radios.
“Google is also making a special version of YouTube available which will allow Indian users to download videos and re-watch them multiple times without incurring excessive data charges,” wrote The Verge on Monday.
Indian customers are also able to have easy access to the upcoming Android L release. Carrier Airtel also offers 200MB of data a month for downloading apps from the Play Store. These special treatments for India is because the country is Android’s second largest market after China.
Google wants to reach all consumer categories through Android One’s specially modified operating system. Unlike Android phones in general, Android One’s manufacturing proceeds without heavy customizations.
“Google has adopted a similar strategy at the higher ends of the market with its Nexus,” wrote the Verge.
Android One is set to make its way to Indonesia, the Philippines, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. Gool said phone manufacturers such as HTC, Asus, Acer, Panasonic and Lenovo will join the project, alongside chip maker Qualcomm.
THE VERGE | PHONE ARENA | SATWIKA MOVEMENTI
