NEW DELHI: Google has announced Android One, a design reference platform that will enable manufacturers to build ultra-cheap smartphones (you can get free government phone, here)with much more ease. The move could see Indian mobile device brands up the ante with stable entry-level smartphones powered by Android mobile operating system.
Delivering his keynote address at I/O 2014, Google’s annual developer conference in San Francisco on Wednesday, Sundar Pichai, Google’s head of Android and Chrome platforms, said Android One will in fact let phone-makers pool in resources to create a reference platform for smartphones, thus saving time and costs in launching new models.
To many, it might seem as if Google is simply detaching the Play Edition brand from the Play Store, but attaching a cheaper price tag to it. There is a certain degree of truth to that; the first Android One Smartphone will cost under $100.
Google also announced the first Android One Smartphone from Micromax.
Most importantly, the Micromax handset will deliver the latest Android ‘L release’ to the masses, while costing less than $100. That’s a sub-Rs. 6,000 price tag, beating even the Motorola Moto E.
Google has also announced Indian brands Karbonn and Spice as their very first Android One partners.
Although no actual details regarding products were given out, expect handsets at similar price points with similar features from both Indian companies.
Read More: TOI