Android One smartphones such as the MyPhone Uno and Cherry Mobile One are not a hundred percent success here in the Philippines and their peers in other countries.
Hence, Google is set to reboot the Android One program by launching new devices according to a report on Financial Times. Some will have better specs and slightly higher price while others will be as cheap as $50 or a little under ₱2,500!
| MyPhone Uno – one of the first Android One smartphones in the Philippines. |
First generation of Android One devices were priced at $100 or ₱4,500 but their specs were not on par with other bang for the buck smartphones that has flooded the Philippine and Indian markets.
Their main selling point are having Android Lollipop as the OS, promise of guaranteed software updates and high quality materials. However, those were not enough for the specs-hungry consumers.
Android One’s managing director, Rajan Anandan, admitted that the project faced a few hiccups.
Hence, Google’s new strategy is to launch two varieties of Android One – midrange and entry level. The first one includes the upcoming Cherry Mobile One 4G and Lava Pixel V1 while devices on the latter category should be announced soon.
Some are still pessimistic though. After all, Google doesn’t have a stellar record in terms of hardware products. Nevertheless, a successful Android One program will mostly benefit first time Android phone users.
What do you think of this move from Google?
