If you’re after a simple phone that doesn’t cost a fortune and is easy to use regardless of technical ability, Aspera’s new $99 4G flip phone might be the phone for you.
Despite its tiny price tag – and classic flip-phone form factor – the Aspera F40 is fairly well fully featured, including the following features:
- 4G connectivity with VoLTE for calls (better voice quality)
- 5MP camera and 2.8-inch display
- WiFi (and hotspot) capability
- SOS button for easy help in an emergency
Aspera Mobile MD Allan Robertson explained the rationale for the new flip phone:
“With so many customers asking us about potential 3G network closures, and the cost of 4G chipsets coming down, the time was right to launch an affordable 4G flip phone, and so the F40 was born.
The feedback from our customers was that they essentially wanted to retain the experience they were getting on our previous 3G F24 and F28 phones, but also wanted access to some new features and capability that comes with Android and of course operating on 4G.”
Despite its outward appearance, the Aspera F40 runs Android on the inside, and it has been designed to be used exclusively through the phone’s physical keypad rather than a touchscreen.
The Aspera F40 is designed with users who don’t need nor want a smartphone on them at all times – think about kids perhaps who only need to make occasional calls or send messages to mum or dad after school, or for your elderly relatives who just need a way to stay in touch with family and friends (and to call for help should something go wrong).
At just $99 from Big W, Harvey Norman, BP, Retravision and MobileCiti, the Aspera F40 is fairly widely available and could be just what you’re looking for.
