The launch of the Android One program announced at Google I/O is apparently set for launch in India tomorrow, where Three manufacturers – Spice, Karbonn and MicroMax – are expected to announce handsets. Indian retailer, Flipkart has accidentally listed the first Android One handset from Spice on their website, giving us a look at the specs, price and design of one of the first phones in the Android One program.
Android One is of course a reference design from Google, which allows manufacturers to simply create a phone, which Google will supply the base operating system for, essentially a pure Google Android OS. Carriers and manufacturers can localise the phone with their own software customisations, with apps available from Google Play.
It’s these customisations we’ve been given a first look at with this leak, with the handset from Spice listed on Flipkart coming pre-installed with Spice and Flipkart including the Flipkart shopping app, Flipkart Ebook, Reverie Smartpad and Facebook. There’s also bonus cloud storage included with the handset, with Spice offering 10GB of cloud storage, as well as the Spice Cloud app, and Google throwing in 35GB of Google Drive storage – 20GB above the standard 15GB with a Google Account.
The Spice Android One Dream Uno (Mi-498) is a fairly cheap handset, priced at Rs. 6,999(approximately AUD$128) includes a modest hardware spec, including :
- 4.5″ FWVGA (854×48) resolution IPS Display
- 1.3GHz Quad Core processor with Mali-400 GPU
- 1GB RAM
- 4GB on-board storage with microSD Card (up to 32GB)
- 5MP Rear Camera with LED Flash and 2MP Front-Facing Camer
- WiFi, Bluetooth v4.0, A-GPS,FM Radio
- Gravit, Proximity, Light, Magnetic and Gyro Sensors
- Radios
- 2G: 2100
- 3G: 850/900/1800/1900
- Android 4.4.4
- 67x132x9.15mm @ 614grams
- 1700mAh Li-Polymer battery
We should know more about the Android One platform, as well as get a look at the other Android One handsets from Karbonn and MicroMax at the launch event tomorrow. We’ll be attempting to get all the handsets and check them out in detail. If you have any contacts in India who can help us out, let us know.
