Dual-SIM, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and two cameras, the Spice Fire One Mi-FX 1 delivers a lot for under $40
One
of Mozilla’s Firefox OS mobile platform partners, Spice, has introduced
the Spice Fire One Mi-FX 1, possibly the most affordable smartphone in
the world.
It will be available on August
29th, and the phone will cost just ₹2,299 ($38). India is one of the
fastest, if not the fastest, growing smartphone markets in the world.
However, the economy does not generate enough purchasing power parity
(PPP) to see higher-end smartphone sales as they exist in markets like
the United States and Europe.
The Nokia Lumia 520 was a near
nstant hit in Indiawhen it was introduced. A fully functional smartphone that sold by the truckload. It did not have the Fire One's price tag though. Now, Spice has entered the fray with a smartphone that costs as little as a feature phone, and covers all the bases to a user base that will make the upgrade to a smartphone if the price is right.
nstant hit in Indiawhen it was introduced. A fully functional smartphone that sold by the truckload. It did not have the Fire One's price tag though. Now, Spice has entered the fray with a smartphone that costs as little as a feature phone, and covers all the bases to a user base that will make the upgrade to a smartphone if the price is right.
The
Spice Fire One Mi-FX 1 may not be a spec beast, but it has the goods
that are important to developing markets, most importantly, dual-SIM.
Along with that, there is a 2-megapixel main camera, a 1.3-megapixel
front facing camera, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. The main trade-off is no 3G
mobile connectivity. That is hardly the end of the world though
considering that 2G/EDGE is still the dominant coverage across India.
The
display is a 3.5-inch panel with 480x320 (HVGA) resolution. Under the
hood is a 1GHz CPU which will power users through pre-installed apps
like Facebook and Twitter. Initial availability will be exclusively
through Snapdeal.com.
The price appeal of the
Spice Fire One Mi-FX 1 is just the beginning. Mozilla’s other OEM
partner in India, Intex, will be introducing its Firefox OS powered
device in the next couple days. It is expected to cost under ₹2,000
($33), and might cost as little as ₹1,500 ($25). Regardless of any
perceived limitations of the Firefox OS, that price range makes it
competitive with feature phones like Microsoft’s recently announced Nokia 130.
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