I don’t really remember the last time I heard about the Android One other than when Google had announced it in September of last year, so it would appear that it really hasn’t made much traction in India’s market. For those who aren’t really sure what Android One is, it’s Google’s way of getting inexpensive (under $100) “pure” Android devices to countries such as India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Philippines, and other South Asian countries.
Google partnered with OEMs Karbonn, Micromax, and Spice to offer these pure Android devices, but ended up only selling around 1.2 million units instead of hitting the goal of 5 billion. It looks like the reason behind the 1.2 million was due to Google having OEMs meet certain requirements for specs of the device along with certain components and suppliers. Now it appears that Google will be calming down on specific requirements in order to see the handsets get distributed more. Google is also allowing Qualcomm’s processors and not just processors from MediaTek.
Lava will be the first company to test out Google’s second attempt at Android One. Lava of course will have final say over everything – including price and hardware specifications – on their upcoming Android One units. Manufacturers that are still supporting Android One will continue to receive some form of help to promote their devices to customers.
No word on when Google will be starting up the Android One program again, but rumours on the Internet indicate that it will be out in the coming months, so we should see something by the end of Q1 2016.
What are your thoughts about Google restarting the Android One program in India’s market, or even in other countries that support Android One? Let us know by leaving your comments down below or on Google+, Facebook, or Twitter.
[button link=”http://www.techtimes.com/articles/103496/20151105/google-planning-a-comeback-for-android-one-with-new-low-cost-smartphone-in-india.htm” icon=”fa-external-link” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Source: Tech Times[/button]Last Updated on November 27, 2018.
