14 DAY TRIAL // Huawei just showcased one of the cheapest Android smartphones on the market, known as Huawei Ascend. The device is expected to be released somewhere in mid October at Cricket, together with a Mi-Fi-like device called Crosswave.
It seems that the Chinese manufacturer has specialized in releasing very cheap low-end Android smartphones or just mid-end smartphones at a very affordable price.
The first attempt to design a top-tier device is Huawei Ideo, which hasn't been officially launched yet.
We're not sure what kind of processor powers Huwaei Ascend, but it's most likely a 528MHz processor. The really nice surprise is the fact that the Ascend is running on Android 2.1 platform.
The recently announced Motorola Citrus seems to be the main competitor for Huawei Ascend, but the latter will probably features the most affordable price.
Huawei Ascend comes with a 3.5-inch HVGA capacitive touchscreen, Wi-Fi capability, 3.2-megapixel camera with digital zoom and fixed focus.
The only downside of the device seems to be the cheap looking plastic, which is also a fingerprint magnet.
The smartphone features physical Android-specific buttons, such as Send, Menu, Back, End, trackball, dedicated camera key, as well as microUSB port, 3.5mm audio jack port and microSD card slot for memory expansion.
The Ascend will be offered on Cricket's all-inclusive $55 Android plan, which provides users with unlimited talk, text, 411 information, navigation, international text, unlimited and video picture messages, unlimited data services.
Huawei Ascend is expected to be launched at Cricket operator and will be available for only $149.99 free of contract.
About the same period, mid October, Cricket will launch Crosswave Mi-Fi-like device, which can be used as mobile hotspot for up to five laptops/PCs.
There's no word on Crosswave's price yet, but expect it to be lesser than most other devices in its range on the market.