14 DAY TRIAL // A few days ago, Indian mobile phone maker Intex officially confirmed plans to bring to the market handsets running under Mozilla’s Firefox OS platform, and some more info on the matter is now available.
The first such device from the company will be released under the name of Intex Cloud FX, it seems, and is set to make an official appearance on shelves in August.
The handset vendor has officially confirmed the smartphone’s name and launch timeframe, while also saying that it will make it available for purchase with a price tag below the Rs. 2,000 ($33/€25) mark.
At this price, the handset is expected to prove highly popular among budget users in India, especially those who are looking to upgrade to a smartphone from a feature phone.
However, those who are thinking about grabbing the phone should not expect it to include anything else than low-end hardware specifications inside.
According to Intex, the upcoming Cloud FX will feature the same 3.5-inch touchscreen display that the reference design handset from Mozilla does. However, it will provide users with dual-SIM capabilities, it seems.
“Intex’s association with Mozilla Firefox is a step towards our brand’s promise to offer quality products to our consumers to improve their lives and set industry benchmarks,” Sanjay Kumar Kalirona, business head, Mobile, Intex Technologies (India) Ltd, has said.
“Intex Cloud FX is aimed at fulfilling the idea of – ‘Smartphone for all’ which will be priced below Rs. 2,000.”
“This smartphones will be equipped with enhanced phone and browser features of Firefox OS with an access to a rich ecosystem of latest web applications improving users overall smartphone experience at affordable prices,” he adds.
However, despite the fact that this new model will include only basic hardware inside, Intex is confident in the success of Firefox OS in India.
The company is looking to sell around 3 million smartphones this year and hopes that the upcoming Intex Cloud FX will allow it to achieve this goal.
However, the vendor won’t be the only one planning Firefox OS devices for India, as Spice also confirmed plans to release such a device, as soon as the next month. Moreover, as mobigyaan notes, other mobile phone makers in the country could also follow suit.
In the meantime, however, we should note that Android phones too have started to become cheaper in India, and that Karbonn and Celkon have both released new devices priced below Rs. 3,000 ($50/€37), which means that Firefox OS will see increased competitiveness in the country.