14 DAY TRIAL // Cricket Wireless, the US-based operator, has just enlisted Kyocera's Zio Android-based smartphone on its 'coming soon' webpage. Rumors say that the device will start ship on August 15th. Cricket also plans to release an new $55 unlimited rate plan, that would go with the smartphone, which supposed to be half the cost of AT&T and Verizon. The company is well-known for its flate rate billing method, offering month-to-month contracts only, instead of long-term service contracts as other service providers in the U.S.
Kyocera's Zio phone seems to be the first Android smartphone that is coming on Cricket operator. As the company doesn't offer long-terms contracts, it was obvious that Cricket would choose an entry-level Android device, instead of a more expensive high-end one. Another reason behind Cricket's choice is the rather high prices that its phones are sold for, courtesy to its very cheap calling and data plans.
Kyocera Zio comes with an earlier Android 1.6 operating system and is powered by a 600 MHz Qualcomm MSM7227 processor. It sports a 3.5-inch WVGA capcitive touchscreen (480x800 pixels resolution), a 3.2-megapixel camera, 512 MB internal memory, and microSD memory slot (supports up to 32GB microSD cards). The phone is compatible with 1x EV-DO Rev.A (800MHz, 1900 MHz), and features Wi-Fi, and A-GPS/E-911 capable.
The smarpthone is pretty sleek and features a bar form factor. It measures 116 x 58.6 x 12.2 mm and weighs 105g (including battery). Other key features of Kyocera Zio include: built-in media player, digital compass, light sensor, GoogleMaps, Hearing Aid compatibility, Stereo Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR, as well as multiple language options (English and Spanish).
It seems that Cricket is planning to start shipping Zio smartphone next month for more than $250 USD, which is not that cheap. Especially, if we compare it with other alternatives from major U.S. operators.