Maker of US$33 smartphone hails 'new era' for India

The maker of a new US$33 (S$41) smartphone billed as India's cheapest said on Wednesday (Aug 27) it aims to sell half a million in the next three months in what it called a "new era" for the market.

Indian Bollywood actor-director Farhan Akhtar (centre) poses with models holding the Intex phone at a launch event in Mumbai. (AFP/Indranil Mukherjee

The maker of a new US$33 (S$41) smartphone billed as India's cheapest said on Wednesday (Aug 27) it aims to sell half a million in the next three months in what it called a "new era" for the market.

Indian mobile phone maker Intex has teamed up with California-based Mozilla - the non-profit organisation behind the Firefox open-source web browser - to create a cheaper alternative to Apple's iPhone and Samsung's Galaxy.

Intex spokeswoman Joyeeta Mitra said the handset, which went on sale this week, was aimed at first-time smartphone buyers and was the cheapest yet to hit the market. "We're moving into a new era in smartphones," Mitra told AFP. "This is a user-friendly handset that can help people onto smartphones and onto the Internet. "We have big expectations that this phone will find a large market and we are expect 500,000 sales in the first three months."

The company is initially targeting the Indian market but expects to expand sales to other countries in Asia, she said.

India's smartphone market is growing rapidly. US market research firm IDC reported shipments leapt by 186 per cent to 17.59 million smartphones in the first financial quarter to June from a year earlier. IDC forecast that smartphone sales would continue to rocket in coming years, growing at an annual rate of 40 per cent for the next five years.

But price is key in India, which according to the World Bank is home to one-third of the world's poor. Three-quarters of smartphone sales in India are below US$200. The Intex offering undercuts the Smart A50S, made by Indian handset maker Karbonn which was launched in June at 2,790 rupees (US$46).

Mozilla has been teaming up in the low-cost smartphone market in the developing world with Alcatel, Huawei and LG, with a focus on Latin America.

Oppo Find 7 with QHD screen goes Flipkart exclusive, listed for Rs. 37,990

Oppo Mobiles' entire range of smartphones that have been launched in India till date will be available to online customers through Flipkart. Oppo says its Find 7 smartphone will be exclusively available through Flipkart.

The company believes the tie up with Flipkart will help increase pan-India footprint. It is also planning to set up more service centres in the next one year. Oppo has already launched 10 devices, between Rs. 10,000 and Rs. 40,000, in India this year. 

Commenting on the tie up, Mr. Tom Lu, CEO, OPPO Mobiles India says, “Flipkart is one of the most popular shopping platforms with a very loyal customer base and by partnering with them, we are sure OPPO’s smartphones will reach out to more customers. With our products, Indian customers will get a chance to experience the best in innovation, the way many customers have enjoyed globally .”

Interestingly, Oppo has already tied up with Amazon.in to sell its smartphones online.

Oppo's Find 7 was announced in June this year. The Find 7 is among the first smartphones to feature 2k display. Other important features of the device include quad-core processor, 3GB of RAM, 13MP rear camera and 4G connectivity. Read: Oppo Find 7 Review

Of late, we have seen several smartphone companies taking online route to sell their products. Flipkart has had several high profile exclusive tie ups that includes Motorola and Xiaomi. Samsung is also planning to partner with Flipkart for the launch of its next smartphone – Galaxy S5 mini.

Xiaomi Mi 3 goes on sale again tomorrow: Here’s how you can get one successfully

The next batch of one of the most coveted smartphones this season will go live tomorrow on August 26 at 2 pm. This time there will be  20,000 units of the Xiaomi Mi 3 going on sale.

If you’ve tried buying one before, you’ll know that grabbing a unit on Flipkart is not easy. The sales always close in seconds, leaving a bunch of people high and dry. This time, Flipkart has received 1,00,000 registrations for the phone, which means it is going to be even harder to bag the phone.

But if you are determined to get your Mi 3 smartphone this time, here are a few tips that can up your chances of getting one:

1. Start early: Flipkart tends to crash or takes time to load closer to the opening of the sale. So make sure you have logged on to Flipkart with your registered account at least two hours before the sale starts.

2. Enable cookies: Cookies allow websites to recognise you when you return to them, which makes the browser to load webpages faster. When you register on Flipkart and save your contact details, make sure you’ve enabled cookies on your computer. To do this, you’ll  need to go to your browsers Settings page and look for the cookies option.

3. Use multiple web pages: To better your chances of getting a phone, try opening the page on separate devices such as a tablet or a smartphone. If you don’t have a separate device, open the page on multiple browser windows (windows, not tabs). Press Alt+Tab to quickly switch between windows. Getting a friend to click on different pages for you might be useful.

4. Use a single account: Many may tell you to register more than one account to boost your chances of obtaining an Mi 3 smartphone. However, Flipkart’s policy is against people trying to buy the phone using multiple accounts. Even if you do manage to buy the phone doing this, there’s a good chance of the purchase getting cancelled later on.

5. Type quickly: All of Xiaomi’s sales in the past have lasted for no more than 5 seconds. This means you’ll need to type in your details as fast as you can. If you can’t, try getting a friend who can type fast for you. One of our readers suggested memorising card details to speed up the purchase time. Also, try keeping your typing-time to the minimum by save your shipping address and contact details beforehand.

6. Click before you see ‘Buy Now’ : Don’t wait for the countdown to end to click on Buy Now. Like an impatient kid, start clicking few seconds before you see the button. Make sure you place the mouse pointer slightly above the countdown box, as that is where the button would appear.

7. Ignore add-ons: Gift wrapping, 1-day deliveries etc can wait, but the Mi 3 smartphone does not. Opting for these add-ons could complicate the purchase process and crash the website, so stick to the normal delivery mode to keep the process as simple as possible.

8. Buy until you get a confirmation: According to one of our readers, stop only once you’ve received a confirmation of your purchase. To be sure that the phone has been added to your cart, check the orders page. Flipkart has now allowed users to complete the purchase after adding phones to your cart. This means you can try adding as many phones you want and pay Flipkart later that day.

For those too lazy to follow the steps, e-tailer Buyhatke.com has a one-click extension that claims to add the device to your cart immediately. You can check it out here. 

If you are wondering why the the Mi 3 has attracted so much of attention, note that it packs high-end capabilities for a meagre Rs 13,999. Read our Xiaomi Mi 3 review, to find out if it is worth buying. For those who don’t wish to be a part of the herd, check out somealternatives to the Mi 3.