Cheapest
Mobile - world record set by Vodafone 150
BARCELONA, Spain -- During the Mobile World Congress
in Barcelona, Vodafone unveiled the Vodafone 150 mobile
phone, which has has most of the basic features like voice,
SMS and support for mobile payment services and will retail
unsubsidized at below $15 , setting the world record for the
Cheapest
Mobile. Photo: Vodafone 150 (enlarge
photo)
The Vodafone
150 will retail unsubsidised at below $15 USD and
the Vodafone 250 will retail unsubsidised at below
$20 USD, depending on the local market.
The Vodafone 150 and Vodafone 250
both offer excellent voice and SMS services, as well as support
for mobile payment services. The two devices share most specification
features, the main differences between them being that the
Vodafone 250's screen is both color and slightly larger, and
it has an FM radio. Launching in the first instance in India
and six markets in Africa - The Democratic Republic of Congo,
Kenya, Mozambique, Qatar, South Africa and Tanzania - it is
in emerging markets such as these that the potential of the
mobile phone as a powerful social enabler is most apparent.
Photo: Vodafone 150(enlarge
photo)
To maximize the availability of the handsets
across countries with sizeable and isolated rural populations,
the launches will be supported by an extensive logistics infrastructure,
reaching deep rural segments where mobile penetration typically
remains low.
In India, it is expected that device availability
will reach 60 percent of the population. The UN predicts that
mobile ownership will reach 5bn in 2010, with most growth
in the developing world.
Patrick Chomet, Vodafone's Group Director
of Terminals, said, "The cost of mobile handsets can be one
of the most significant barriers for people in accessing and
benefiting from the growing number of socially valuable mobile
services. The lives of people who use these phones - the Vodafone
150 and Vodafone 250 - will be changed and improved
as they become part of the mobile society. I am proud of the
work we have done and will continue to do in this critical
area of customer empowerment."
By focusing on a custom-built feature set
and packaging design – without any compromise to user experience,
quality or safety – and by successfully leveraging vendor
and partner relationships along the supply chain, Vodafone
and handset manufacturer TCL have been able to significantly
reduce the usual manufacturing costs and, therefore, the retail
price.
Nokia has been planning to launch a $10
phone for a long time but the product has still not seen the
light of the day.
