Reliance Jio has finally unveiled its budget and economical 4G VoLTE feature named JioPhone in India. The launch took place at the Reliance Industries Annual General Meeting (AGM) 2017.
The JioPhone has been in the rumour/leak mill quite a long time and has aroused much anticipation in consumers or the people of India. Now that it has received its final word from the company, let’s take a look at what the feature phone offers in terms of features, specs and also the pricing as well as the benefits.
JioPhone Features
The main highlight of JioPhone is support for 4G VoLTE and termed as the “India ka smartphone”’ by Mukesh Ambani, Chairman, Reliance Industries Limited.
JioPhone packs in a 2.4-inch QVGA display with 512MB RAM and 4GB of internal storage with support for microSD via a dedicated card slot. A 4-way navigation key which can act as a digital voice assistant which is super helpful in making calls, responding to SMS, and answering user queries etc. as well (supports 24 Indian languages).
You will also find the typical alphanumeric keypad as well. It also features a headphone jack, microphone, speaker, and supports FM Radio as well.
The phone comes pre-loaded with Jio apps including JioCinema so that users can enjoy watching movies.
It has an SOS feature as well, which can be activated by long pressing digit 5 to call nears and dears during an emergency situation. JioPhone users also digital payment support via NFC later in the year. This feature will be enabled via the software upgrade and will allow JioPhone users to make contactless or quick payments via Credit/debit cards, Jhan Dhan account, UPI payment etc.
With JioPhone TV-Cable accessory, the users will be able to cast phone screen content on to a big screen like a TV etc. which is a revolutionary feature and takes entertainment with JioMusic or JioCinema to new heights. To avail this offer, users will have to opt for an additional data recharge of Rs 309 per month.
JioPhone: Price, Plans and Release Date
- JioPhone will be available to all Indians for an effective price of Rs 0.
- JioPhone is effectively free for Jio customers. However, to protect against misuse of the free JioPhone offer, a fully refundable, one-time, security deposit of Rs 1,500 will be collected with every JioPhone purchase. A JioPhone user can use the
- Past 3 years, a JioPhone user can return the used device and get a full refund of the security deposit of Rs 1,500.
- Every JioPhone user will have access to free voice calls, SMS, with no extortionist data charges at Rs 153/month bringing the highest quality, highest quantity, most affordable and unlimited data for JioPhone users.
- In order to fit every pocket, Jio is also introducing TWO SACHETS – Rs 24 for 2 days and Rs 54 per week, providing similar values and all the features.
- The JioPhone will be available for user testing in beta from 15th August and for pre-booking from 24th August.
- Shipments will begin sometime in September 2017. And from the last quarter of this year, all JioPhones will be made in India with a target of 5 million JioPhones available every week.
Do let us know your thoughts about JioPhone price, features etc. in the comments below.
