The long-awaited Jio feature Phone has been finally revealed amid much hype at the Reliance Annual General Meeting. The JioPhone is priced at an effective cost of Rs. 0, but the catch is that a security deposit of Rs. 1500 has to be made which would be refundable after 3 years of using the device. After targeting internet users in India with the Jio SIM and completely changing the functioning of the Telecom Communications market in India within a year itself. Now, the beast called Jio seeks to have a shot at another market. The feature Phone segment, which still continues to hold well in the Indian Market despite the Smartphone revolution is the prime target of the JioPhone. With this device, the intention is to make 2G feature phones completely obsolete and make the current feature phone users switch to the 4G-VoLte enabled JioPhone.
JioPhone Price and Availability
As Mr. Mukesh Ambani said, the device would be available at an effective price of Rs. 0. But a security deposit of Rs. 1500 is needed for purchasing the device which would get refunded after a period of 3 years whenever the Phone is returned. The JioPhone would be available for beta testing from August 15 and pre-bookings would start from August 24. All the JioPhones would be made in India. The delivery of the phones would probably start from September after the pre-booking period.
Offers
At Rs. 153 per month, users would get unlimited calling, SMS and unlimited data (500MB per day, after which FUP would be applied). For those who don’t want this offer. There are a couple of other options such as the Rs. 24 pack (for 2 days) and Rs. 54 pack (for a week). There is another plan for Rs. 309 that adds an additional option for the users to be able to stream Jio apps like JioTV and JioCinema on any television screen, even on those old CRT Monitors! This would be done with the use of a cable that could support different types of displays.
Features of the JioPhone
#1. The JioPhone comes equipped with a 2.4 inch display. This isn’t your average feature phone display though. The support for data connectivity ensures that the small screen could be used for more purposes apart from regular calling.
#2. Mukesh Ambani called this device a “smartphone” at the AGM. It’s anything but that. It does have some features which no other feature phones currently have. The JioPhone has 4G-VoLte connectivity which is the key differentiating factor of the device. No other feature phone boasts of the ability to connect to 4G networks.
#3. Some other specs include 4GB of internal storage, 512MB of RAM, a 2MP rear camera and a VGA Front Camera, FM and Bluetooth connectivity, a Headphone Jack, Torch, dual SIM connectivity and an SD card slot.
#4. Another massive feature would be the ability to use NFC, which would be introduced later on the JioPhone with a software update. This would allow the users to make payments directly through the smartphone, an ability unknown to feature phones until now.
Reliance has struck all the right chords with the JioPhone, there are millions of Indian who still prefer a normal bar-shaped feature phone instead of a touchscreen smartphone. Understanding these facts, the JioPhone is built to be put into such hands which prefer the usability of these simple phones. One could say that it is indeed a ‘Smart Phone’ for those who are not well aware of the abilities of real smartphones. As a cherry on top, the affordable data packages would only tempt the potential customers more, along with the purchase value which is actually refundable. It is safe to say now that Jio truly has brought in a revolution in the way we Indians have been using the Internet until now. With the introduction of the JioPhone, the spread of internet has gone over to all those who were an exception at the time when Jio launched their initially free 4G Internet service schemes for 4G enabled Smartphones in 2016.
