Latest Podcast



Featured Articles

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

Ofcom helps protect customers against unexpected roaming charges

UK service providers must notify customers when they connect to a different network

New rules from UK telecoms regulator Ofcom will protect customers when they use their mobile phone on a foreign network. In addition, customers will be alerted if they are inadvertently roaming, perhaps because they're near an international border.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Global smartphone market is set for recovery, says new forecast

A new forecast from research specialists Canalys shows the smartphone market is set to recover next year. Worldwide shipments declined by 12% last year but that decline is expected to slow to 5% this year.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

Vodafone and Three plan to merge their UK businesses

New Hutchison/Vodafone network would be biggest UK operator

Vodafone Group plc and CK Hutchison Group Telecom Holdings Limited have agreed to combine their UK telecommunication businesses, respectively Vodafone UK and Three UK. The merger will create a large new network operator to compete with Virgin Media O2 and EE.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

UK mobile payment service Paym to close in March 2023

UK mobile payment service Paym will close on 7th March 2023. The service, which allowed users to make and receive payments using their mobile phone numbers, was launched in 2014.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Qualcomm legal action moves forward in the UK

Which? seeks payout for Samsung and Apple smartphone owners

Consumer protection organisation Which? has been given permission by the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal to represent Apple and Samsung smartphone buyers in a legal case against chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS

Opinion Articles

Thursday, February 18, 2010

HTC Smart could start a smartphone price war

Mark Bridge writes:

I’ve previously talked about a report from 2009 which warned how touch-screen phones that weren’t true smartphones were pushing down ARPU. Consumers thought they were buying something that was relatively advanced but were being seduced by form over function.

This week HTC stepped in to the arena with the HTC Smart, described by HTC's Peter Chou as "a more-affordable smartphone". Although it may not fit everyone’s definition of a smartphone, it certainly ticks most of the boxes. It has an open operating system, Qualcomm’s Brew platform, which has over 18,000 available applications and has been installed on over 1200 handset models worldwide.

The processor is a decent-enough 300MHz device, there’s an expandable memory, a 2.8-inch screen, a 3-megapixel camera and pocket-friendly 104 x 55 x 12.8mm dimensions.

HTC SmartThe HTC Smart is coming exclusively to O2 in Germany, Ireland and the United Kingdom from April, as well as being available on other networks worldwide.

It’s equipped with the HTC Sense interface, immediately recognisable from HTC’s other smartphones. Consumers can customise the phone’s home page with widgets for fast access to their favourite applications, with the option of different ‘scenes’ for home, work, weekend and so on.

And it’s ready for social networking, aggregating information from Facebook and Twitter into a single stream of updates.

Steve Alder from Telefonica O2 promised that the HTC Sense would be “less than half the price of a smartphone today”. He wouldn’t talk about specific tariff pricing but those comments suggest a prepay price of well under £100 or perhaps a ‘pay monthly’ deal of £15.

When the iPhone’s exclusivity ended, we didn’t see a price war between Orange, Tesco Mobile and Vodafone. Nothing more than a minor tariff skirmish. But perhaps the HTC Sense could launch a much bigger conflict: the battle of the smartphones. Not a battle between manufacturers or operating systems. But a battle of high-street prices.

Print
Author: The Fonecast
1 Comments
Rate this article:
No rating

Categories: OpinionNumber of views: 7562

Tags:

1 comments on article "HTC Smart could start a smartphone price war"

1
0
Avatar image

The Fonecast

3/10/2010 7:05 AM

The Juniper Research Blog is asking "Can 2010 be the year of the low cost Smartphone?"
digg.com/u1PnW3

Leave a comment

This form collects your name, email, IP address and content so that we can keep track of the comments placed on the website. For more info check our Privacy Policy and Terms Of Use where you will get more info on where, how and why we store your data.
Add comment

Recent Podcasts

Podcast - 20th July 2011

This week's podcast takes a look at Everything Everywhere's departing CEO, Vodafone's security concerns, ZTE's own-brand phones, HTC's legal worries and Sony Ericsson's results. As usual, the programme is hosted by Iain Graham with James Rosewell and Mark Bridge.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 15th July 2011

As 'voicemail hacking' news stories continue, Iain Graham talks to mobile industry crime-fighter Jack Wraith. Jack discusses mobile phone security from his position as head of the Telecommunications UK Fraud Forum and the Mobile Industry Crime Action Forum.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 13th July 2011

We're talking about the EC's new roaming proposition, eBay's latest mobile payment purchase, Three's partnership with Ovi and all the other top mobile industry news stories in this week's podcast.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 8th July 2011

Neelie Kroes, European Commission Vice President for the Digital Agenda, announces the EC's new plans to cut the cost of roaming from next year. Mobile phone calls, text messages and data charges will all be given maximum limits - and new 'roaming only' tariffs could also be introduced.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating

Podcast - 6th July 2011

We're talking about Nortel patents, Google Plus, roaming charges and health concerns in this week's mobile industry podcast... but that's not all. We also discuss mobile payments, security, gambling, apps and the Pope's first Tweet.

Author: The Fonecast
0 Comments
Article rating: No rating
RSS
First4950515254565758Last

Follow thefonecast.com

Twitter @TheFonecast RSS podcast feed
Find us on Facebook Subscribe free via iTunes

Archive Calendar

«November 2024»
MonTueWedThuFriSatSun
28293031123
45678910
11121314151617
18192021222324
2526272829301
2345678

Archive

Terms Of Use | Privacy Statement