Sony Xperia C3, the successor to the mid-range C model, has been listed by online retailer Infibeam, the selling price has not been specified by the etailer yet.
The phone, with a sticker price of Rs 23,990, is expected to sell for Rs 22,000 when it makes its debut online. The price is then expected to fall to Rs 21,000 within two weeks.
The ‘stable’ price for the Xperia C3 is seen at Rs 18,000 or so, which would be achieved after the initial euphoria over the ‘selfie’ phone dies down in a month or so.
The phone has almost very similar specifications to the Xiaomi Redmi 1S, which is priced at just Rs 5,999.
Both have the same processor, Snapdragon 400, and have the same resolution display – 5 inch 720p HD. The Xperia C3 has a 5.5 inch display, while the Redmi 1S has a 4.7 inch display.
However, the Chinese brand has its processor running at 1.6 GHz, while the Sony model has its chip running at just 1.2 GHz.
The only major difference is that the Sony model comes with a 5 megapixel front camera. But would you really pay nearly Rs 17,000 for a bump up in the front camera?
Of course, there one area of confusion — whether the Indian version has 4G LTE or not. Infibeam site says yes. But our sources in the industry indicate that the Indian version of C3 does not come with LTE, but only has 3G.
If it did have LTE, some amount of premium would be justified and the real value of the phone can be assumed to be around Rs 18,000 or so in the current market. But without LTE, the C3 should only be valued at Rs 14,000 or so in the current market. Add the branding and support of Sony, and you get a fair value of about Rs 16,000-17,000 — exactly what the phone’s predecessor, the C, is priced at.