Reliance Retail reveals how to install WhatsApp on Jiophone

Users of Jiophone, India’s highest selling mobile device, can install WhatsApp messenger starting from today, Reliance Retail said. The software can be installed by going to the phone’s appstore and downloading it. “WhatsApp will be available on the JioPhone AppStore starting 10th September, 2018 and will be rolled out on all JioPhones by 20th September, […]

Tired of losing market share, LG prices flagship G7+ at just Rs 39,999

After watching its marketshare nibbled away by online-focused rivals, Korean smartphone maker LG Electronics seems to have decided to borrow a leaf from the playbook of its competitors like OnePlus. Against the usual price of Rs 52,000-56,000 for its flagship devices, the company has priced its 128 GB G7+ ThinQ at just Rs 39,999 — […]

UIDAI Helpline: Google says was hardcoded into Android setup

The mysterious addition of the former hotline of UID Authority of India, which spooked out Android users by mysteriously appearing on their phones, was hardcoded into the Android set-up program, Google has said. Responding to concerns of users’ phones being hacked by some secret agency, which then ‘loaded’ UIDAI’s helpline number, a Google spokesperson apologized […]

UIDAI Helpline: No, your phone has not been hacked!

Telecom operators and the Unique Identification Authority of India have denied having anything to do with the ‘mysterious’ addition of the UIDAI’s former helpline to the contact lists of Android phone users in India. That leaves only three candidates — Google, which makes Android, handset makers and any of the popular apps that has been […]

Samsung ends Xiaomi’s six-month reign as India’s top smartphone brand

Samsung overtook Chinese challenger Xiaomi to retake the crown of India’s top smartphone brand in April-June period, according to market tracker CMR, even as Reliance Retail emerged as India’s biggest smartphone maker. A week ago, Counterpoint Research too had come to the same conclusion. Xiaomi had ended Samsung’s decade-long reign at the top of Indian […]

REVIEW: Oppo RealMe 1 beats Redmi Note 5 Pro as King of Mid-Range

China-based Xiaomi, India’s No.1 smartphone brand, has been forced to start an aggressive TV campaign after its biggest rival, BBK Electronics, introduced its own no-frills handset RealMe 1. With this, BBK Electronics — which owns brands such as Oppo, Vivo and OnePlus — has successfully used Xiaomi’s own strategy to challenge the No.1 smartphone brand. […]

After iPhone, Airtel offers Google Pixel 2 at Rs 2,799 per month

Bharti Airtel has started offering Google’s flagship smartphone, Pixel, on its online store at an EMI of Rs 2,799. Both the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are available, but have different down-payments. The Pixel 2 requires a down-payment of Rs 10,599 for the 64 GB version and Rs 12,599 for the 128 GB version. […]

Kerala tops smartphone penetration in India; Gujarat, Punjab close behind

Kerala has emerged as the state with the highest smartphone penetration in the country, according to data released by CyberMedia Research, a market intelligence firm tracking the technology sector. CMR’s data also reveales that on a pan-India level, about 47% of the mobile phone users in India are on smartphones, with the remaining 53% still […]

CMR calls OnePlus 6 “finest Android smartphone out there”

Market research firm CyberMedia Research has called the OnePlus 6, the latest smartphone from the eponymous Chinese start-up, the ‘finest Android smartphone out there today’. In a note trying to explain the success of the Chinese company in markets like India, Prabhu Ram, head of Industry Intelligence Group at the firm also called it the […]

Reliance Digital, Jio Stores to sell all Motorola devices

India’s largest technology retail chain Reliance Digital said it signed an agreement to sell all Motorola products at its outlets. At present, Motorola is largely an online-focused brand. Motorola, which used to be a big brand in the country in the 1990s and 2000s, lost out to Korean players like Samsung and LG about 10-12 […]

Amazon offers Rs 2,600 cashback on smartphones for Airtel users

Bharti Airtel and Amazon will offer Rs 2,600 cash back over a period of three years for anyone who purchases any of the 65 smartphones exclusively available on Amazon. However, they must make Airtel recharges of Rs 7,000 over a period three years, or about Rs 200 per month. Customers have to buy any of […]

Soaring Jiophone sales could start hurting incumbents – Credit Suisse

Jiophone sales are rising fast and could start affecting the growth rates of rival telecom companies once the churn effect of fleeing Aircel subscribers gets over, analysts from financial services firm Credit Suisse said. Analysts Sunil Tirumala and Viral Shah said trends indicated that the Jiophone is contributing about 7 mln out of the 8-9 […]

Reliance Jio’s 49 plan revives interest in Jiophone – Credit Suisse

Financial services firm Credit Suisse said sales of Jiophone, which had begun to lose steam after an initial surge, are now back on track due to the affordable Rs 49 plan launched by Reliance Jio. Jiophone, priced at Rs 1,500, is estimated to be selling at the rate of about 6 mln pieces per month, […]

Bharti Airtel’s new EMI scheme offers savings of Rs 8,000-11,000 over 2 years

Bharti Airtel, India’s largest telecom services provider, today unveiled its installment schemes for the new Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus that can save you anywhere from Rs 8,000 to Rs 11,000 over a two-year period. The plans are similar to what it has rolled out for the Apple iPhone, and offer value for those […]

Xiaomi outsells Samsung 2:1 in India’s largest smartphone market

Xiaomi, the Chinese brand, sold 2 smartphones for every smartphone sold by Samsung in Maharashtra — one of the most urbanized states in India, according to market research firm CMR. The numbers are a cause for worry for Samsung as they indicate that Xiaomi could continue to ramp up its presence in the country as […]

Jiophone decimates Samsung, itel; Powers LYF to No.1 in January

LYF, the mobile phone brand that was launched along with Reliance Jio, emerged as India’s No.1 mobile phone brand by shipments in January, market researcher CMR said. In January, LYF had a share of 27% in the overall mobile phone market in India, while Samsung was a distant second with just 12.1%. This was primarily […]