Sony’s 5.5-inch, Android KitKat-based Xperia C3 will be available in the Rs 19,000-21,000 range when the phone is launched in coming weeks in India, according to industry sources. The phone will compete in the space between the mid-range and the top-end and the model would be available in the next five to six days in stores. The price is expected to drop to about Rs 18,500 in two weeks after launch.
There are two versions, an LTE version that has already been launched in China for around Rs 19,000 and a 3G-only version that is likely to be launched in India. Though the 3G version should have been priced around 16,500 or so going by the price of the LTE version, extra taxes here would take the price to the 20,000 range.
The phone will have slightly-below-top-end specifications, but will be better than the outgoing model Xperia C, which has a MediaTek processor and a less-than-HD display.
Still the C3 will show signs of cutting costs. The display, for example, will only be 720p HD and not full HD, and the phone will be powered by a Snapdragon 400 MSM8226 chip, which comprises four A7 cores clocked at 1200 MHz. RAM will remain at 1 GB. The India version, D2502, will not have LTE.
The phone will be targeted at price conscious customers who want to buy a large-screen handset from a prominent brand, but don’t want to shell out more than Rs 20,000 for it.
Sony already has a reputation for building large-screen phones, but it doesn’t really have a good HD phablet in the sub-20,000 category right now.
Its current offerings, Sony Xperia SP and and M2 Dual, do not have HD displays.
The Xperia C3 will not have LTE, and camera resolution will be 5 MP and 8 MP, same as C. International prices should be around $180 without subsidies.
